I live in Northern Vermont (zip code 05405) and I am a seasonal
allergy sufferer.
I am interested in finding out what types of pollen I could,
statistically, be allergic to.
Here is what I know so far:
My symptoms include stuffy nose, runny nose, ichy nose, sneezing,
sore, red, runny eyes, coughing and general BAD feeling.
My symptoms tend to appear mid-May and last until mid-July.  They are
at their worst in mid-June.
My symptoms are worse when I am outside or exposed to air from
outside, and when the humidity is high.
When I wake up in the morning (6:00am), I am already suffering from
allergies, but I seem to feel better later in the evening.
(I have been taking 10mg of Zyrtek since May 1st and I am still
experiencing severe allergies!)

Here is what I learned through my own internet search:
I am most likely allergic to grass pollen (May-July) or possibly tree
pollen (April-May)--we do have a late spring up here.
I found http://www.pollen.com/Pollen.com.asp which has detailed
information about each plant that pollenates and when it pollenates,
but it does not have regional graphs that explain peak pollination
times/dates for geographic regions.

A satisfactory answer would include a short list of plants (trees,
grass) that pollenate between May and July in Northern Vermont.

A super answer would include links to websites that can help me
visually identify the listed plants so that I can avoid them.

A mind-bogglingly wonderful answer would include information on how I
can actively combat allergy attacks from those particular plants

Logopedia-ga,

Thanks for the question, and sorry to hear about your plight with the
pollen.  I hope a combination of modern medicine and your own personal
research can help alleviate (eliminate?) your problem.

I am going to send you back to www.pollen.com, because it appears all
the information you are seeking (except, alas, the secret of how to
combat allergy attacks) is at this site.  If I have misread your
question, and am merely telling you things you already know then
PLEASE, let me know through a request for clarification, and I'll do
some more homework on this.

Now, let me just step through how I accessed pollen.com, and what it
told me about seasonal pollen sources in Vermont, and in your
particular area.

After entering the home page at:

www.pollen.com

Click on your state, and enter your zip code, or select a city from
pull-down list.

This leads to a detailed four-day forecast for, in this case,
BURLINGTON, VT, that not only gives pollen counts, but identifies
major sources specific to your area:

"Predominant pollen: Grass, Plantain and Sorrel/Dock"

The information on "predominant pollen" is clickable, and clicking on
it takes you to a database on seasonal pollen sources in each state:

http://www.pollen.com/library_index.asp

Click on "Expert User" (as opposed to "casual user") to get the
maximum amouont of detail about allergen sources.

Select "Vermont" on the pull down state list.  

The result is a list that, for each season, identifies the main
culprits for pollen, and identifies plants as:

"Known to be a significant allergen." and 
"Known to be moderately allergenic."
 
Clicking on individual plants gives you a lot more information about
each plant type, including (in many cases) pictures of the offending
species.

I'm sure you also noticed the site's "Allergy Alert" which will send
you an email notice early in the day when conditions in your area are
expected to be bad.

I'll also point out that plants are not the only possible sources of
outdoor allergens in your area.  As noted in this article from the
Associated Press, December 11, 2001"

"Neighbors of Burlington power plant settle air pollution dispute"

"We still maintain we have health problems, allergies and other
chronic illnesses that are due to the plant," said Carla Barnes, who
lives south and downwind of the plant. "There's dust; there's mold and
spores from the wood chips; and sometimes the plant burns red cedar,
which is known to cause asthma."


I hope this is the type of information you were seeking, but again, if
this answer doesn't meet your needs, please let me know.

And good luck!

---

Request for Answer Clarification by logopedia-ga on 25 Jun 2002 11:27 PDT

Hi davidsar-ga,
Unfortunately you are telling me information that I already know.  I
am aware that it listed Grass, Plantain and Sorrel/Dock as the most
predominant pollinators today, but I was looking for a more specific
answer.
In the advanced area of pollen.com it lists different grasses, trees
and weeds that are present in the Vermont ecosystem, but it does not
say which one produces pollen WHEN for which temperature zone.  In
other words, the description for each plant includes a range of
pollenations, but that range is not nessesarily Vermont-specific.
I was looking for more of a list of plants that were significantly
allergenic that were pollinating in Vermont during the times that I
was experiencing allergy symptoms.
Thanks for trying, though!

If you manage to confirm, by lab tests, what specifically causes your
allergy, you could investigate the possibility of obtaining
desensitization therapy at an allergy clinic.  This works quite well,
giving improvement in 85% of cases. However, it tends to be reserved
for more serious cases.  It also requires LOTS of injections over
several seasons.  Basically, in desensitization, allergy sufferers are
injected with a preparation the same substance to which they allergic.
 This in some way switches off the "wrong" immune response that is
causing the allergy symptoms.  Lots of theories have been proposed why
this happens, but it is still a bit of a mystery even to immunologists
(I know, because I did my PhD in immunology!).  There is quite a good
description at http://www.allergy-clinic.co.uk/desensitisation.htm 
This is the web site of a commercial clinic in the UK, but the article
is sensibly written.

Apart from grasses, birch is notorious for stimulating hayfever.
Interestingly, the web site I mention above has a statement that
neither of these are well controlled by medication. Also, if rapeseed
(canola?) is cultivated in your region, that is a very likely culprit.

I'm surprised that your symptoms are worse in high humidity, because
the dampness in the atmosphere should cause the pollen to settle so
that there is less of it floating in the air to be inhaled. 
Obviously, you will feel worse out of doors.

I used to suffer from hayfever myself, and found homeopathy helpful (I
used an OTC remedy).  It is not possible to claim that I definitely
achieved a cure through homeopathy, because people do sometimes grow
out of hayfever anyway.  I was first affected when I was about 19, but
stopped getting major symptoms when I was 34, after using the
homeopathic remedies over three seasons.  Now, I might occasionally
feel slight symptoms when pollen levels are extremely high, but most
of the time am symptom-free.

Hi tehuti-ga,
Thanks for the info.  I am considering desensitization therapy, but I
think I might have to wait a bit.  Lab testing is quite expensive and
there aren't tests for everything.
I'm asking this question in the hopes that I can come up with a
reasonable list of pollens that I might be allergic to so that I might
do some investigation of my own.  Maybe somewhere down the road I will
pinpoint what I am allergic to and be able to avoid it completely. 
(wishful thinking...)
I am also confused as to why my allergies might be worse when the
humidity is high and I have no explanation.  At first I thought that I
might be allergic to molds, but my symptoms are seasonal, not
year-round.
I have also heard of birch trees causing allergies, and I have not yet
ruled them out completely.
What OTC remedy did you use?  
Thanks!

Hello logopedia,

Yes, allergy to indoor molds would more likely be year-round, although
outdoor molds do have seasonal variation, with most spore counts
peaking in late summer/fall.  The timing of your symptoms sounds more
like grass pollen allergy.  On the other hand, the fact it worsens in
high humidity does suggest mold or other fungi, because some species
do release more spores in humid conditions.

You speak of wanting to know what plants are involved in order to
avoid them.  Avoidance might be difficult.  For example, a scientist
at the University of Tulsa has found evidence of mountain cedar pollen
being carried to Tulsa by prevailing southerly winds.  This species
does not grow anywhere nearer than 200 miles from Tulsa
(http://pollen.utulsa.edu/Research.html)

Have you heard of the Pollen and Spore Report produced by the National
Allergy Bureau?  This "contains information on pollens and spores
gathered from 77 certified counting stations within the American
Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology’s Aeroallergen Network. Data
from each site for the ten most prevalent pollen types and/or ten most
prevalent spore types that were gathered throughout the year are
formatted in graphs that visually depict the onset, peak and end of
the season."  It is produced every year and costs $50.  Details and a
link to a sample page at:
http://www.aaaai.org/nab/pollen_spore_report.stm
The certified stations are listed at:
http://www.aaaai.org/scripts/nab/stations.asp  If there is one near
enough where you live, then it might be worth looking at this
publication, because it would give you seasonal data for specific
species.  I'm afraid my knowledge of US geography is not good enough
to let me check this for you. :(

The remedy I used was produced by Nelson.  They have repackaged, and
possibly reformulated, their remedies since then, so the exact brand
is no longer available.  They now make one called Pollenna.  You can
find if there is a Nelson distributor near you by clicking on the map
at http://www.anelson.co.uk/worldwide/na.htm#