SAN FRANCISCO (KCBS RADIO) – If you have been sniffling and sneezing more often than you are used to, you're not alone. There's a scientific explanation why your allergy symptoms are lasting longer and may be severe.
Dr. Michele Pham, Allergist and Immunologist with UCSF Health, joined KCBS Radio's Bret Burkhart on this week's "As Prescribed" to discuss the worst contributors to seasonal allergies.
She said in recent years, the weather has jumpstarted allergy season ahead of when we used to see it.
"We've had a lot of wet winters and increased temperatures, especially in the Bay Area and across the U.S. And so with increased winters where there are more rains and higher rainfall, you have more robust springs where there's more pollen being made and plants growing and pollinating. And then with increased warmth, there's also increased growth of plants that create pollen," Dr. Pham said. "There's also global warming contributing to the changing in the seasons as well, with increased CO2 levels."
Not only are people experiencing allergies earlier than usual, but Dr. Pham said she's hearing from patients that allergy symptoms are more severe and lasting longer as well.
"Usually it was, for them, the spring when their allergies were the worst but now it seems to be almost year round and that's because the seasons have been elongating," she said.
More and more people are also experiencing allergies for the first time as adults.
"There are multiple components that help change the immune system and allergy system into becoming reactive to things that a person might not have been reactive to before," said Dr. Pham. "The thought is that with continued exposure, higher levels of exposure, and also environmental changes, and with a component of genetics, patients are developing more allergies over time."
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While you can't prevent allergies from developing, Dr. Pham said the hopeful news is that doctors are working on developing new treatments, including pills for people with cat and other pet allergies.
"There's a lot of therapies that can be used over the counter, but some companies are studying and looking more at immunotherapies that change the immune response of your body to certain allergens," she said. "Patients could potentially take these pills every day to suppress their allergy response to it and one day have a cat or a dog."
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