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Perhaps you’re used to marking the changing of the seasons by waxing and waning allergies, or your allergies require year-round maintenance. Or maybe you’ve never dealt with allergies, but you have cold-like symptoms that won’t leave.
Whether you’re used to suffering through allergies or you have recently developed them, you have options. Here’s what you need to know about recognizing and dealing with allergies.
Symptoms
Allergic reactions occur when your body’s immune system reacts to a common substance in the environment as though it is harmful. Symptoms range from mildly irritating to lethal but often resemble cold symptoms — sans the fever, body aches, and shortness of breath.
“The main symptoms are either stuffy or runny nose,” said Dino Morello, primary care physician at Mercy Health. “You can have sneezing and itchy, watery eyes. Some people have post-nasal drainage with a cough.”
Colds will also get better after a week or so, while allergies last much longer.
“If you're allergic to, unfortunately, a dust mite, there's dust prevalent throughout the whole year, so you will have symptoms the whole year,” Morello said. “Other things are like that, too. If you own a pet and you're allergic to your pet and he's around — hopefully over the whole year — you will have allergies, too. Otherwise, it's seasonal. In the spring, you have the tree and grass pollen and in the fall the ragweed pollen.
Beyond colds, it’s important to note the difference between an allergic reaction and COVID-19, Morello said. Fevers, muscle aches, loss of taste and smell, shortness of breath, or chest pains are more common COVID-19 symptoms.
Prevention
Regardless of how you developed an allergy — family history or a change to your immune system or environment — you can avoid symptoms by staying away from allergens.
“If it's trees and pollen you’re exposed to, stay indoors during the days that it's really high pollen counts,” Morello said. “Most news stations do a pollen count on the TV show, so you could see the days that are really high.”
Dr. Morello also recommended frequently replacing air filters in your heating and air conditioning units and cleaning linens, such as bed sheets.
Testing
One of two allergy tests can help you determine what allergens to avoid.
“There's a skin test you can do, where they put a little bit of the allergen in your skin, and they look for a reaction like a hive or a bump on your skin, and they can do it that way,” Morello said. “Or it's a blood test, where they see how concentrated your antibodies are to a certain antigen.”
Treatment
Common treatment options for allergies include over-the-counter antihistamines and glucocorticoid steroid nose sprays.
“It’s easy to treat,” Dr. Morello said. “Usually no side effects on the newer antihistamines. The spray has very minimal side effects, so might as well treat it, so you can enjoy yourself, enjoy nature, and be able to be the best you can be and yourself.”
For severe allergies or allergens you can’t avoid, such as pet dander in your home, an allergist can give you an immunotherapy shot.
“You expose yourself to the allergen little by little, and your body kind of gets immune to the allergen over time,” Dr. Morello said.
Other symptoms of an allergic reaction, including asthma and eczema, may require further treatment. For help diagnosing and treating your allergies, you can schedule an appointment at Mercy Health to create an allergy relief plan with your doctor.
