May is asthma and allergy season

SAVANNAH, Ga. (WTOC) - May is National Asthma and Allergy Month.

Locally, you probably have already been experiencing allergy symptoms for months. We started seeing pollen on our cars back in January.

There are two allergy seasons in the Coastal Empire and Lowcountry - Spring and Fall - and the Spring season is kind of mis-named since it usually begins in Winter and continues into Summer.

That means, people who are prone to allergies can expect them to continue for another month or more.

SouthCoast Allergist, Dr. Wasil Kahn, says if you have allergies, you are going to feel them at this time of year. You can control their effects with treatment before you start experiencing them - but if you didn’t do that, Dr. Kahn shared some ways to deal with symptoms during allergy season.

“To be honest, you’re not going to be able to avoid them at that time of year. Common sense thongs like wearing a mask when doing outdoor activities during peak pollen times. Keeping the windows closed at home to prevent pollens from entering. Rinsing off after spending a lot of time outside before going to bed just to minimize pollen exposure. But, for the most part, you’re not going to be able to avoid them. And at that point, medications are helpful. We have a lot of medications now that are over the counter, antihistamines, nasal sprays that can can help lessen. If medications are not enough, you should consult your physician to see if there is any additional help they can provide,” said Dr. Wasil Kahn.

Allergy sufferers get a break in in July and August - but the fall allergy season kicks in around the end of August. Those allergies are associated with ragweed, not pollen.

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