Question:
I recently moved to an apartment on the beach with an ocean view in the
hopes of helping my Asthma and Allergies.
After standing on the balcony for 20 minutes enjoying the breeze coming
off the ocean
I started to sneeze and started wheezing. These are some of the worse
allergies I've ever had.
The only cause I can think of is a large patch of grass and weeds
growing on the sand dunes which extend up and
down the coast. I'm wondering if this is a seasonal thing that will go
away or if I need to move.
I'm also wondering what role the cargo ships coming in and out of the
port play.
Maybe they're carrying fruits and vegetables or something that has
allergens.
I've already used search engines and checked weather.com and other sites
with limited success.
My questions are about allergy season and pollen counts.
1) When are the allergy seasons in South Florida and what are the
pollens
2) Where can I get pollen counts for South Florida? (most places I
checked don't include South Florida)
Answer:
For pollen count information, try calling your local new station. You might be
able to convince them to advise this each day (verbal or slide) within their
weather segment. A simple graph of low, moderate and high can help you
adjust your outdoor activities accordingly.
Grass, trees and pollen counts are listed each day on my local newscast. I
plan my workouts indoor vs. outdoor according to these counts!
About the grass & weeds being a possible cause. My personal, non-medical
opinion is that they are certainly a viable culprit to look into. However, as
far as the cargo ships and port go, I don't suspect that ould pose a threat.
You should get in touch with a pumonary doctor or allergist in your new home
town. He can also be a resource for information gathering regarding the
alergins that pose a threat/concern to you. Additionally, he *should* be able
to give you an idea of the "allergy season".
The allergy season in Miami is 365 days a year, there is always something in
bloom down here. Mold is another problem, a little better in the winter
months due to the drop in humidity. Check out http://www.weather.com/health,
its the Weather Channels Pollen, Mold, etc. map. You may also want to watch
the evening news. I think its channel 10 or 4 (or both) that give pollen
counts.
I've been compiling a list of site that provide pollen, mold, ozone, etc.
counts for my site at
http://asthma.miningco.com/msub.htm that you might find helpful.
I've found quite a few for the U.S. and one in Canada, if anyone knows of
any International Sites please e-mail me the addresses.
I don`t know anything about Fla.only that in May I visited my
daughter there.I was fine till the one day we walked to the beach.I
could not breath just standing near the water on the beach. I sat like a
lump waiting for everyone to be ready to go back to the car.Once I was
in the car I was fine.I don`t know if it was the humidity there at the
beach or the rotting stuff around,the weeds the sand.What ever but,I
love to go shelling but,will never attempt it again.
