As a result of a snowy and rainy winter, pollen counts are high, making life difficult for those who suffer from allergies.
Bryant Bauchman, a junior finance major, suffers from seasonal allergies and turns to an inhaler and nasal spray to keep his nose from becoming too dry.
For Bauchman and other students who have seasonal allergies, springtime not only brings pollens, weeds and grasses, it also brings sneezes, runny noses and itchy eyes.
Vikki Judd, medical director of Student Health Services, said that about 20 percent of adults in the United States have some form of allergies.
She also said that there is not a large increase in patients with allergies in Utah and that there are geographical differences in the types of allergies people have.
“Because it is dry in Utah, I need to use my nasal spray more often,” Bauchman said. He has also lived in Texas, California and Florida and said that his allergies are worse here and in California because of high pollen counts.
A dilemma people often face is whether to use over-the-counter medications or prescription medications to treat symptoms.
Rodger Test, a local pharmacist, said there is virtually no difference between taking an allergy medication over the counter versus getting a prescription. He said that most over-the-counter medications used to be available by prescription only.
Test also said that people use grape-seed extract to treat their allergies.
The non-prescription medications he sees used most are Benadryl and Claritin.
“The only real difference is that over-the-counter medications tend to make users drowsier-except for Claritin,” Test said.
