Are you living in one of the worst places for fall allergies?  Check out the latest list for the Top 20 Fall Allergy Hotspots.   

Fall Allergy Hotspots: The 20 Worst Places In The U.S.

If you’re an allergy sufferer, you hardly need us to remind you, but it is that time of year again! Fall allergy season is upon us.  Think you live in a particularly bad spot?

The non-profit Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America has, once again, compiled a list of the 100 worst metro areas for seasonal allergies — rankings that are based on pollen scores, the number of allergy meds used per patient in any given area, as well as the number of specialists in that spot. According to WebMD, one of the main culprits for fall allergies is ragweed, which typically begins pollinating in August, but can linger into the fall. Mold spores can also play a major role.

Wondering if your hometown made the so-called “allergies capital” list? Check out the 20 worst offenders below as reported in the Huffington Post.

1. ENCASE:  Cover your bed with allergy encasings!  They’re the #1 doctor-recommended step for allergy relief!
2. WASH:  Wash linens to remove allergens.  Make your job easier with allergen-removing detergents.
3. CLEAN:  Every little bit helps with cleaning and certain household cleaners are designed to tackle allergens.
4. REMOVE:  It’s best to remove carpets, but that can be touch.  Use carpet treatments that remove allergens.
5. FILTER:  Air filters trap allergens and keep them from circulating in your home. 
6. PURIFY:  HEPA air purifiers capture airborne allergens.  Save now on Blueair HEPA filter replacements! 
7. SAVE:  What’s this 7th step?  Oh yeah, it’s an extra bonus from us!  SAVE 20% with code 20SPOT until 10/31.  If you’re in a tight spot with allergies, get the products and the relief you need! 

Very soon, millions of children will be returning back to school.   A lot of us have school-aged children with food allergies.  Parents…what are some things that you do to make sure the children are safe in their classroom?   Teachers…do you have any advice for the parents out there who want to provide a safe environment for their children and their friends?  Below is an article regarding food allergies that we thought might be helpful.

The director of the Jaffe Food Allergy Institute at Mount Sinai, Hugh Sampson is a pediatric allergist/immunologist who has spent 30 years specializing in food allergies.

Who’s at risk

Childhood food allergy has been in the news lately, with a recent CDC study estimating that 1 in 13 American kids is affected.  ”Food allergy is an adverse reaction to a food brought about by an abnormal response of your immune system,” says Sampson. “As many as 6% to 8% of young kids may have food allergy, but most of them grow out of it by age 10.  In the general population of adults and kids, about 2.5% of Americans have a food allergy.  The most common childhood food allergies are to milk, eggs and peanuts, followed by tree nuts and soy.  ”Kids usually outgrow milk, egg and soy allergy, but the other allergies tend to persist to adulthood,” says Sampson. “Adults are most often allergic to peanuts, tree nuts, shellfish and fish.”  Doctors still don’t know exactly why some kids’ immune systems respond to food abnormally.   ”There appears to be a genetic predisposition because it does travel in families,” says Sampson.  ”A study of identical and nonidentical twins found that about 80% of heritability was due to genetics, which leaves the remaining 20% up to the environment – probably something to do with the Western lifestyle and the way our food is processed.”  Children with food allergies are also at increased risk of what doctors call atopic diseases – allergic rhinitis (aka, hay fever), asthma and eczema, an itchy skin rash.  ”We call it the ‘atopic march’ because kids with food allergy and eczema in early childhood tend to develop asthma and allergic rhinitis down the road,” says Sampson.

Signs and symptoms

The most common symptoms of food allergy manifest through the skin, gastrointestinal tract and respiratory system.  ”The classic reaction is an itching sensation of the mouth, swelling of the lips and tongue and tightness in the throat,” says Sampson.  ”There’s often an itchy red rash, like hives and some kids develop a runny nose, watery eyes and wheezing.”  Gastrointestinal symptoms, such as nausea, crampy abdominal pain and vomiting, frequently accompany other ðallergic symptoms.  If the allergic reaction is severe, it can cause a drop of blood pressure, hypotensive shock, loss of consciousness and even death. One thing that makes food allergy so hard to treat is that it’s impossible to predict how severe the next reaction will be.  ”You can have a mild reaction one time, like mild swelling in the tongue and mouth and then a very severe reaction the next time and go into shock,” says Sampson. “Typically, if a reaction involves more than the skin and upper respiratory tract, we consider that anaphylaxis, which is a severe reaction that threatens the whole body.”

Questions for your doctor
If you think your child has symptoms of food allergy, ask your pediatrician, “Can my child be tested?” Sampson warns that a blood test alone isn’t enough, so you may want to be referred to a specialist.  Another key question is, “When will my child outgrow this and how will I know?” Fortunately, most kids outgrow food allergy while they’re still in grade school.

For the full article, click here.

For a great guide on how to manage children’s allergies, please click here for a book by allergist, Dr. Paul Erlich et al.