Allergies and Global Warming

Bad news for allergy and asthma sufferers: global warming could make your symptoms worse. Both ragweed and ozone pollution could intensify as temperatures rise. Researchers found that ragweed, that nasty weed with loads of hay fever-causing pollen, produced about 130 percent more pollen today and will produce about 300 percent more pollen in the future. People who live in areas that have both ragweed and high ozone pollution levels have it even worse. NRDC mapped the areas in the United States where ragweed and unhealthy ozone pollution overlap and found that more than 110 million Americans live in places with this double whammy of ragweed and high ozone levels.

Among the most vulnerable regions are the Los Angeles basin, the southern Mississippi River valley, the Great Lakes area, the Mid-Atlantic states, the New York area and New England. Download the map and zoom in on your area to learn more or read the full report on NRDC's website.

An estimated 36 million Americans have some type of seasonal allergy and about 17 million children and adults in the United States have asthma. Could global warming be responsible for the rise in asthma cases? Some researches think so.

simple steps

• Tell Congress to address global warming through mandatory legislation that reduces global warming pollution on an order of 20 percent by 2020. Take action!
• Check daily pollen reports and air quality conditions especially on sunny days with little or no wind because those are the days when ozone concentrations can be especially high. Try to postpone the most strenuous outdoor activities to a day with relatively low ozone levels. On days when pollen counts or ozone levels are high, minimize outdoor activities and keep windows closed when possible.
• Wash bedding frequently to remove pollen that settles on pillows and sheets, and vacuum regularly, preferably with a vacuum cleaner that contains a high-efficiency particulate (HEPA) filter. Minimize your family's exposure to other known allergens because of the cumulative effect of multiple allergens in producing symptoms.