Georgia braces for 'pollen explosion'
Cold weather led to drops in pollen this week.
But with metro Atlanta headed toward the 70s by the official start of spring on Monday, the warm-up could spark what doctors are calling a “pollen explosion,” according to Channel 2 Action News.
"When the weather gets warmer,” Dr. Stanley Fineman said, “we'll see the plants pollinate more and, at that point, patients will likely have more trouble with their symptoms.”
That will likely happen toward the end of March and in April, he told the television station.
However, “we're instructing our patients who have pollen allergies to start their preventative medication now to make sure that they are controlled,” Fineman said.
Kayla Miller, 15, took that advice and went to Atlanta Allergy and Asthma in Marietta.
"I have asthma and allergies,” she told Channel 2. “And because of the allergies, my asthma is really bad.”
She had little to worry about Thursday.
The pollen count was a moderate 45 particles of pollen per cubic meter of air, according to Atlanta Allergy and Asthma.
However, the pollen count this time last year was 670, and last year’s season high was 4,107 particles of pollen per cubic meter of air.
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