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The New Braunfels ISD Health Services team wants to remind you to keep track of the pollen count throughout the day, every day. Pollen counts tend to be higher in the morning. Trees, grasses and weeds release pollen first thing in the morning.
Mold is present during pollen season as well. Signs and symptoms of mold allergies include runny nose, nasal congestion, sneezing, sore throat, and watery or itchy eyes. People with asthma may feel tightened airways. Even a tiny amount of exposure to mold can cause symptoms.
Changes in the weather during pollen season can also affect your asthma and allergies.
Temperature changes, humidity changes and rain and wind from thunderstorms can inflame airways. leading to asthma flares. People with respiratory conditions often breathe through the mouth. This can bring weather-related irritants directly to the lungs. It also doesn’t allow your nose to regulate the humidity and air temperature.
Pollen allergy seasons are trending toward becoming longer and more severe. This is due to changing weather patterns resulting from climate change. People with allergies may find they need to use more allergy medications to manage symptoms. Talk with your doctor about whether to adjust your treatment plan.
How does the weather affect symptoms?
Humid air is moist and heavy. When the air is stagnant, air quality goes down. This makes breathing harder for everyone. It can trigger an asthma and allergy flare-up since mold and bacteria grow better in moist environments. Humid weather can worsen allergy symptoms.
Hot weather often impacts air quality. Ozone can rise to dangerous levels, irritating your respiratory system. Increased traffic, exhaust, smog and other pollutants can make breathing harder if you have asthma.
Cold, dry air may seem better for your breathing than hot, humid air. Unfortunately, breathing it in can make the bronchial tubes constrict and spasm as they try to keep airways open, making symptoms worse.
Thunderstorms bring barometric changes, high humidity and winds that blow pollen and mold spores everywhere. This can lead to what’s called thunderstorm asthma. In addition, lightning generates nitrogen oxides that can impact ground-level ozone, irritating the lungs and airways.
Changing weather patterns alter barometric pressure, which can trigger sinus problems and make breathing harder if you have asthma.
The Asthma and Allergy Forecast tool uses advanced data to determine potential asthma and allergy triggers on a given day, including the pollen count today. It also provides data on the daily risk and spread of the flu virus.
Here’s how to use the Asthma and Allergy Forecast tool:
Enter a date and location for an index number that combines the weather, pollen count, mold spores, and spread of allergic asthma allergens. The data highlights the extent to which environmental factors can impact asthma, allergies and the flu virus in your area on that day. These factors can cause the immune system to react. They can cause allergic reactions and allergy-induced asthma.
Here’s what the indexes mean:
- Asthma index: A combination of weather factors that can trigger asthma symptoms. A higher index value means more people with asthma will be affected by weather factors. These factors include temperature, humidity, and allergens in the air that affect people with allergic asthma.
- Allergy index: A combination of weather factors and plant growth stages that increase the risk and spread of airborne pollen. A higher index value represents a high pollen count.
- Flu index: A combination of historical flu data and temperatures. The index represents the degree to which transmission of the virus is favorable. A higher flu index means the spread of a flu virus is very favorable, assuming the disease is present.
The colored bars atop each index represent where the data stands based on the forecast date. Each index is scaled from 0 to 10, with 0 being very low and 10 being very high. The further to the right the tick mark is, the higher the index level.
