The long season of festivals, which started with Bonalu, and the beginning of the trend of dipping temperatures in Hyderabad and elsewhere has started to trigger complaints of allergies. Believe it or not, the large amounts of flowers that are used during the festivals do have the potential to release pollens in the air that trigger a host of skin allergies.
Moreover, the dry and cold weather conditions, that have just started to prevail in Hyderabad, make an ideal cocktail to trigger allergic reactions, asthma attacks and of course viral fevers.
The members of Allergy and Asthma Network of India (AANI) said that persons who are prone to allergies are experiencing a wide range of allergic flare up reactions. Allergy specialists pointed out that there are many more out there, who are experiencing such discomfort, but do not know the reason behind the allergies.
The recent Bonalu, Ganesh festival and Bathukamma, where festival revellers came in close contact with different kinds of weeds and large quantities of flowers has thrown up allergic symptoms. Some of them include nasal allergies like increased sneezing, skin allergies like rashes, itching and respiratory allergies like breathlessness and asthmatic conditions.
70 per cent aggravation
In winters, experts point out that cold air, house dust, mite and moulds cause 70 per cent of allergy aggravation. Children suffer most in winter because cold and dry climates are known to trigger asthmatic episodes. Hyderabad and surroundings have large swathes of Congress Grass (Parthenium), which are usually considered as an active agent to triggers asthma attacks.
Even flowers too cause allergies!
“We are coming across women who have reported to our allergy centre with severe rashes and itching on the upper extremities and shoulders. Typically, these are the areas the flowers or pollens come in contact. The reason for such instances is unchecked use of poisonous weeds or flowers in the traditional festivals,” says president, AANI, Dr. Vyakaranam Nageshwar.
According to the allergy specialists, there have been instances wherein patients with a history of allergic reactions are suffering from swelling of lips, rashes all over the body and breathlessness.
“In medical terms, such a condition is known as allergic Angioedema and occurs among persons with a known history of having adverse reactions to allergens,” explains Dr. Nageshwar.
Doctors maintained that persons known to be allergic should be cautious during long period of festivals. “It’s a fact that to strengthen immunity, sometimes it’s good to expose children to a variety of flowers that will make their immune system memory cells recognise these as antigens and develop suitable immunity or resistance.
However, it’s always better to be cautious, especially for children, who are allergic,” the AANI president says.
Doctors said that homes have closed windows in winters, which result in poor cross ventilation, thus encouraging growth of moulds.
Pets also spend a lot of time indoors and when owners cuddle them, they get exposed to pet allergens, they added.
