The Santa Ana winds — infamous for their health effects on Southern California residents — are heralding the start of allergy season.
These seasonal dry winds occur when air from the Southwestern desert region of the United States flows westward through the mountain passages of Southern California, according to the National Weather Service. The Santa Ana winds increase risk of wildfires — and allergies.
“One of the dangers when it comes to Santa Ana winds is that they carry all the particulate matter that we see associated with fires,” Dr. Abisola Olulade told NBC San Diego.
The winds also carry pollen and other dry particles that can worsen nasal allergies, triggering chronic drainage and congestion, according to Scripps Health. These allergy symptoms also leave people more vulnerable to developing sinus infections.
One quarter of adults experience seasonal allergies, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. USC students are no exception.
Maeve Humphrey, a senior studying biological sciences, said her allergies flare up during this time period.
“I have a super bad sore throat, stuffy nose, coughing and sneezing,” Humphrey said. To remedy her ailments, Humphrey said she uses a ten milligram loratadine — an over-the-counter allergy medicine taken orally — as well as nasal spray every morning.
Humphrey isn’t the only student experiencing these symptoms. Alyssa Wood, a freshman studying psychology, said her “eyes get really messed up” due to the Santa Ana winds. Wood said she also has to use allergy medicine to combat her symptoms.
Though allergy season is already underway, Keck Medicine of USC recommends taking medicine before you start to experience symptoms for the best results.
“Many treatments for seasonal allergies are safe and accessible without a prescription,” said Dr. Kevin Hur, a rhinology specialist at Keck Medicine of USC, said in a Keck blog post. Hur mentioned over-the-counter medicine including antihistamine pills, steroid nasal sprays and sinus irrigations.
Keck Medicine also recommended preventative measures for keeping out pollen, which Dr. Armin Bhasin, an allergy and immunology specialist from Mayo Clinic, corroborated.
“The first step is to control your exposures,” Bhasin said in a video posted in the Mayo Clinic News Network. “If it’s a dry and windy day, the pollen is blowing. You want to run the air conditioning because, that way, you’re recirculating the clean air.”
While over-the-counter medicine can help with allergy symptoms, Bhasin said contacting an allergist may be necessary if symptoms persist.
“The best time to engage an allergist is really when you’ve tried all the environmental control measures that you can, and you’ve tried over-the-counter medications, but you’re still symptomatic,” Bhasin said.
With this expert advice in mind, USC students can protect themselves from the allergy season induced by the Santa Ana winds. Students can also contact USC Student Health through the MySHR portal or by calling (213) 740-9355 (WELL).