Experts Warn of Longer Allergy Seasons Due to Climate Changes Affecting Millions
Recent studies indicate that allergy seasons are becoming longer and more intense, primarily due to climate changes. Dr. Katelyn Jetelina, an adjunct professor of epidemiology at the Yale School of Public Health, explains that warmer, shorter winters lead to extended growing seasons for plants, resulting in earlier and prolonged pollen release. This trend has made the pollen season in North America 20 days longer than it was in 1990. Seasonal allergies, also known as allergic rhinitis or hay fever, are triggered by tree pollen in the spring, grass pollen in the summer, and weed pollen in the fall. Approximately 26% of adults in the U.S. and UK suffer from seasonal allergies, along with 19% of children in the U.S. and 10-15% of children in the UK. The extended pollen seasons are causing respiratory irritation even in individuals without allergies. 
