WATCH: If you think allergies are early and worse this year, you’re right. But you might be surprised at why. Linda Aylesworth reports.
The historically warm weather British Columbia has experienced this winter may be welcomed by most, but there are negative consequences.
Early ski hill closures. Early controlled burns.
And early sniffles.
READ MORE: Why allergy season is getting longer, and what you can do about it
“When the weather is good like this, the pollen comes out much sooner,” says Dr. Amin Kanani, a Vancouver allergist. He says that tree pollen first came out in late January, which is quite early for this region. Combined with the grass pollen season going from May until August, and it means a tough year for those with pollen allergies.
“It could mean a particularly long season,” says Kanani.
But Kanani also says there’s an overall trend of the pollen season starting earlier and earlier, and he believes it’s due to global warming.
“When you have higher CO2 levels, you have higher pollen production, and a higher number of trees growing it,” he says.
While the pollen produced by cherry blossoms doesn’t cause allergies because it’s too heavy to float through the air, alder and birch trees cause the most grief in British Columbia.
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