High pollen counts in North Carolina are causing sneezing and sniffling: how to manage allergies
Brendan Monaghan is a physician assistant at Novant Health. He says it can be hard to distinguish allergy symptoms from the common cold or flu.
Brendan Monaghan is a physician assistant at Novant Health. He says it can be hard to distinguish allergy symptoms from the common cold or flu.
Brendan Monaghan is a physician assistant at Novant Health. He says it can be hard to distinguish allergy symptoms from the common cold or flu.
Many of us are enjoying this time of year, but the not-so-fun part about spring is allergies.
Some Triad residents say they've already started feeling the seasonal sniffles.
"Runny nose, sore throat, itchy eyes." resident Kevin Dunn said.
"Allergy season has been a battle. A lot of times I'm sneezing, I got red eyes, I'm itchy, it's been a mess," resident Marc Isabella said.
Brendan Monaghan is a physician assistant at Novant Health. He says it can be hard to distinguish allergy symptoms from the common cold or flu.
"This is the time of year where we're going to get allergy symptoms," Monaghan said. "Many times, allergy symptoms will be much more related to time of day or to pollen exposure. And many times, allergy symptoms will get better in just a few days."
The best way to knock out those allergy symptoms quickly is by using over-the-counter medications.
"I take Claritin once a day," resident Jack Sellner said. "It's what my mom told me to do when I was a kid, and it's worked ever since."
"Those are going to be things like Flonase, which is an internal steroid, or Benadryl, which is that oral pill or the liquid to really help with those symptoms," Monaghan said.
Monaghan says allergy symptoms can normally improve in a few days with the help of medications. If they don't get better after that, visit your local doctor.
To find the latest allergy forecast check out the Forsyth County Pollen Monitoring program.
