What are the types of pollen allergy that are predominant and will continue to predominate this spring? What types of vegetation are they associated with?
In Spain, 33% of the population has some type of allergy, that is, approximately 16 million people. Of these, around 10 million Spaniards are allergic to pollens. In recent years there has been a sharp increase in the number of people allergic to plants such as grasses, the arizonica, the shade plane tree or the olive tree. Climate change and pollution are believed to be the reasons for this increase. During the winter months, arizonias pollinate, while in the spring shade banana, grasses and olive trees pollinate.
Do low temperatures and rainfall help soothe allergies in winter?
Indeed, since low temperatures cause a delay in the onset of pollination of the arizonica trees and at this time of the year there is usually heavy rainfall, which cleans the pollens from the atmosphere. This helps allergy sufferers to better control their symptoms in winter and during cold and rainy periods of the year.
What is the reason for the increase in the number of allergy sufferers each year in Spain?
There is a close relationship between environmental pollution and allergic diseases caused by pollens. The particles emitted during the combustion of diesel engines and heating systems create a hostile environment for plants, and since they cannot move as other living beings would, they defend themselves from pollution, modifying their physiology and producing new proteins called stress proteins, which are located inside the pollens, making them more aggressive. This explains why pollen allergies are more frequent in the city and in areas close to highways, compared to rural areas where there are more plants.
In addition, the increase in CO2 and temperature favors plant development, as it stimulates photosynthesis and causes an increase in pollen production.
Finally, the increase in temperature causes an earlier flowering and, as a consequence, an increase in the period of exposure to pollens which, together with the increase in pollens and the presence of new proteins, would explain why by the year 2030 one out of every 3 Spaniards could be allergic to pollens.
How to control the symptoms and which are the most advisable?
There are several methods to alleviate and control allergy symptoms:
- Antihistamines.
- Masks.
- Air purifiers.
- Immunotherapy.
However, allergic diseases require an integral management, in which the patient is taught to live better with his respiratory disease. On the other hand, of the methods mentioned, immunotherapy would be the only one capable of modifying the natural evolution of the allergy.