More Allergies? Global Warming May Be to Blame < Mar. 03, 2010 >
-- There may be yet another problem resulting from global
climate change: more sneezing and sniffling. Rising temperatures
are increasing the pollen season for some plants and trees. As a
result, people may be suffering more from seasonal allergies.
The increase in pollen may even be causing additional people who
are susceptible to develop pollen allergies, says Renato Ariano,
M.D., author of a new study on the topic. Ariano presented the
findings in New Orleans at the annual meeting of the American
Academy of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology. Longer Pollen
Season, More Allergy Problems Dr. Ariano and his colleagues have
been recording pollen counts, the length of pollen seasons, and
the prevalence of people sensitive to five major pollens in an
area of Italy on the Mediterranean Sea for nearly 30 years.
Between 1981 and 2007, the researchers noted an increasingly
earlier start to the pollen season. During this same time, when
researchers tested