The Met Office has issued a rare red alert for hayfever sufferers across the UK, warning that the pollen count will be “very high”.
Millions of people should prepare themselves for a sneezing frenzy, as four different regions have been placed under high alert.
On April 4, London & South East England, South West England, and the West Midlands will see “very high birch and ash pollen”.
The warning continues tomorrow for the South West, and whilst no red alerts are in place for April 6, the next two days will see four different regions impacted.
London and South East England, South West England, West Midlands, and Wales – that have a combined population of 27 million – will see high pollen counts as the week begins.
Tree pollen, which is one of the most potent allergens, is prevalent from around now until mid-May.
After birch pollen season ends, grass pollen – UK hayfever suffers’ number one enemy – takes over from mid-May to July.
The Met Office compiles data to produce forecasts for five days for the whole of the UK. The alerts range from low to very high.
The NHS says symptoms of hayfever 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 and feeling tired.”
Whilst there is no cure for hayfever, some ways to to alleviate the discomfort recommended by the NHS include – putting Vaseline around your nostrils, keep windows and doors shut, shower and change your clothes after you have been outside to wash pollen off.
Airborne allergens expert Max Wiseberg said: “Warm, dry and sunny weather are perfect conditions for trees to distribute their pollen. And as April is peak tree pollen season, the warm weather predicted for this week is set to trigger a huge pollen explosion across the London and South East region – not good news for the average hayfever sufferer.”
“Around 25 per cent of hayfever sufferers are allergic to tree pollen,” he added, “and for them the peak hayfever season is about to start, with a vengeance.
“We had a taster a couple of weeks ago with high pollen counts in the capital. And with the weather forecast to continue the same into next week, these ‘high’s are set to continue.”
The warning coincides with temperatures hitting their highest this year so far, with a mercury of 22C expected later today.
The UK will be hotter than Athens and Ibiza today, with temperatures of 20C respectively.
SOURCE: GB News