Birch pollens are coming.
The pollination of this tree with a white trunk with shades of gray and black has just started in the Paris region, Lyon and in the center of the country.
It will start Monday, April 5 in the north and west of France, according to forecasts from Météo France and the National Aerobiological Surveillance Network (RNSA).
This Friday, the association indicated on its website an allergy risk of medium level in Auvergne Rhône-Alpes, Ile-de-France and in certain departments of western France.
“Birch pollens are mainly present in a large northern half of France, less in the forests of the south.
It is one of the most allergenic pollens, which will be found in large quantities within three to four weeks, if there is no decrease due to rain or cold ”, explains RNSA director Charlotte Sindt.
Identical calendar for plane tree pollens, less allergenic but more abundant.
The risk of allergy is medium around the Mediterranean for these pollens, as for those of cypress and pariets.
On the other hand, the risk is still low for oak pollens, which will arrive gradually in April and May.
Same degree of vigilance for grasses, grasses that grow along roads or at the foot of plane trees.
Their pollens will grow during the month of April, with high concentrations in May and June.
"The majority of pollen allergies are due to grasses", notes Isabelle Bossé, allergist doctor in La Rochelle (Charente-Maritime).
Itchy throat, nose and eyes
“The symptoms are an itchy throat, nose, eyes and sometimes palate, associated with a heavy runny nose, repeated sneezing, very often tearing.
Sometimes we have a stuffy nose, asthma attacks and coughs, ”describes the one who is also president of the French Syndicate of Allergists.
"Allergy can play on sleep and fatigue," warns Charlotte Sindt.
As with Covid-19, there are several barrier gestures against pollen allergies.
It is advisable not to ventilate between 11 am and 5 pm, when allergens are most present in the air.
The most exposed and the most sensitive will change their clothes when they get home and wash their hair, a large reservoir of pollen, before going to bed.
In the same vein, you should avoid leaving clothes to dry outside;
limit outings and outdoor sports during alert periods and in windy and sunny weather;
close the windows in the car.
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"The barrier gestures against Covid-19 have made it possible to realize the usefulness of wearing a mask to limit the access of pollens to the nasal passages", agree to say Charlotte Sindt and Isabelle Bossé.
“Perhaps, apart from the pandemic, allergy sufferers will put on a mask specifically to protect themselves from pollens, as was already the case in Asian countries,” says the director of the RNSA.