Good and bad news for allergy sufferers this year
Winter might have been brutally long in Germany this year, but allergy sufferers will benefit – sort of. Pollen isn't expected to begin plaguing people until two weeks later than normal, but the delay could make allergies much more intense.
“This year we still haven’t seen any patients with hay fever,” ear, nose and throat specialist Dr. Arne Weidenfeld from the Aklepios clinic in Hamburg said on Friday.
In addition to delaying the release of plant pollen, the wet and cold conditions prevent what little there is from getting very far, he explained.
Though this may provide temporary comfort to the allergy-prone, it will unfortunately make springtime allergies more intense when the weather finally warms up.
Now both trees and flowers will probably bloom simultaneously, giving people with multiple allergies a particularly hard time, Weidenfeld said.
By mid-March spring has usually arrived in Germany, but this weekend up to 30 centimetres of snow is expected in many parts of the country, the German Weather Service (DWD) reported on Friday.
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“This year we still haven’t seen any patients with hay fever,” ear, nose and throat specialist Dr. Arne Weidenfeld from the Aklepios clinic in Hamburg said on Friday.
In addition to delaying the release of plant pollen, the wet and cold conditions prevent what little there is from getting very far, he explained.
Though this may provide temporary comfort to the allergy-prone, it will unfortunately make springtime allergies more intense when the weather finally warms up.
Now both trees and flowers will probably bloom simultaneously, giving people with multiple allergies a particularly hard time, Weidenfeld said.
By mid-March spring has usually arrived in Germany, but this weekend up to 30 centimetres of snow is expected in many parts of the country, the German Weather Service (DWD) reported on Friday.
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