Surviving Allergy Season

ALLERGY SEASON IS PRETTY MUCH YEAR ROUND IN FLORIDA. BUT THIS TIME OF YEAR, POLLEN COUNTS TEND TO BE AT THEIR HIGHEST LEVELS. JOINING US NOW TO TALK ABOUT ALLERGY SEASON AND WHAT WE CAN DO TO REDUCE SYMPTOMS. DR. ELVIN MENDEZ, AN ALLERGY AND IMMUNOLOGY SPECIALIST WITH LEE HEALTH JOINS US NOW. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR JOINING US TODAY. >> THANK YOU FOR THE INVITATION. CAN YOU FIRST EXPLAIN WHY ALLERGIES PERSIST? >> MOST OF THE YEAR IN THE STATE OF FLORIDA AND WHAT TRIGGERS THEM. >> YES, ITS AS GOOD QUESTION TO ASK, BUT I KNOW THERE'S A LOT OF US ENJOY THIS WONDERFUL COLD FRONT THAT WE'VE HAD IN OUR AREA, NOT REALIZING. IT'S ALSO COINCIDING WITH THE TIME OF YEAR. OUR POLLEN COUNTS ARE HIGHEST, EVEN IN SOUTHWEST FLORIDA, WE TEND TO HAVE YEAR-ROUND ALLERGIES. THIS IS A PEAK FOR SPECIFICALLY FOR TREE POLLEN SEASON. SO IF ANY, DO ANY INDIVIDUALS HAVE SOME DEGREE OF SENSITIVITY TO TO TREAT? PAUL SAYS THIS IS YOUR TIME OF YEAR. >> WHAT KINDS OF SYMPTOMS DO YOU SEE WHEN SOMEONE IS COMPLAINING THAT THEY THINK THEY HAVE ALLERGIES? WHAT ARE YOU SEEING? >> YEAH, AND THAT'S GOING TO DEPEND ON THE INDIVIDUAL AND HOW THEY'RE COMING IN CONTACT WITH THESE. PAUL IS THE MOST COMMON SYMPTOMS ARE USUALLY WHAT WE TURN UP OR ARE WE? SO IT'S GOING AFFECT BODIES IS GOING TO FIGHT, KNOWS. SO INDIVIDUALS WITH HAPPY TO WATERY EYES, RUNNY NOSE AND CONGESTION. TYPICALLY THE MOST COMMON SYMPTOMS AS NASAL. SO THERE'S EITHER GOING TO BE RUNNY NOSE, SNEEZING, OR NASAL CONGESTION, FOLLOWED BY I SYMPTOMS. SO INDIVIDUALS MAY EXPERIENCE RED, ITCHY, WATERY EYES. ONE OF THE THINGS I ALWAYS STRESS TO FOLKS WHO ARE HAVING ANY I CAN PLACE AND THEY'RE ATTRIBUTING TO ALLERGIES IS THERE HAS TO BE AN ELEMENT OF PATIENTS. ALSO, IF YOU HAVE YOU READ IT FOR ANY OTHER REASONS. SEA OFF THE MALL JUST TALKED TO PRIMARY DOCTOR, BUT THERE'S A TON OF ALL. IT IS MOST LIKELY ALGAE RELATED. >> HOW DO YOU DIFFERENTIATE JUST AS A AS A MOM OR DAD AT HOME WHEN YOU'VE GOT KIDS, WHETHER YOUR CHILD MIGHT HAVE THE COLD OR IS IT AN ALLERGY HAVE? HOW CAN YOU TELL THE DIFFERENCE? >> YEAH, THAT'S A GREAT QUESTION BECAUSE THERE'S AN OVERLAP BETWEEN SEASONING, SOUTH PEAKING OF ALLERGIES IN THE SPRINGTIME IN SOUTHWEST FLORIDA. BUT ALSO WE'VE GOT SEASONAL TRAVELERS. WE HAVE A COLD FRONTS. WE HAVE KIDS ARE OFF A SCHOOL TRAVELING TO AND FROM BACK HOME AND, YOU KNOW, BRING FORWARD SOME SORT OF OUR OWN FACTION. SO IT'S OVER. IT'S OVER OFTEN THE SYMPTOMS ARE OVERARCHING. SO YOU'RE GOING TO FIND SOME OVERLAPPING NASAL EYE SYMPTOMS. YOU MAY HAVE SIGNED AS COMPLAINS PRESSURE RYPIEN AND IT'S SOMETIMES VERY DIFFICULT AS A PARENT TO DETERMINE WHETHER THE CHILD IS EXPERIENCING AND THE ADULT MAY BE EXPERIENCING SYMPTOMS OF ALLERGIES OR A COMMON HEAD COLD. WE ALWAYS RECOMMEND ITS LEADING OFF FOR MORE THAN 2 OR 3 DAYS OFF. CONTACT YOUR PRIMARY CARE PHYSICIAN. ALL THEY WILL DETERMINE WHETHER THERE'S A NEED FOR MEDICATIONS AND THE SYMPTOMS. AND AT SOME POINT, PERHAPS REFER TO DISCUSSIONS THAT IF LEFT UNTREATED, CAN IT BE MORE SERIOUS LEAD TO MORE SERIOUS MEDICAL COMPLICATIONS, ESPECIALLY IN KIDS >> AND WE DO QUITE SEE SEE A LOT OF THAT ESPECIALLY IN CHILDREN ARE TO KEEP IN MIND THAT CASE TO COME A TENDENCY TO HAVE YOUR INFECTIONS AND TYPICALLY GULZAR VIRAL IN NATURE. HOWEVER, HE THAT THERE'S AN UNDERLYING TENDENCY TO ALLERGIES. COMPLICATE MATTERS AND EASY ABILITY TO CHILD. THAT CHILD HAS SYMPTOMS RELATED TO THE STATION TO DYSFUNCTION WITH TUBES IN THE YEARS FOR THEM MAY HAVE A PROBLEM WITH PRESSURE BUILT UP IN THE MIDDLE YOUR CHAMBER. SO CERTAINLY I LEFT ON TREATING A CHILD WILL HAVE COMPLICATIONS AND DOLLS. LIKEWISE MAY EXPERIENCE SEVERE SYMPTOMS FOR THE 10 MORE TO HAVE SIGNS READ PROBLEMS THAN THAN THE THE YEARS. ALL THERE TO GET IS ALSO CONCERNED WITH WHAT WE CALL THE ROY. SO THAT'S THE ERIE AREA BELONGS. AND IF THERE'S A TENDENCY TOWARDS A ASTHMA OR WOULD YOU CAST NOT ON TREATED, YOU CERTAINLY CAN EXPERIENCE SHORTNESS OF BREATH, TYPES IN THE CHEST AND OFTEN TIMES, JUST BY DEFENSE IS A COUGH WHICH CAN BE A VARIETY OF DIFFERENT CAUSES. >> WHAT CAN WE DO TO HELP REDUCE THE IMPACT OF ALLERGIES? HONEST, ICY AIR PURIFIERS. I HEAR KEEPING YOUR WINDOWS CLOSED AND YOUR, YOU KNOW YOUR QUARTERS, TIGHTEN YOUR HOUSE AND DOES ALL THAT HELP. >> YOU KNOW, IT DOESN'T. IT'S SAD BECAUSE THIS IS ACTUALLY THE BEST TIME OF YEAR FOR US TO HAVE THOSE WINDOWS OPEN OUR DOORS OPEN, ENJOYING THE WONDERFUL AIR. HOWEVER, THERE ARE SOME COMMON SENSE THINGS THAT WE MAY NEED TO FOLLOW. KEEPING IN MIND HOW SEVERE THE SYMPTOMS MAY BE. THE FIRST THING I WOULD SUGGEST IS OF THINK ABOUT THE TIME WHEN POLLEN IS GOING TO BE PEAKING. TYPICALLY THAT'S IN THE EARLY PART OF THE DAY, ANYWHERE FROM 05:00AM TO 09:00AM IN THE MORNING. SO I, YOU KNOW, CLOSE 11 O'CLOCK OR SO BEFORE IT GETS WARM. BUT IN THE EARLY EARLY AS PART OF THE DAYS WHEN POLLEN COUNTS ARE HIGHEST AFTER RAIN. SO WE HAVE EARLY MORNING RAIDS TO GOOD THINGS LIKE THAT. CERTAINLY YOU WANT TO WALK UP AND SAY DO THIS AFTER THE RAIN ALL BECAUSE THAT IS A WASHOUT PERIOD THEREAFTER. ALL SO COMMON SENSE, HIGHEST PEAK TIME OF THE DAY. I WOULD SAY NOT VENTURE OUTDOORS IN TERMS OF LEAVING DOORS, WINDOWS OPENS. THAT IS JUST INVITING POLLEN TO THE HOME AND GOT RATING THING. MAKING THEM WORSE. SO KEEPING DOORS AND WINDOWS SHUT, KEEP IT HERE. ARE WE CIRCLING THE HOME? HAVE IT YOUR PURE FIRES TO HELP? AND TYPICALLY ARE A REGULAR CONDITIONING SYSTEM PROVIDED YOU ARE CHANGING. THOSE FILTERS SHOULD SUFFICE. WITH REGARDS TO PREEMPTIVELY TREATING IN OTHER WORDS, TAKING MEDICATIONS PRIOR TO. MY ONLY SUGGESTION IS BECAUSE I ALWAYS MINIMIZE MEDICATION AS THEY'RE ABSOLUTELY NECESSARY. PIECE IS IF YOU ARE SOMEONE WHO ARE HIGHLY SENSITIZED TO TO THE PEAK OF POLLEN COUNTS, THERE'S NO HARM IN TAKING WHAT WE CALL SECOND GENERATION AT HIS DEMEANS PRIOR TO EXPOSURE AND DOING THAT DURING THOSE PEAK DAYS, WE PREFER THOSE BECAUSE THERE'S LESS LIKELIHOOD OF SIDE EFFECTS, LESS LIKELIHOOD OF THOUGHT DROWSINESS EXPERIENCE WITH THEM ALL NO HARM TO ORGAN SYSTEMS AND NO COUNTRY. THE CASES, THE MEDICATIONS YOU MAY TAKE. SO THERE'S NO HARM IN DOING THAT. IF YOU ALREADY KNOW THAT, YOU KNOW, YOU WILL PEAK SEE NOW IN THE MIDDLE OF JANUARY OR NOW EVEN IN APRIL. ALSO, KEEP IN MIND, WE HAVE ALLERGIES OR YEAR-ROUND. SO YOU MAY KIND OF PLAY WITH THE THE CITIES ARE EXPERIENCING OR YOU GUYS DO A GREAT JOB OF ANNOUNCING WITH THESE POLLEN COUNTS ARE HIGH AND I THINK PEOPLE SHOULD REALLY PAY ATTENTION TO THOSE NUMBERS BECAUSE THEY DO IMPACT HOW WE FEEL. >> IS THERE ANYTHING ELSE THAT YOU WOULD LIKE TO SHARE ABOUT REALLY THE BEST WAY WE CAN GET THROUGH THE SPRINGTIME ALLERGY SEASON WITH MINIMAL SEIZING. >> COMPLICATIONS. I THINK THE KEY HERE IS TO AVOID OR KNOW WHEN YOU GET INTO TROUBLE, SEIZING CONGESTION CAN BE MILD, BUT IT CAN BE QUITE A NUISANCE. WE KNOW THERE'S A LOT OF LOST WORK DAYS. A LOT OF US WORKED ALL LAST SCHOOL DAYS AS A CONSEQUENCE OF ALLERGIES. SO THE KEY IS NOT ALLOW THINGS TO PROGRESSIVELY WORSE. SO IT'S A FIRST SIGN OF HOW YOU SYMPTOMS. THAT'S ALWAYS THE BEST TIME TO START MEDICATING TO THE CARE. OBVIOUSLY, IF YOUR PRIMARY CARE PHYSICIAN. SO, YOU KNOW, YOU CAN TAKE THAT WILL GIVE YOU MORE OFTEN THAN REALLY FOR YOUR SYMPTOMS. SO PREEMPTIVELY TREATING DOES WORK WELL AND THEN YOU KNOW WHAT? YOU'RE GETTING INTO TROUBLE AND IS LASTING MORE THAN 2 OR 3 DAYS CONSISTENTLY, DESPITE MEDICATION USE, SEEK MEDICAL ATTENTION >> WELL, THANK YOU SO MUCH TODAY FOR YOUR TIME. DOCTOR MENDEZ, THANK YOU FOR JOINING US. >> THANK YOU FOR HAVING ME.