We’re gonna need a stronger pill.
Each year, the seasonal allergy warnings grow louder — as does the chorus of sniffling, sneezing and hacking.
You can blame warmer temperatures, which “extend the duration of the pollen season,” and pollutants in the air that “can increase the potency of pollen allergens,” NYU Langone allergist Dr. Stephanie Mawhirt said.
Other human activities could be worsening the problem, like landscaping with non-native plants that produce a lot of allergens.
Mawhirt tells The Post that a combination of these factors may be why adults are increasingly being diagnosed with allergic rhinitis, or hay fever. In 2023, the CDC reported that 1 in 4 adults and 1 in 5 children in the US have seasonal allergies.
It may also help explain why your trusty allergy meds aren’t working like they used to.
There’s no cure for seasonal allergies, but many people reach for daily pills and nasal sprays to help manage symptoms.
Unfortunately, stronger pollen in higher amounts may essentially be resistant to standard over-the-counter treatments for people with relatively severe seasonal allergies.
Short of locking yourself inside an air-conditioned room until July, Mawhirt recommends keeping your pollen exposure to a minimum by closing windows at home, utilizing air conditioning or air filters, showering before bed and using OTC nasal saline rinses.
“Research supports the start of pharmacologic therapy, such as nasal sprays before pollen season starts, to help mitigate symptoms,” she said, adding that concerned individuals can monitor the pollen load and air quality in their area using apps like Pollen Wise or AirRater.
If symptoms persist, it might be time to check in with an allergist.
Skin tests and blood work can identify the type of allergens that pose a problem, including specific pollens. An allergist can also evaluate other allergic disorders, “as some patients with rhinitis may also have or be at risk for developing allergic asthma,” Mawhirt explained.
Some patients will have to work with an allergist to create a more detailed treatment plan. This might involve allergen immunotherapy — also known as allergy shots — which is a “specialized treatment protocol aimed at changing the way the immune system responds to allergens,” with a goal of being “less reactive, and in turn, more tolerant to allergens over time.”
Environmental allergies causing allergic rhinitis can pop up at any point in life.
“The prevalence of allergic rhinitis peaks between ages 20 to 40, but most patients have allergy symptoms at even younger ages,” Mawhirt said. “A period of allergic sensitization needs to occur, and for this reason, the youngest age of environmental allergy symptoms is usually after age 3.”
And while allergic rhinitis shares a lot of characteristics with an upper respiratory infection (viral cold), they are not the same.
Both typically present with nasal congestion, sneezing or a clear runny nose, Mawhirt said. But a fever indicates an infection, “and a decreased sense of smell or sore throat is more common in a viral infection.” Nasal itch, on the other hand, is usually associated with allergies.
While pollen season in the Northeast typically ends by late May or early June, the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America reports that between 1995 and 2011, studies showed warmer temperatures across the US extended the pollen season by anywhere from 11 to 27 days.
Climate Central attributes this to the number of “freeze-free days” each year, which gives “plants more time to grow and release allergy-inducing pollen.”
From 1970 to 2025, the freeze-free growing season lengthened on average by 21 days in 173 US cities.
“As temperatures rise, freeze-free seasons are stretching in every region of the country, giving plants weeks of extra time to grow and release pollen,” said Kristy Dahl, vice president for science at Climate Central. “For millions of Americans, that means earlier, longer and often more intense allergy seasons that can take a real toll on health and daily life.”
“It’s a clear signal of a warming world, driven by carbon pollution,” she said, adding that “a longer allergy season is nothing to sneeze at.”
