DCist: Somehow, D.C. Rates Relatively Well on Allergy List

iAManugget

Tue, 09 Sep 2008 16:28:25 -0500

well frankly im not sure how accurate those stats are, considering some of those top 25s were in the lower rankings last year -

Apium

Fri, 05 Sep 2008 19:51:17 -0500

There is no way in hell that DC shouldn't be in the top twenty. Aside from ragweed, the spring tree pollen season is pure misery. Add in the humidity and constant air quality warnings in the summer and anybody with allergies is going to suffer in a major way. Zyrtec never did me any good. And I'm still bitter about the sudafed lockdown.

dc_ldn

Fri, 05 Sep 2008 12:36:26 -0500

dc is by far the worst place i've ever been for allergies, and spookiness is right, zyrtec may be good but the generic stuff from cvs is better because it's about a quarter the price.

ahark1pd

Fri, 05 Sep 2008 11:52:57 -0500

maybe it's because i grew up in atlanta, the allergen hellhole that lilybelle so whistfully describes, but i have no problems up here. i had terrible allergies all through adolescence but have been fine since moving north 11 years ago. i'm no expert, but it seems to me that it's not about the amount of pollen/allergens but the kind of plants growing around you. i just assume i'm allergic to some of the things that grow in the south but not to the things that grow up here. there are differences, right?

monkeyrotica

Fri, 05 Sep 2008 07:16:25 -0500

voteroo

Fri, 05 Sep 2008 02:20:02 -0500

For real? I've had mild allergies all my life. I've been in DC for school for a few years, and I spent the summer here for the first time this year. My allergies got so bad, my contacts would fall out of my eyes on their own accord because they were so swollen/red. And I couldn't breathe at night. I also developed allergies to cockroaches, trees, grass, mold, and pine nuts in the time I've been here. I don't know if that's environmental or not, but it doesn't help DC's case.

spookiness

Thu, 04 Sep 2008 22:18:49 -0500

This country born bumpkin finds city living much more tolerable than corn pollen and tree pollen. Hardwood floors and radiator heat is a big deal for me. Night & day difference. Wall to wall carpet is evil. As for Zyrtec, I'm a fan, and I've popped every allergy med that's come along in the past 20 years. It's generic now, ceterizine hydrochloride, shop online for best deal....

RJ

Thu, 04 Sep 2008 19:20:16 -0500

The real name of this list at Zyretec is called "25 cities with the greatest potential market growth"

IMGoph

Thu, 04 Sep 2008 19:09:38 -0500

only time i ever had anything resembling a long term, seasonal allergic reaction to my environment was when those damn cicadas came out in spring of 2004. i swear to god i was allergic to those beasties with their evil eyes. i was a freakin' mess for weeks, and it didn't help that i was living on a leafy street near forest glen. guess that living in a relatively treeless area of DC might have helped a little at that point. either way, when brood X comes back, my ass is going on an extended vacation.

TripleE

Thu, 04 Sep 2008 17:53:08 -0500

I call serious bullshit, and my nasal cavities back me up on this one. I've lived in a lot of places with dust, trees, grass, etc. and never had allergies. When I moved here, with the propensity for multiple alien species of trees all over the damn place, I started getting snot buildup serious enough to choke a horse every single spring. Seriously, the amount of plant sperm around here is ridiculous. Nature's bukakke is far stronger around here than this list would have you to believe. ~EEE~

Warshington

Thu, 04 Sep 2008 17:42:08 -0500

I went to college in Greensboro, I don't have any allergies (knock on wood), but I did notice a huge amount of pollen and ragweed while I was there, and some people I knew just couldn't function in the Spring at all.

Q

Thu, 04 Sep 2008 17:26:43 -0500

Another thing to consider - some allergists say it takes up to 7 years to get fully used to an area after you live there.

Jamie R. Liu

Thu, 04 Sep 2008 16:51:03 -0500

Well actually it seems the survey is about places where it's hard to live with allergies. How many pills they're popping and number of allergists. Not surprising podunk doesn't have as many allergists.

lilybelle

Thu, 04 Sep 2008 16:44:17 -0500

well, leaving aside the silliness of innocent little greensboro being ranked #1 worst allergy city in the entire country... i used to live in atlanta, and the only time we ever used our snow shovels there was to shovel the pollen out of the gutters. so the fact that atlanta is nowhere to be found in the top 25 makes me highly suspicious of this list.

erincarly

Thu, 04 Sep 2008 16:24:27 -0500

i never had allergies in my life until i moved to DC. now every spring they seem to get worse. thankfully the fall doesn't seem to affect me . . . i hope i didn't just jinx myself.