Question About Allergy Season In England--Does It Last All Spring And All Summer?

I suffer from hayfever (that's the more common UK expression for pollen & plant allergies). I find it kicks off in late April/early May with the tree blossom, which makes my eyes water like mad. You may find you're sensitive to this...

Then later there's rapeseed, which is the absolute worst, and tends to close up my throat and give me chest pains.. Then during June & July my eyes often water from non-specific grass pollen. So basically April to July is hayfever season for me - with an occasional recurrence in August during the harvest.

It's difficult to know what to suggest - your body is trying to deal with unfamiliar allergens in a country that has a lot of plant life, farms & grassland in close proximity to centres of population. And there's a lot of traffic pollution as well as it's such a small, cramped island. But definitely avoid the rapeseed season - generally worse from June through to late summer.

I make sure I start taking antihistamines in spring as a precautionary measure, and also carry an inhaler. But I suspect you'll just have to do what most of us do, which is dark glasses and stay indoors when it gets bad.

However it's worth knowing that chemist shops (aka drug stores) will have well-trained pharmacists who can recommend the best drugs for your specific needs.

Thank you, Jane. That is good information!

The Met Office produce pollen forecasts, which as you can see start from March up to September. Forecasts are also given on BBC and ITV weather forecasts.

http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/health/public/pollen-forecast/

There are also apps for phones that give a forecast.

As Jane says there no easy answer for sufferers. Hay fever can be very local so it depends where you are on any given day; a bit like the weather really.

I have a lot of allergies and I'm usually okay everywhere. But years ago, I arrived in Eugene OR in the midst of rye grass season and got so incredibly sick that we had to leave the city. Not just the watery eyes and runny nose deal but the eyes swelling up and face getting puffy stuff. It was unbelievable and I've never been back there.

If it were me, and I got that sick in May, I wouldn't go back in April. Weather is fickle. Can you go in September or October?

Ramblin' on, Valerie, and Emma thanks for that information and your advice!

Valerie, yes I can go in the fall. That is probably the best idea.

Emma, a special thank you to you, for all that good advice! The Beconaise nasal spray is on my list to get at the Boots next time I land in London! Good ideas about being extra cautious about bringing pollen into the apartment on clothing and hair, also. Thank you!

I have never suffered from hay fever or other allergies but I developed a terrible cough when we were in the UK for four weeks last May. So did my husband, who does have mild asthma. It was not preceded by any cold symptoms so did not seem likely to be a cold or other illness like flu. I felt fine apart from the hacking cough.

Looking into this after reading your post and the responses, I learned that there is a recognized "rapeseed allergy syndrome" aka oilseed rape allergy that causes a lot of misery in the UK when the plant is blooming---generally mid-April to June. You can find lots discussion but here is one of many:

http://www.oilseedrape.org.uk/html/health_effects.html

Basically, it is often not the pollen that causes respiratory problems, but volatile compounds ( terpenes, phenols and others) that are produced by the plant in great quantity and dispersed into the air. This plant is closely related to mustard which also produces a lot of these irritants.

It appears the best solution may be to simply avoid rural areas of the UK where the plant is grown as a crop. I do not recall seeing any in the Scottish Highlands, which might explain which I experienced no problems on a previous May trip.

Ramblin' on, a special thanks to you, too. I just followed your link, and it is a wealth of information!
The website says:
"The pollen season separates into three main sections:

Tree pollen - late March to mid-May.
Grass pollen - mid-May to July.
Weed pollen - end of June to September

Our forecast is based on this detailed breakdown of the different types of pollen and their peak times within a season."

It also says that 95% of hay fever sufferers in the UK are allergic to grass pollen.

It also says:
"Alcohol worsens hay fever. Beer, wine, and other spirits contain histamine--the chemical that sets off allergy symptoms in the body."
Bad news indeed!

Lola, wow, thank you so much! That is an interesting article! Sorry you and your husband were coughing, too, during your visit to England. May seems to be the month for all kinds of pollen in the UK.

This excerpt from the article perfectly describes what I experienced:
"The following are extracts from previously published research papers:-

Coldahl reported: Investigation of the personal history of the patient revealed nothing suggestive of hereditory susceptibility to allergy. In May 1951, when the rape began to bloom, itching of the nose, increased secretion from the nasal mucosa and sneezing occurred. There was also itching and congestion of both eyes. Some 3 weeks later breathing was wheezy. The symptoms almost disabled the man for about a month. As soon as he went near a rape field in bloom, the symptoms increased in intensity. The first year the symptoms troubled the patient at night too."

And this is from the article:
"Diminished quality of life for those affected by oilseed rape:

For those who are affected by oilseed rape, it can mean numerous visits to the doctor and pharmacy for prescriptions. Drugs are heavily prescribed to people (children and adults) when avoidance is the only true method of allergy management, though some individuals do indeed require medication for additional protection.

The symptoms of some children are so bad that they are prevented from attending school, (schools in urban areas can be surrounded by rape fields), even some adults are signed off work, and many people are restricted from venturing outside and must keep their windows firmly closed, even in warm weather. People who regularly exercise outside (joggers, walkers, sports enthusiasts, etc.) are prevented from participating in their regular fitness activities."

Looks like I will be visiting England mainly in the very late fall and the winter months. Maybe early March is o.k. Thanks everyone!

Steroid sprays are really dirt cheap in the UK compared with the USA - see this old thread for some discussion on these and other medical items - in there is a post from me that back in April Tesco were selling two Beconase for £6.

Personally these days it is tree pollen which affects me the worst.

I have no medical training, but I think it's not recommended to irrigate the nose with regular tap water. I don't remember the details, but very occasionally something really, really bad happens. A commercial saline solution should be OK; in fact, I use one of those myself.

Thanks again everyone!

I have primarily birch pollen allergy and it often starts for me as early as late February. Emma's recommendations are good but an addition is that if you get eye symptoms that aren't helped by antihistamines, try eyedrops containing chromoglycate - Opticrom is the big brand name version but again Boots and so on will have their own-brand versions. Compared to Beconase I prefer Flixonase, which is also available without prescription but contains a longer-lasting drug in the same class that often only has to be used once per day.

If you are a Costco member or know one, they stock a 5 pack of generic Flonase. $28 for the multi pack which works out to less than $6 per spray bottle. Each bottle is good for 120 sprays.

For those in the US who were not aware, steroid nasal sprays have become available OTC in the last few years. Also in very broad terms they are interchangeable (beconase vs. Flonase vs nasacort) for treatment of allergy symptoms. Of course you should check with your doctor regarding your particular situation. And finally they take a few days to become effective so you may want to start using one before you head off to an area where you may experience symptoms.

Thank you Phillip and Rocket! All very good information!

I don't know if anyone is still checking this thread, but I have another question about hay fever season.

If I first started having hay fever symptoms in London, what would be the most likely culprit there? Obviously it would not be rapeseed.
What type of tree pollen would be most prolific in London in the first three weeks of May?

Thanks.

Oak. Birch which more people seem to be allergic to has typically tailed off by the end of April but might still be around.

Thank you, Marco! Is Beconase the only thing you use for tree pollen relief, or does your doctor give you any other meds that help?

I don't have anything additional beyond antihistamine.

Thanks again, Marco.