Met Office forecasts high pollen levels across Northern Ireland: how to ease hay fever symptoms

The Met Office is forecasting that pollen levels will rise from ‘medium’ on Sunday to ‘high’ on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday of next week.

This is due to the presence of birch, alder and ash pollen.

Tree pollen tends to be released during spring and affects around 25 per cent of people.

What is hay fever?

The NHS says hay fever is a common allergy that causes sneezing, coughing and itchy eyes. You cannot cure it, but there are things you can do to help your symptoms, or medicines you can take to help.

What are the symptoms?

The symptoms of hay fever include:

• sneezing and coughing
• a runny or blocked nose
• itchy, red or watery eyes
• itchy throat, mouth, nose and ears
• loss of smell
• pain around the sides of your head and your forehead
• headache
• feeling tired

Symptoms are usually worse between late March and September, especially when it's warm, humid and windy. This is when the pollen count is at its highest.

According to the NHS, hay fever can last for weeks or months, unlike a cold, which usually goes away after one or two weeks.

How to ease symptoms:

• put petroleum jelly (such as Vaseline) around your nostrils to trap pollen
• wear wraparound sunglasses, a mask or a wide-brimmed hat to stop pollen getting into your nose and eyes
• shower and change your clothes after you have been outside to wash pollen off
• keep windows and doors shut as much as possible
• vacuum regularly and dust with a damp cloth
• try to use a pollen filter in the air vents of your car, if you have one, and a HEPA filter in your vacuum cleaner

The NHS advises hay fever suffers to:

• do not cut grass or walk on grass
• do not spend too much time outside
• do not keep fresh flowers in the house
• do not smoke or be around smoke – it makes your symptoms worse
• do not dry clothes outside – they can catch pollen
• do not let pets into the house if possible – they can carry pollen indoors