Spring Allergies vs Fall Allergies: Which is Worse

For those who suffer from seasonal symptoms of hay fever, there always seems to be that time of the year that is absolutely dreaded. For some it includes the spring, and for others it’s the fall. Seasonal allergy sufferers may also suffer from both or even more seasons, but one will usually dominate. So which is worse? Well, it depends on the specific allergen and when it is most abundant in the regional area at a specific time of the year.

Spring Allergies- Spring appears to be the time of the year when trees release the most pollen. Some of the top trees responsible for this abundant pollen release are Oak, Sycamore, Maple, Elm, Birch, Walnut, Hickory, and Cypress. The warming of the weather still accompanied by heavy winds also aggravates these allergens. Mold is still a prime allergy source in the spring, however it will worsen in the fall.

Oak Tree

Fall Allergies- The biggest culprit during the fall season is ragweed. Ragweed begins to pollinate in August normally, which makes it stay in the air and “attack” those for the following months. It’s also a very light particle that travels well in the wind. This allows it to act as an allergen to many nationwide, even if you don’t live near growing ragweed. Also in the fall, mold proliferates the most. Although mold is stated to be a major contributor to spring allergies, fall has higher levels because of the increase in spore release. The release of these mold spores also wreaks havoc to those susceptible to mold allergies. Another additional burden that fall allergies do play is with children. Because it is the start of the school year children will begin to have more exposure to certain school time activities, which may aggravate their allergies even further. This appears to be correlated with children asthma attack spikes in the fall as well.

Ragweed

So which one is worse? Well, of course, it changes for each individual because allergies are triggered by different allergens. For both spring and fall allergies, the best defense is avoiding the triggers in combination with medication in order to manage symptoms. These options were discussed in previous blogs.