Ten Tips to Help Seasonal Allergies
These ten tips can help you reduce symptoms from seasonal nasal allergies*:
- Avoid outdoor activity between 5 a.m. and 10 a.m. when pollen counts are the highest.
- Schedule outdoor activities for the afternoon or after heavy rains, when pollen levels are lower.
- Avoid grasses like Timothy, Johnson, Bermuda, Orchard, Sweet Vernal and Kentucky Bluegrass, which are known to produce allergenic pollen.
- Avoid smaller flowers with little color, as they tend to cause more allergy symptoms. Brightly colored flowers that attract bees and other insects or hummingbirds are generally not allergenic.
- Dry your freshly washed clothing in a household dryer- hanging clothes outside can allow pollen to collect on them.
- Wash your hair after you have been outdoors if the pollen count is high that day.
- Wash pillowcases regularly with hot water to remove pollen.
- Keep doors and windows shut during the allergy season to help keep allergens out.
- Maintain the air filters in your home and clean them often, especially during allergy season.
- Carefully clean bookshelves, vents, windowsills and other areas where pollen can settle.
*Adapted from an excerpt from the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences – NIH. Available at: http://www.niehs.nih.gov/health/topics/conditions/asthma/pollen.cfm. Accessed February 10, 2009.
