Sneeze-o-Meter: When wind eases up, so does tree pollen
The annual tree-pollen count has begun, officially.
Based on the sampling by Dr. Donald J. Dvorin at the Asthma Center, who is the official pollen counter for the National Allergy Board, tree pollen was very high early in the week, but dropped Thursday.
FRIDAY:
Trees: Very High
Grasses: Not Seen
Ragweed: Not Seen
Other Weeds: Not Seen
Outdoor Mold Spores: Moderate ↓
Predominant allergen(s): Juniper/Cedar Tree Pollen
Our skies have ranged from rain, sleet, and snow this morning to sunny, bright blue with gorgeous clouds this afternoon. According to Dr. Dvorin, consecutive days of colder temperatures may impact the spring pollen season, so keep an eye out for the next pollen counts beginning Monday!
THURSDAY: Tree pollen volume is lower Thursday due to less winds. Mold spores doubled and according to Dr Dvorin, molds "are picking up speed due to many days of warm weather."
Today's early debut of Pine tree pollen in our area highlights how different each year can be. Dr. Dvorin reviewed his historical data for the last two years for pine pollen season in our area and found that in 2016, pine pollen was observed from late March through late June with a peak of record extreme levels set March 31, 2016. In 2015, the pine pollen season for our region was shorter with pine pollen observed only infrequently in March 2015, peaked late May and ended the first week in June.
"For individuals who today are sneezing, itching, have itchy watery eyes and/or other allergy & asthma symptoms, exposure to multiple aeroallergens — what's in the air — especially pine pollen in our air matters now," explains Dr. Goldstein. "Pine pollen makes our region unique from an allergy perspective compared to other areas of the Northeastern U.S. where pine pollen is minimal, nonexistent, or other species are prevalent."
The Good News: Rain and cooler temperatures in the last 24 hours appear to be suppressing pollen & mold in our air.
The Bad News: While Juniper Tree Pollen is again predominant (more than 50% of overall tree pollen today), Dr. Dvorin observed an increase in the varieties of tree pollen present including Elm, Birch, Beech,Pine, Cottonwood, and Willow tree pollen.
No two allergy sufferers are alike, so over-the-counter medication may not work well for everyone's symptoms. Instead, allergists and pediatric allergists develop personalized treatment plans to help our patients feel better. We identify specific levels of allergic sensitivity using minimally invasive in-house diagnostics, like allergy skin testing. Pairing these results with local knowledge of allergy triggers like pollen, ragweed and mold, allergists develop personalized plans that treat not only the symptoms but also the cause of allergies. And because allergy symptoms often spike with pollen, we know exactly when to adjust allergy medication – providing more relief when conditions are bad and less medication every time else.
Our ultra-mild winter, one of the warmest on record, and the other-worldly warmth of February, evidently have given the season a jump-start.
We remind our readers that the pollen count estimates the number of pollen grains that would pass through a refrigerator-sized parcel of air during a 24-hour period.
Arriving at the count is rather labor-intensive and complicated.
Dvorin places Burkhard Traps - devices that capture pollen on a glass slide - on roofs in Center City and Cherry Hill. He examines the slides under a microscope each weekday morning.
As we find out in the aftermath of severe storms, this is quite a tree-intensive area.
As many as 100 species of trees send out the homely grains, some so tiny they are invisible to the naked eye. If they land in the nose of an allergy sufferer, they will become annoying.
Here's to a gentle season.