Allergies make an unhappy bloom

Summer is coming, but you've still got the winter blues - or least the accompanying stuffy nose. For millions of Americans, spring does not mean warm weather and pretty flowers but a miserable allergy season.

In Baltimore, what is commonly thought of as "allergy season" begins around March 1, when trees and flowers first start blooming.

In order to reproduce, plants produce pollen that carries their genetic information. While many flowers rely on insects to transport their sticky pollen, other plants make tiny, lightweight pollen grains that the wind carries to nearby plants.

These microscopic wind-blown pollen grains can enter human noses and throats, causing allergic reactions during pollen season.

In North America, the pollen grains that most often cause people to have allergies are those that come from weeds, grasses and deciduous trees.

According to the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the human immune system normally functions by attacking bacteria and other foreign substances that enter our bodies. This is a good thing, since its keeps us from getting sick every time we come in contact with a bacteria.

However, in the case of an allergic reaction, the body is reacting to something that is, in reality, harmless. Besides pollen, substances that cause some people to have allergic reactions include certain foods, drugs, dust, and insect venom.

Though it is not fully understood why some people have allergies and others do not, research has shown that many people inherit a tendency to have allergies. Statistics cited by the NIH state that children with even just one parent with allergies have a one in four chance of having allergies themselves.

The American Academy of Allergy Asthma & Immunology (AAAAI) lists the symptoms of allergies as: sneezing, congestion, runny nose, itchiness in the nose and ears, scratchy throat and watery/itchy eyes.

These symptoms of seasonal allergies, also known as hay fever or rhinitis, can at first seem like a common cold. According to the NIH, the only way to diagnose an allergy is through skin or blood tests that your doctor can perform.

Once you have determined that you have pollen allergies, there are three basic methods of treatment that the NIH describes.

First, as with any allergy, it is important to try to avoid whatever it is that makes you allergic. With a pollen allergy, this is not as easy as with a food or drug allergy. However, there are still basic avoidance methods to ease your symptoms.

The AAAAI recommends keeping your windows closed or using an air conditioner to cut down on the amount of pollen that enters your house, apartment or dorm. In addition, try to stay indoors in the morning, when pollen levels tend to be higher, as well as on particularly dry and windy days.

For most people, these measures are not enough to give them day-to-day relief from their allergies, and they turn to medication. Many different antihistamines, nasal decongestants, and corticosteroids are available over the counter or from a doctor.

In some patients, even these medications do little to make their life any easier during allergy season. In this case, a doctor can administer immunotherapy, also known as allergy shots.

The AAAAI describes allergy shots as a regiment of shots with gradually increasing amount of allergen, the substance that the patient is allergic to. This is meant to increase a person's tolerance to the allergen and is currently the closest thing to a cure for allergies.

For those suffering from seasonal allergies, the spring months might seem endless. With a little attention and care given to your allergies, however, the summer will be here in no time, along with lower pollen levels.