Pollen counts are expected to more than double by 2040 according to a study presented to the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology last year. The study, conducted at the USDA-ARS Climate Stress Laboratory, says pollen seasons have already lengthened by more than two weeks since 1995. The culprit is climate change.
The danger posed to the 50 million Americans who suffer from allergies, over a quarter of whom are children, is one that the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America (AAFA) takes seriously. Leaders of the organization went to the White House to discuss the matter last month. The meeting was arranged between Barack Obama's senior advisor, Valerie Jarrett, and a small group of health organization leaders.
AAFA president and CEO Bill McLin expressed his own concerns "They are more likely to sleep poorly at night, miss school or work, and risk hospitalization and even death because of the increasing environmental triggers due to climate change. Children are especially vulnerable."
Federal statistics from 2011 show 16.9 millions adults and 6.7 million children were newly diagnosed with allergies in that year alone.
The AAFA said in a release that sufferers are reporting worsening symptoms caused by lengthened allergy seasons and increased pollens counts from trees, grasses and weeds.
Scientists who conducted the pollen count study revealed that in addition to longer seasons, they also found that pollen producing ragweeds were growing faster, flowering earlier and producing more pollen. Dr. Leonard Bielory, the allergist who presented the results of the study said that pollens counts, which averaged 8,455 in 2000, are expected to reach nearly 22,000 in the next 20 years.
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