In general, to become allergic to any substance our body needs to have had previous contact with it. It is for this reason that the type of environmental allergies vary from one area to another; for example, in coastal areas mite allergies predominate, while in inland areas grass pollen allergies are more frequent.
In the Mediterranean climate the most common allergies are to weeds such as parietaria (walls, old houses), in the south of Spain allergy to olive tree pollen is more frequent, while in the north of Europe this allergy is less common and there are special cases such as the birch tree in Galicia or the palm tree in Elche.
As for genetics, pollen allergy is a complicated inheritance that is transmitted from parents to children with a high probability of being allergic if one of the parents is allergic, something that does not seem to exist in food or drug allergies (such as a university degree that we can then exercise or not).
Prevalence of allergy in Spain
Allergy has been known for a long time but it was considered a rare disease; now, however, it is increasing every year with a prevalence of 25 to 30%, being one of the 6 most frequent diseases.
1 in 3 people will suffer from an allergy in their lifetime, about 12 million people in Spain; in 2050 half of the population will have some kind of allergy and every year the number of people with allergies grows by 2%.
In 15 years the number of allergy cases has doubled; the causes? A more westernized lifestyle, excessive hygiene, pollution and lack of exposure to allergens during childhood, but many enigmas remain unsolved.
Allergy in men and women
In general, allergy is more frequent in women overall, but not in respiratory diseases, where the predisposition is similar in both genders, possibly because they take more care of themselves and go to doctors’ offices more often. Respiratory allergies appear at any age, from 0 to 100 years old, because although sensitization to pollen is a process that develops over years and the debut usually coincides with the adolescent period, allergies appear every day in younger children and older people.
How to differentiate a cold from an allergy
The symptoms are very similar and can be confused, but in general the itchy eyes and nose are more typical of the allergy that in winter dates is produced by pollen of arizonts and fungal spores, while fever, productive cough and muscle and joint pain is typical of catarrhal conditions. Of course, a runny nose with sneezing and respiratory symptoms can be any disease of the two and could start with mild symptoms and become a severe asthma attack, so I always recommend being evaluated by a specialist before medication and, logically, an allergy sufferer also gets cold.
Is pollen allergy no longer seasonal?
The allergy has ceased to be typical of May and June to start around February and remain for some time after the summer, becoming almost perennial. In addition, tree pollination is different and climatic changes also affect us with predictions. We know more and more about the climatology to predict the levels of pollens that will be released in the coming months, with sensors in large cities that collect pollen grains daily and each year we get an idea of which months there is more pollen and what type they are. It has also been seen that in years with more rain and more humidity between October and March, grasses and weeds grow more, that is, grass and spikelets in the field, with higher levels in spring and increasing hospital admissions for asthma attacks in people allergic to pollen.
What are the most identifying symptoms of allergies?
In those allergic to respiratory inhalants, rhinoconjunctival symptoms are the most frequent, with sneezing, nasal mucus, itchy eyes and nose that can be aggravated to bronchial asthma with wheezing, dry cough and fatigue on exertion if not controlled.
Other substances that by contact produce itchy skin symptoms are urticaria, edema or eczema; we can also suffer digestive symptoms if we are allergic to food and, sometimes, rapid and very severe generalized reactions can occur, which we call anaphylaxis or anaphylactic shock, which we should think about when someone starts with itching in ears and genitals, with urticaria associated with digestive symptoms and then becomes dizzy or has difficulty swallowing or breathing.
How to react to an allergy
- Environmental control
- Drugs
- Vaccines
- Education
The first thing will be to know if it is an allergy or another disease, and once the diagnosis is made, the allergy doctor will be the only one able to find the right treatment for the cause that produces the disease, because we have many treatments for the different symptoms with antihistamines that remove the itching, nasal inhalers for nasal rhinitis and bronchial inhalers for obstruction in inflammation of the bronchi, as well as eye drops and even auto-injector with adrenaline for severe cases (but remember that it is only symptomatic and does not treat the cause, which is achieved with allergy vaccines if they are properly scheduled and individualized for each patient); Moreover, they are becoming more and more potent and effective and can even be administered in drops, without needlesticks).
But perhaps the most important thing is prevention, knowing which substances cause allergies and avoiding contact with allergens; for this purpose, there are mobile applications that help us to be alert but without self-medicating and going to an allergy specialist.
Regular sport is especially recommended for asthmatic patients as it strengthens the muscles we use to breathe and we tolerate better a possible asthma attack, while low physical fitness and obesity worsen it. Of course, always assessing with your specialist the prevention of outdoor sports and how much effort we can tolerate individually.