Seasonal or perennial irritants to which some people have sensitivities can cause airborne allergies in winter. Outdoor and indoor air quality shifts over time. While outdoor pollen and mold counts change with the seasons, the levels of household allergens rise and fall for many reasons. Wintertime indoor environments, with less fresh air ventilation, may produce more severe allergy symptoms in some people than at any other time. Allergic reactions to pets, fungi, dust mites and other substances can explain the late-season onset of perennial allergies.
Identification
Allergy symptoms that occur after being outside in mild winter climates may be caused by local or distant tree pollens. For instance, the Allergy, Asthma and Immunology Clinic of Georgetown, Texas, reports that the winter pollination of the mountain cedar causes intense allergic reactions.
Perennial allergies from contact with indoor allergens may be more difficult to diagnose. Individuals who contract symptoms after breathing air or handling items contaminated with visible mold, dust or pet dander may draw reasonable conclusions. Doctors can perform blood or skin tests to confirm a diagnosis.
Features
Seasonal or perennial allergic rhinitis produces the same types of symptoms, according to the University of Maryland Medical Center. Patients may experience any combination of eye, nose or skin itching, sneezing or coughing, and fluid accumulation in the eyes and nasal passages.
Misconceptions
Patients who first develop winter allergies may attribute their health problems to lingering colds or other causes. Those who move to a new location may not expect hay fever allergy symptoms between fall and spring.
Airborne tree pollen can travel many miles to affect patients in distant areas, even in places where the allergenic trees don't grow. Indoor dust mites or cockroach waste particles are so small that patients might not suspect these invisible sources of perennial allergies.
Time Frame
The timing of allergy symptoms can prove or confuse a diagnosis. Some signs of seasonal or perennial allergies appear immediately upon exposure to allergens. Health problems persist as long as exposure does, as the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America relates. Patients should compare the duration of suspected allergic reactions with nasal symptoms of a cold or flu, which usually pass within a week to 10 days.
Solution
Allergies can't be cured, but allergy symptoms can be managed with medications and air quality improvements. The UM Medical Center recommends early dosage of nasal steroids prior to the expected onset of winter pollen symptoms.
Allergic reactions to dust mites, cockroaches, indoor molds and pets can be avoided or reduced in frequency through periodic cleaning. The UM also suggests year-round treatment with nasal steroids or a series of allergy shots to control persistent allergy health problems.
