Climate change appears to be extending allergy season

A team at Genoa University recorded pollen counts, how long pollen seasons lasted and sensitivity to five types of pollen in the Bordighera region of Italy from 1981 to 2007.

Studying a well-defined geographical region, the team observed that the progressive increase of the average temperature has prolonged the duration of the pollen seasons of some plants and, consequently, the overall pollen load.

The percentage of patients with reactions to the allergens increased throughout the study but it ws not clear whether longer pollen seasons actually put more people at risk for developing allergies.

Allergic rhinitis (hay fever) is a reaction to indoor or outdoor airborne allergens, such as pollen.

Courtesy of Reuters

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First Publishd in March 2010

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