Alabama Allergy & Asthma Center

Weather Changes

Weather can be one asthma trigger that is difficult to have control over and to avoid. The temperature, barometric pressure and humidity can negatively affect a person's asthma and allergies. During the summer months of high humidity the trigger to be cautious of is mold growth. It is also in the spring and summer months where tree, grass and weed pollen can be the primary trigger. To make things more problematic for a person that is allergic to pollen, would be the windy days when the pollen is airborne. The good news about rain is it reduces the pollen, but the bad news is that mold spores increase. It is in the wet and humid environment that dust mites flourish. Finding out the pollen count in your area can help you to know when to limit your outdoor activities.

During the winter months cold air can worsen a persons asthma condition. When cold and dry air is breathed in it can trigger asthma symptoms. Wearing a scarf that covers your mouth and nose will help to warm the air that you breathe. You might also want to choose to exercise indoors to limit your exposure to the cold.

Another asthma trigger that exists in our environment is air pollution. Some of the common pollutants that surround our everyday life that can be harmful are car fumes, industrial type fumes and tobacco smoke. All of those irritants create poor air quality. It would be helpful to find out how your weather report forecasts the air quality for the day. If the air quality is poor the recommendation would be to limit your outdoor activities and refrain from keeping your windows open.

As you can see each season has potential trigger pitfalls for people with allergies and asthma. The key to survival of the seasons is to:

• Be aware of your allergic triggers
• Know when it is prevalent and to what degree
• Reduce your exposure as much as possible
• Discuss with your physician about medications that can be used to prevent the onset or management of symptoms