Saskatchewan residents dealing with seasonal allergies may notice symptoms changing as summer gives way to fall.<\/p>\n
Dr. David Torr, a medical health officer with the Saskatchewan Health Authority and area department lead for Public Health and Preventive Medicine, says weather can influence the seasonal allergy picture.<\/p>\n
Grass remains a potential trigger, particularly when it is being cut, while leaves and other outdoor material can contribute as the season changes.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt’s variable. A lot of it depends on the weather,\u201d Torr said.<\/p>\n
Allergies aren’t always seasonal<\/p>\n
Torr says it’s also important to distinguish seasonal allergies from allergens people can encounter throughout the year.<\/p>\n
Dust mites and animal shedding can remain problems indoors, and those allergens may become more noticeable once people begin closing their windows and doors for the colder months.<\/p>\n
That can result in more allergens becoming concentrated inside the home.<\/p>\n
Torr says people can also use changes in their surroundings to help determine whether symptoms are allergy-related.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you move away from whatever is causing it, you’ll definitely see a reduction,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
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Reducing exposure can help<\/p>\n
Torr recommends reducing exposure to known triggers whenever possible.<\/p>\n
For people who react to outdoor allergens, that can include being cautious around freshly cut grass or other known triggers.<\/p>\n
“Changing clothes and washing them after spending time outside can also help prevent allergens from being brought indoors,” he said.<\/p>\n
Over-the-counter antihistamines are another option, with Torr noting that non-drowsy varieties are generally preferred during the day.<\/p>\n
Know when to seek help<\/p>\n
Allergy symptoms can sometimes resemble those of a cold, but Torr says seasonal allergies tend to return whenever someone is exposed to the trigger.<\/p>\n
More serious symptoms should not be ignored.<\/p>\n
“Shortness of breath, difficulty breathing, unusual weakness or worsening symptoms despite taking an antihistamine are reasons to seek medical attention,” Torr said.<\/p>\n
For persistent or worsening allergies, a family physician can provide advice and potentially refer someone to an allergist.<\/p>\n
Torr also recommends paying attention to the indoor environment, including cleaning carpets and considering air purifiers where appropriate.<\/p>\n
He adds that people with seasonal allergies may even want to think twice before bringing certain flowers inside, as they can trigger symptoms.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Saskatchewan residents dealing with seasonal allergies may notice symptoms changing as summer gives way to fall. Dr. David…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":917395,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[49,48,84],"class_list":["post-917394","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-health","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-health"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/917394","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=917394"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/917394\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/917395"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=917394"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=917394"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=917394"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}