Who says that spring and fall are the only time to track allergens? While winter is not a prime allergy season, there are certainly people who suffer from allergies to tree pollen found in specific regions of the country. DailyBreath is uniquely suited to track allergens all year, and given our concerns around COVID, it is important to be able to pinpoint allergic reactions versus potential COVID symptoms. Determining your allergen triggers can help you to avoid asthma attacks.
For example, there is a particular tree that is pollen producing during the winter months in a specific area of the US. The mountain cedar tree most notably located in south and central Texas, and some parts of Oklahoma, Arkansas, and Missouri, produces abundant pollen between November and February. This pollen is so prevalent in this region that folks in Texas refer to the resultant impacts or allergic reaction to this pollen explosion as ‘cedar fever’. Many transplants to this part of the country are surprised when they experience allergy symptoms during the winter. However, mountain cedar will often strike those who also experience spring allergies related to tree species like cedar, juniper, and cypress.
Given the lack of predictability in 2020, as if on cue, ‘cedar fever’ may have arrived early in Texas, as folks on social media report allergy symptoms already. As most of the country, especially the Southwest, has experienced warmer temperatures than normal recently, this isn’t too surprising. As a result, the early blossoming of mountain cedar cones is already well underway, and a peak is expected in December this year.
Texas mountain cedar is just one example of asthma triggers in the winter. Just because this area of the US is impacted by the mountain cedar pollen allergen doesn’t mean the rest of the country gets a free pass. There are multiple airborne contaminants indoors and pollutants outdoors during the winter that can cause asthma symptoms to appear. Even cold weather, often accompanied by dry air, or a rapid transition from warmer temperatures to cold, can be a trigger for asthma. During the fall and winter, damp wet weather may create more mold outdoors, another source of a trigger. Understanding your personal allergy and asthma triggers is an essential line of defense against experiencing symptoms.
DailyBreath was developed to help individual’s pinpoint triggers one symptom at a time, one location at a time. When you begin to understand when, where, and what level of mountain cedar pollen, or any other allergen, impacts you, you are empowered to reduce or avoid your symptoms. By pinpointing your triggers, you will learn what allergens, irritants, and weather conditions impact YOUR asthma.