Why this spring is worse for allergy sufferers in New Jersey

🌻 Pollen has sprung, and things will only get worse

🌻 A big burst is on its way

🌻 Even mild sufferers may have a rough season this year

Some of you may already be sneezing, wheezing, and itching.

The calendar says it's not spring just yet, but the weather is acting like it already is. And you're getting a sense of the rougher-than-usual allergy season that's ahead.

Even folks who don't get too agitated by the pollen circulating in the air may find themselves reaching for the tissue box this spring.

You can thank a very wet winter — more in the form of rain than snow. The precipitation provides a nutrient source for trees to pollinate heavier during the spring season.

"This coming year is going to be full of nutrients that will actually increase pollen production by over 10% from previous years," Dr. Leonard Bielory, professor of medicine, allergy, immunology, ophthalmology at the Hackensack Meridian School of Medicine, told New Jersey 101.5.

And while rain can wash away pollen during the spring, it also has the ability to break it down into smaller particles, making the allergen even easier to be inhaled.

NJ's allergy timeline

Pollen counts from trees will "strike gold," Bielory said, in the final weeks of March and the beginning weeks of April, courtesy of birch and oak trees. New Jersey should see pollen counts in the thousands (grains of pollen per cubic meter).

Even without the current warm spell, tree pollen got a bit of an early start in New Jersey this year.

Grass pollen will follow the trees, likely in May and June. Ragweed season, which affects 75% of allergy sufferers, typically moves in around the middle of August.

Over time, Bielory said, there's been an increase in the number of people who develop allergies, and an increase in the number of pollen types that are bothering people.

"Even people with minor symptoms may have moderate to severe symptoms this year," Bielory said.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, about a quarter of adults have a seasonal allergy, along with close to 20% of children.

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