For a second year, Wichita named worst city for allergy sufferers. These are the culprits
If you love Wichita, but struggle with seasonal allergies, we have bad news for you.
The city has been named the worst in the U.S. live in if you have allergies by the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America for the second year in a row. The foundation analyzed the worst cities for allergies by measuring pollen counts, the use of medicine and the number of allergy specialists in the area.
The foundation looked at 100 different metro areas for the report. The average score was 75.49, and Wichita scored a 100.
According to Matthew McKernan, a horticultural agent with the Sedgwick County extension office, the majority of plant-related allergies in the area come from tree pollen. The trees most likely producing that pollen are cedars, maples, elms and ash trees.
“Oftentimes, these trees are not necessarily showy,” McKernan said. “Some people may not even notice that they’re in bloom while the pollen is out there being released.”
Unfortunately, avoiding seasonal allergies in Wichita is harder than just not planting pollen-producers in your backyard.
“I think the tricky thing with allergies in our area is even if you decide not to plant one of these spring-flowering trees in your yard, there’s enough of them in the community that you still are going to suffer from allergies,” McKernan said.
“I think the other really tricky thing is that we have such strong winds here in Kansas that oftentimes, a lot of the pollen that’s getting carried is coming from Oklahoma or Texas or out-of-state areas,” he continued.
Here’s what to know about a what could be causing your allergies in Wichita and how to treat them.
What are causing my seasonal allergies in Wichita?
What could be making you sneeze depends on what time of year it is. Unfortunately for the allergy prone, you don’t get many breaks from irritants.
“I think that’s kind of part of the reason why we we’re rated so highly in a lot of these allergy rate rankings ... because we do have a wide variety of trees, broadleaf plants and grasses throughout the year all producing pollen at different times,” McKernan said.
There are a variety of trees in bloom in mid-March that could be causing your allergies to act up.
“The things that are in bloom right now are probably a lot of the cottonwoods, oaks, mulberries, birches. There still could be some eastern red cedar to bloom, but typically those are one of the first trees that start to produce pollen in February and March,” McKernan said.
As of Friday, AccuWeather predicts the risk of symptoms caused by tree pollen in the area to be high through Thursday, March 28. Factors that could cause this is the average wind in the area and possible wind gusts.
While trees are what could be causing your allergies right now, another plant usually takes over in the summertime.
“When we get into the summer months, like late spring through the summer months, grass pollen becomes a bigger issue. We see less tree pollen and more grass pollen,” McKernan said.
As we move into the summer and closer to the fall, broadleaf plants become the biggest issue.
“Things like ragweed, for example, is a common broadleaf plants in bloom mid to late summer into the fall. And then that becomes the predominant pollen source for for allergy sufferers,” McKernan said.
How to treat your seasonal allergies in Kansas
The Mayo Clinic recommends using an over-the-counter remedy if you’re struggling with seasonal allergies, like oral antihistamines or nasal sprays.
You can also rinse out your sinuses with saline solution or a homemade rinse, which should include a quart of water, 1.5 teaspoons of canning salt and 1 teaspoon of baking soda. You should only use distilled, sterile or water that was previously boiled for a sinus rinse.
To avoid allergies as much as possible, the Mayo Clinic recommends staying inside during windy days, showering after being outside, washing your clothes after being outdoors, not to hang laundry outside and avoiding outdoor chores, like weeding and lawn mowing.
This story was originally published March 25, 2024 at 6:25 AM.
