Climate Change and Allergies: In the News

Are you or the children in your life suffering more this spring from allergies than previous seasons? It seems to be a news item almost every day, as more and more people are developing allergies for the first time, or those that have them seem to have worse symptoms. We want to remind you about a story we reported on back in November, about the increased incident of allergies and poison ivy, due to greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide.

Doctors are telling us that seasonal allergies are on the rise, and we are all noticing that more of our children and gardener friends, not only have allergies, but have poison ivy which is lasting longer and appearing later into the fall and earlier in the spring. Scientists are noticing too, and are looking more closely at the links between climate change and public health.

According to studies published by the US National Library of Medicine and Duke University, scientists are studying how increases in carbon dioxide – a greenhouse gas which in its “manmade” form is the number one contributing factor in global warming – is aggravating allergies and worsening the toxicity levels of poison ivy. High CO2 levels were shown to produce more allergenic forms of urushiol, the toxin in poison ivy that makes you itch. Also, ragweed, a common cause of seasonal allergies in adults and children, is producing more pollen with increases of CO2, causing more sneezing and asthma like symptoms. Studies are also pointing out that this CO2 laden pollen is more allergenic then other forms. If you or your kids are suffering more this spring from seasonal allergies, they may be interested to hear how scientists are looking closely at the link between an increase in asthma, breathing related ailments, poison ivy, itching and climate change!

Stay tuned for more updates.