Hay fever seasonConcentrated amounts of hazel and alder pollen recorded in Luxembourg

The warmer weather has led to an explosion in hazel and alder pollen concentration in both Luxembourg and the Greater Region. The Ministry of Health's pollen.lu website has issued an alert to hay fever sufferers, warning them of significantly elevated levels of pollen.

The high point occurred on 18 February, with a hazel pollen count of 473. Since then, the concentration of hazel pollen has dropped slightly.

As for alder pollen, the high point occurred on 21 February with a count of 180. The ministry has advised those allergic to pollen to ensure that they take their allergy medication.

What to do if you have the sniffles

Anti-histamines unfortunately have their limits, which is why there are tips for hay fever sufferers to try and limit their exposure to pollen. Recommendations include:

• Avoiding physical activity outside,
• Wearing glasses or sunglasses to reduce the contact your eyes have with the allergen,
• Washing your hair before you go to bed,
• Using tissues,
• Avoiding drying your clothes outside,
• Keeping your car windows closed whilst driving, 
• And using pollen.lu to keep track of pollen counts.