So, how many boxes of tissue have you gone through this week?
If you've been through a lot,
it's not your imagination-- your allergies are acting up, and this week is particularly bad!
Keith McCord explains why.
So, how are you feeling today?
Doing a lot of sneezing, are you?
Not that it'll make you feel any better, but 35-million other Americans are suffering just like you are!
Beverly Salmon/Allergy patient: "I GET A SORE THROAT, SNEEZE, MY EYES GET MESSED UP. I HAVE A LOT OF CONGESTION IN MY EYES, MY NOSE RUNS."
Allergy season is here, and in Utah right now we are seeing a "triple-whammy"!
Trees are spewing pollen; so are grasses and weeds.
And usually weeds don't start bothering us until later in the summer. But, the wind has stirred things up.
Dr. Duane Harris/Intermountain Allergy Clinic: "I THINK THAT SOME OF THE POLLEN WE SAW THE LAST COUPLE OF DAYS HAS COME FROM AT LEAST HUNDREDS OF MILES A WAY." QUESTION: "REALLY?"
HARRIS: "RAGWEED, THAT SHOULDN'T START POLLENATING HERE UNTIL AUGUST OR LATE JULY, AND WE SAW A LOT OF IT TODAY."
In fact, ragweed is off the charts right now!
Allergies affect different people in different ways, of course. But for some people, the sneezing, itching etc, can be a huge deal.
Consider attorney, Robbie Levin.
Robbie Levin/Attorney: "IT'S VERY DISCONCERTING TO BE COUGHING IN COURT AND SNEEZING AND FEELING LIKE YOU ARE GONNA THROW UP IN FRONT OF THE JURY, AND NOT FROM NERVES."
Is there any help? There are new medications on the market now, which seem to provide some relief.
HARRIS: "THERE ARE NON-SEDATING ANTIHISTAMINES THAT AREN'T DANGEROUS. YOU CAN DRIVE, YOU CAN THINK WHILE YOU USE THEM. NASAL STEROIDS, THAT I THINK WORK BETTER THAN ANTIHISTIMINES."
Keith McCord, Eyewitness News: "THERE IS SOME GOOD NEWS. WE'RE SUPPOSED TO GET SOME RAIN THIS WEEKEND, AND THAT SHOULD KEEP THE POLLEN FROM FLYING AROUND, AT LEAST UNTIL THE SUN COMES OUT AGAIN."
By the way, the allergy season in Utah surely hasn't peaked! People usually have problems from mid-May through July.
