Global Warming Will Make Things Worse For Allergy Sufferers
In March and April there were reports that allergy sufferers would face a "pollen superburst" this season. ABC said some experts were predicting the pollen explosion.
The official start is just eight days away. The American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology says there is no way to accurately predict pollen counts or how bad the spring allergy season will be.
But some experts think we may be facing a "pollen superburst" this year. Pollen usually happens in a sequence. Trees first, then flowers and weeds. Cold weather slowed things this year, but with recent warm-ups, trees and flowers could start pollinating all at once.
This was not the kind of early spring news people with allergies wanted to hear. Unfortunately, it may be just the tip of the iceberg. A single bad year or season may just be the beginning of bigger problems for people with allergies in years to come. Experts believe global warming will increase the amount of pollen trees and weeds produce. Climate change could also make allergies a year-round problem. A CBS News article explains the link between increasing carbon dioxide emissions and rising pollen.
The air we now breathe has about 350 parts of carbon dioxide per million parts of air. Experts expect carbon dioxide levels to double within the next three to six decades, so the researchers studied ragweed growth at both 350 parts and 700 parts carbon dioxide per million parts of air.
They also released the ragweed seeds at different times to simulate early and late growing seasons.
A longer growing season was associated with an increase in pollen production for seeds grown at atmospheric carbon dioxide levels that were similar to current conditions. But it seemed to have less impact when seeds were exposed to the highest carbon dioxide levels.
"In future climates with elevated [carbon dioxide], we predict pollen production will be just as robust in years with late springs as in years with early springs," the researchers wrote. "Overall, pollen production in ragweed can be expected to increase significantly under predicted future climate conditions."
The study was conducted by researchers from Harvard School of Public Health's Exposure, Epidemiology, and Risk Program, and Harvard Medical School's Center for Health and the Global Environment. It was funded through a grant from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
The article also says annoying plants like poison ivy and ragweed will do better in this kind of climate which is not good news at all for people with ragweed allergies. This video from NBC also discusses the link between global warming and rising pollen counts.
