Charleston battles pollen season again – Charleston City Paper

MORNING HEADLINES |  The spring pollen is back and it’s everywhere — covering cars, clogging sinuses and activating allergies for far too many.

While we’re thrilled warmer weather is ahead, nobody seems to be too excited about pollen’s impact on our health.

“It’s really hard [to avoid] because you go outside and the pollen is there, so it’s impossible not to be exposed to it,” said MUSC allergist and immunologist Dr. Maria Streck told the City Paper in 2023. “But, if they’re enjoying a nice day outside or kids playing sports outdoors, when you come inside, change your clothes, shower, get it off of you and your hair.”

Streck said the main allergy symptoms that manifest during the spring include sneezing, nasal congestion, runny nose and itchy or watery eyes. Here are some basic tips to combat allergy discomfort:

• Change your clothes after being outside.
• Wash off pollen in the shower. Be sure to wash pollen out of your hair as well.
• Regularly wash your hands.
• Don’t touch your face with your hands to prevent rubbing pollen near sensitive areas such as the eyes.
• Take over-the-counter antihistamine medications, such as Zyrtec, Claritin or Allegra, to relieve symptoms. Reach out to your primary care doctor if you need further guidance.
• Use nasal sprays such as Flo-nase and eye drops specifically for allergies to help with eye-related symptoms.
• If severe allergy symptoms persist, Streck advised people to visit their doctor and discuss next steps. Allergy shots also are a potential long-term solution to more severe symptoms.

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In other recent headlines:

Lowcountry Food Bank struggling under federal funding cuts. The U.S. Department of Agriculture has cancelled a federal food program that provided money to allow food banks to purchase from local farmers and producers.  It may severely affect the local food bank

Housing authority drops plan for apartment complex on Meeting Street. The Charleston Housing Authority has scaled back its ambitious plan to demolish the 44-unit Meeting Street Manor Extension public housing complex and replace it with more than five times that many apartments.

Charleston to rework proposed changes to watercraft ordinance. The city of Charleston’s public safety committee was set to discuss a proposed amendment to an ordinance that could help clean up our waterways, but was pulled from the agenda prior to the meeting to align with state laws.

North Charleston police to increase neighborhood traffic enforcement. The North Charleston Police Department will conduct an enhanced traffic enforcement operation over the next few weeks in the Oak Terrace Preserve, Cameron Terrace and Liberty Hill neighborhoods.

People taking adult magazines from North Charleston bar. Pinky and Clyde’s arcade bar in North Charleston recently fell prey to yet another adult magazine heist after a patron tried to steal magazines that were displayed in the bar’s bathroom.

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