UK hay fever alert as Met Office issues warning
Britain's hay fever sufferers are being warned that grass and weed pollen counts will change dramatically across huge swathes of the country this week. The Met Office's five-day outlook shows the pollen threat escalating significantly, with several major cities set to be plunged into the red very high category by Friday.
In a post on X, the Met Office told the estimated one in five Brits who suffer from the condition that it might be time to stock up on antihistamines, warning that pollen levels were forecast to run high to very high nationwide. London and Exeter face the worst of it, both rated very high for grass and weed pollen on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday without a single day's respite. Leeds starts the week at high but tips over into very high by Thursday, staying there into Friday. Edinburgh follows a similar pattern, climbing from high on Wednesday and Thursday to very high by Friday. Belfast is the only city on the forecaster's list to escape the very high category entirely, holding at high throughout the three days.
Hay fever, medically known as seasonal allergic rhinitis, is triggered when the immune system overreacts to proteins in pollen, causing inflammation in the nose, eyes, throat and sinuses. The condition is thought to affect around one in five people in the UK according to NHS guidance, typically striking between late March and September and worsening on warm, humid and windy days when pollen is whipped up into the air.
Symptoms range from sneezing, a blocked or runny nose and itchy watery eyes to headaches, earache and even temporary loss of smell. For those sufferers who also have asthma, a spike in pollen can trigger wheezing and breathlessness, with health chiefs warning that hay fever can make asthma symptoms considerably worse.
Pharmacists recommend starting antihistamine tablets or nasal sprays before symptoms take hold. Common over-the-counter options include cetirizine and loratadine tablets, alongside steroid nasal sprays for adults, which can take two to three weeks of regular use to reach full effect.