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The crisp bite of fall air means scarves, sweaters and playing in big piles of leaves. But thanks to those leaves—and other allergens such as ragweed and mold—fall can also signal another round of watery, swollen and itchy eyes, sniffling and sneezing.
A particularly humid and warm summer could encourage pollen-producing plants to grow, leading to even more runny noses in autumn, according to Stacy Silvers, MD, an allergist affiliated with Medical City Dallas in Texas. “The amount of rain we get in the spring also impacts the fall allergy season, especially in terms of ragweed—the most common fall allergen,” he explains.
As the climate warms, experts predict allergy seasons will get longer, too, while air quality worsens.
