Drought may provide some relief for allergy sufferers

Allergy sufferers listen up! There's good news and bad news -- depending on which fall allergen is your nemesis.

This is the time of year when local clinics and doctors' offices are usually flooded with people suffering from ragweed pollen. However, the summer drought was so severe that it killed off many of the ragweed and pigweed plants.  The few that survived put out very little pollen.

"Usually by this time of the year we have people who are missing work, missing school, people needing steroids to get them through the season.  We're just not really seeing that severity so far," said Dr. Allen Lieberman with the Asthma & Allergy Center of Austin.

Consistent rains falling in late summer through early fall have come too late to rejuvenate ragweed plants because the plant's window of pollination is very specific.

"I think people this year don't realize how lucky they are allergy-wise," added Dr. Lieberman.

Molds are always a problem in the Austin area and recent rains have only made the situation worse.

While the rain may have come too late for ragweed, that is not the case for cedar trees.

Cedar allergies usually peak in Austin in January.  However, the cooler temperatures across Texas lately have prompted juniper trees, a close relative of the cedar, to pollinate.  Much of that juniper pollen has already made it to the Austin area several weeks ahead of schedule.

"The bad side is that it's going to be bad for cedar now for people. Now that the rain has come, I think the cedar trees are going to be unbelievable this year," predicted Dr. Lieberman.

Allergy shots for cedar sufferers take three to six months before they're effective, so Dr. Lieberman believes it may be too late for those. However, he says there are plenty of prescriptions and even over-the-counter medications to protect you from cedar pollen.