Mountain Cedar Pollen Levels Creating Misery For Allergy Sufferers

Call it mountain cedar misery.

Very high concentrations of pollen throughout Central Texas this year is resulting in increases of severe allergies. Because the mountain cedar trees (actually ashe junipers) pollinate during the winter, the season is when allergy sufferers feel its effects most acutely.

Symptoms run the gamut from runny nose to a sore throat, with conditions that feel almost flu-like. And then there’s the incessant sneezing.

This year’s pollen season has been especially punishing, with exceptionally high counts even by the standards of the prolific pollinators.

According to the American Academy of Allergy Asthma & Immunology, there has been a “very high” level of mountain cedar pollen several days running. By comparison, pollen by weeds and grass is “absent.”

Even the much-maligned mold is registering at a “low concentration,” according to the AAAAI’s National Allergy Bureau Pollen and Mold Report which registers its Austin-area counts in nearby Georgetown.

Last Saturday, KVUE reported an eye-popping pollen count level--more than 28,000 pollen grains per cubic meter--that was 15 times greater than the day before. Gusty northwesterly winds didn’t help matters.

“You’re just tired all the time, tired and drained,” a very hoarse Rachel Zintgraff told the television station. “It’s just something you adapt to when you’re living here.”

Linda Bernhard adapted a few years after moving to Central Texas: “Probably about the three year mark I started not being able to keep the windows open at night,” she said.

In Central Texas--its landscape abundantly dotted with the so-called mountain cedar--some measure of allergic reaction comes with the territory.

But this year has been ridiculous.

Those living in the region can actually sees layers of pollen upon treetops on years like this.

It’s part of a tree tango of sorts, as the male tree casts its pollen into the air from its tiny, rice-grain-sized cones with the silent hopes its essence is carried by the wind into the sticky green cones of the female tree to ensure survival of its species.

Sure, it’s vaguely romantic given its potentially unrequited, windswept ways.

But for those suffering from allergies as a result of the annual mating ritual, it’s a recipe for misery rendering the afflicted with a lethargy that inspires thoughts of never stepping foot outside ever again.

But there’s some measure of hope. Short of visiting an allergist, there are some steps allergy sufferers can take to mitigate pollen’s effects.

A number of allergy medications are quite effective, Cedar X, Zyrtec and Claritin being among the most popular remedies.

Limiting one’s time outdoors helps too. Once back home from having been outdoors, it’s advisable to take a shower to rid lingering pollen from the body.

There’s further hope just across the horizon: Pollen season typically ends in February. So, too, will the suffering--until next year’s cedar season.