More than 30 million Americans suffer from some form of seasonal allergy. According to experts, this figure will only get worse over the upcoming years. The reason for this is largely down to warming global temperatures producing longer blooming seasons and as a result of this, rising CO2 levels which will ultimately lead to faster growth of weeds and trees. Unfortunately for those seasonal allergy sufferers that mean more pollen, which leads to more problems, especially for those suffering from allergic asthma.
Hay fever is another name for seasonal allergies. Most plants have to transfer pollen from the male plant to the female flower in order to pollinate. While some rely on bees to do this, others simply use the wind. For those that suffer from hay fever, their immune systems tend to recognize innocuous pollen proteins as dangerous and as a result makes immune cells pump out molecules that cause swelling and itchiness. This can cause a great deal of discomfort for the sufferer and can result in symptoms such as itchy eyes, a scratchy throat, and a runny nose. In very severe cases the sufferer may even suffer from restricted airways.
Climate change could make seasonal allergies worse for a couple of reasons. More CO2 in the air leads to more food for plants which leads to more plant growth, and more pollen. Along with rising CO2 levels comes a rise in temperature. This could also affect the growth of ragweed, which is one of the main causes of hay fever. Previous experiments have proven how increased CO2 levels cause the ragweed to produce more pollen. It also seems to lengthen the growing season, allowing more pollen to be created over a longer period of time.
Over in Europe, Michelle Epstein at the University of Vienna and the team also set to work demonstrating the range of ragweed and the way in which pollen would increase. Their estimates were that by 2060, the number of Europeans suffering from seasonal allergies caused by ragweed alone will soar to over 75 million. Trees are also becoming affected by climate change and some of those too are producing more pollen than ever before, for a longer period of time. So hold on to that handkerchief if you’re a seasonal allergy sufferer (or even if you’re not, yet), as it looks like we have some very potent pollen coming our way.
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