The trees may still look leafless, but they’re beginning to bud and release pollen, which means Kleenex season is in full swing and people plagued by seasonal allergies are hitting the online pollen counts for a hint at just how bad their sneezing might be.
But they often come away confused. Monitors such as and the pollen count by National Jewish Health display dramatically different data, which makes it tough to decide whether to pop an antihistamine — or not.
On Friday afternoon, National Jewish put Denver’s tree-pollen count in the moderate range. But had almost all of Colorado under “allergy alert,” warning those same pollens would be pegged near the top of the chart through the weekend.
“Our patients say, ‘How come says it’s high, and you say it’s low? Are you sure?’ ” said Jennifer Harp, who works at the Colorado Allergy and Asthma Centers in Centennial. “I tell them, ‘Yes, I was just on the roof this morning.’ “
Harp, a certified pollen counter, climbs onto the roof of her office building daily to measure the number and types of tiny pollen grains that have collected on a greased rod to determine the pollen count. The National Allergy Bureau also uses a similar method.
Websites, including , are forecasters, using prediction models that rely on a mix of historical trends, weather reports and pollen counts.
Because so many people rely on pollen monitors to avoid the exposure that triggers their symptoms, scientists have started to look into which method is most reliable.
Last week at the annual conference of the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology, researchers presented a new study from the Environmental Allergy Assays in Ontario and the Allergy & Asthma Care Center in North Dakota.
They compared forecasts from and to daily counts from the National Allergy Bureau, and found that pollen counts were more accurate.
“The accuracy of forecasted pollen counts may eventually be improved for use,” said the paper, “but at present should not be used for patient symptom correlations.”
Still, people still can suffer bad symptoms even on days when a count is low.
“Counts let you know the pollen count from the day before,” said Adam Dormuth of National Jewish Health.
“On the days when we have rain or snow, all the pollen gets knocked down. You may still feel really bad from allergy symptoms, but what you are feeling is from the day before.”
The best bet for those who suffer from tree-pollen allergies, experts say, is to start taking allergy medication now, before the symptoms start. A protective level of medication in the blood will quiet the immune system and better ward off the runny nose and itchy eyes.
National Jewish also recommends monitoring the pollen count daily, and on high-count days, keep windows closed and take a shower before bed if a lot of time has been spent outdoors.
Colleen O’Connor: 303-954-1083 or coconnor@denverpost.com
Online sources
If you want to see what’s causing your itchy eyes and runny nose, visit:
National Jewish Health:
; the pollen count is on the left side of the page
or
National Allergy Bureau:
and click on “Pollen Levels” at the top of the page.
For a forecast, visit: and enter your ZIP code.
