Flowers can often add a special touch to homes, but they can also pose risks, especially for those with hay fever. Certain blooms release large amounts of lightweight pollen or have prominent centres that scatter easily, which can trigger allergy symptoms, including a blocked or runny nose, sneezing, coughing, and itchy, red or watery eyes.
The UK is currently at the peak of grass pollen whilst entering the beginning of the weed pollen season, and as a result, pollen levels across the country are expected to be high next week. That is why the Met Office is advising people to take extra precautions, such as removing any indoor flowers.
The weather agency’s pollen forecast for the next five days shows that levels will increase across the UK, with Wednesday expected to be the highest nationwide.
The Midlands, and the South East of England, including London, have been forecasted for very high levels of pollen, whilst the rest of England, Northern Ireland and Dumfries, Galloway, Lothian and Borders have been forecasted for high levels of pollen.
Pollen levels will generally be high from today. However, unlike Wednesday, there are a few areas where levels are predicted to be either low or medium nationwide. On Wednesday, it is only a few areas in Scotland that will experience moderate pollen levels.
The Met Office has therefore advised Brits to “avoid keeping flowers in the house” when levels are high and in order to minimise symptoms.
It also suggested that the best way to treat hay fever is to use “preventative treatments designed to work in the early stages of hay fever” such as antihistamines, which work by blocking the action of histamines that cause hay fever symptoms to flare up.
Tablets can take up to an hour to be effective. However, allergen barrier nasal sprays and gels act directly in the nose and begin working within a few minutes, preventing allergens from entering the nasal passages.
The second stage is defence, and that is understanding that the longer you are exposed to the allergen, the worse your symptoms become, and that’s when you take action to minimise the symptoms, such as removing indoor flowers, not drying clothes outdoors, and closing windows at night.
This story originally appeared on Express.co.uk
