High pollen count and problems for hay fever sufferers today

There is a '˜high' pollen warning for the East of England and East Anglia today, Wednesday April 20, according to Met Office forecasts.
High pollen countHigh pollen count
High pollen count

Temperatures are due to raise to 14c this afternoon, but with the sunshine comes problems for hay fever sufferers.

One in five people in the UK suffer from hay fever, with different pollens setting off symptoms in individual sufferers.

Drinking alcohol can make your symptoms worse as it contains histamine, the chemical that sets off allergy symptoms in the body.

95 per cent of sufferers are allergic to grass pollen rather than tree or weed pollen.

The pollen count season is normally March to August. However, it can start as early as January and end as late as November.

The pollen season separates into three main sections:

- Tree pollen – late March to mid-May.

- Grass pollen – mid-May to July.

- Weed pollen – end of June to September