Vim & Vigor - Spring 2013 - Gwinnett Medical Center - (Page 44)

4 MIllIon Seasonal allergies (hay fever) lead to nearly MiSSed or loSt workdayS annually, which accounts for more than $700 MIllIon in loSt productivity. Myth: If you didn’t have allergies as a child, you don’t have to worry about them as an adult. “You can develop an allergy at any age,” says Stanley Fineman, M.D., president of the American College of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology. If that “cold” just won’t go away, it might be an adult-onset allergy, so talk to your doctor. Allergies tend to run in families, Fineman notes, so if your parents have allergies, that might be more indicative of your risk than whether you had them as a child. Myth: Moving to a dry climate will cure your allergies. “That’s what was thought years ago,” Fineman says. “That was really before we knew a lot about the immune reaction.” You can’t escape allergies, but you might be able to minimize their effects. “Allergies occur in every state in the U.S.,” says Neil L. Kao, M.D., a fellow of the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology. “However, allergies from pollen and mold occur more frequently in warmer or wetter climates. The Southwest has a drier climate, so generally, the pollen and mold counts are lower there.” But remember, Fineman notes, as people have populated the Southwestern states over the years, they’ve brought plants with them, meaning a lot of dry climates have more than simple desert plants. In the end, you may simply find yourself trading one allergy for another. 44 Spring 2 013 Myth: To manage your allergies, stay away from brightly colored flowers. Plants are pollinated in one of two ways—by wind or by bees. “Brightly colored flowers produce pollen that is too large and heavy to be spread by the wind,” Kao explains. “The bright colors and nectar attract bees, who fly from flower to flower and so pollinate flowers. Pollen from trees, grasses and weeds are smaller and spread by the wind.” The small, wind-blown pollen particles from grass and weeds are to blame for allergies, rather than the heavy pollen in flowers like roses and tulips. Myth: To cure seasonal allergies, eat the local honey. If only it were so simple. “There have been studies that have shown that local honey is not medicinal for reducing an allergic predisposition,” Fineman says. “It’s not going to hurt you, but it’s not medicinal.” Still, it’s easy to understand why people might think that. Karen Calhoun, M.D., an otolaryngic allergist and the president of the American Society of Geriatric Otolaryngology, explains it as a kind of purported immunotherapy, a therapy that is designed to stimulate the immune system—but not enough to cause an allergic reaction. The goal of immunotherapy (as in allergy shots) is to slowly build up a tolerance. For this theory to work, however, the pollen that the bees take back for the honey would have to be the very pollen you’re allergic to, and that’s not likely, she says, because the pollens that cause allergies are typically carried in the wind, rather than by bees. Myth: Short-haired pets don’t cause allergies. Sorry, Fido. “Short-haired pets can cause allergic reactions, contrary to what many people say,” Kao says. The issue is not the hair itself, but the dander— or flakes of skin—that hide out in fur or feathers. The amount of dander may be less in a small and shorthaired pet than a large, long-haired one, but if pet dander is your kryptonite, you’re still likely to have a reaction around even the smallest pooch.

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Vim & Vigor - Spring 2013 - Gwinnett Medical Center

Vim & Vigor - Spring 2013 - Gwinnett Medical Center
Contents
Phil’s Feature
Where Lasting Weight Loss Begins
Open Heart Surgery Journey
You’re the Star
Heart-to-Heart
Lighten Up!
Have No Fear
Work It!
Diane Keaton
What Are the Chances?
9 Symptoms Never to Ignore
When Allergies Attack
Virtual Health
PrimeTime Health
Aiding Babies
Back on Top
Out of the White Coat
Transforming Healthcare

Vim & Vigor - Spring 2013 - Gwinnett Medical Center