Allergies, Pollen in Albuquerque (to live, mold, moving to)

[Xpat]

Is ABQ a good place to move to get away from allergies? I recall being able to breather quite well there but its been awhile. I've heard it described by some as good for allergy sufferers and by others as bad. Can anyone help us find the right answer? Thanks!

[ApartmentNomad]

I am taking my chances and moving to Albuquerque next year, specifically to get away from my current allergy problems, despite having heard contradictory things about the allergy situation in Albuquerque.

In my case, the allergy causing my worst trouble is a mold allergy. Given the dryness, airborne mold should not be a problem for me.

I have also been monitoring the pollen levels in Albuquerque via this website:

Pollen reading

Although Albuquerque has sometimes scored somewhat high on lists of worst (US) cities for spring (2007 Spring Allergy Capitals) and fall allergies, the pollen levels I've been seeing for most of the year have not been especially high. I may have missed checking pollen levels during the worst cedar fever months in the spring. Incidentally, Albuquerque's position on those lists of worst cities for allergies changes considerably from year to year, which is true for other cities as well. It's probably difficult to come out with a definitive list of worst cities, although I suppose you could average out several years of rankings. Also, the rankings don't just consider allergen levels, but also such things as doctor-patient ratios and such, which muddies the data.

When I visited Albuquerque, it seemed to me that I was breathing better as well, really noticeably. I did have some allergic trouble in areas with high concentrations of trees (e.g. on UNM campus and in Nob Hill), presumably including some trees I already am allergic too. But overall, I was better.

(I can definitely recommend not moving to Philadelphia if you have allergies!)

[veggggies]

We all thought our allergies would improve after moving. We've been here almost two months and there is no sign of them getting better. In fact, my eyes and nose are itchier then they've ever been!

[Zoidberg]

The wisdom for allergies is as follows:

*Wash your hands and face regularly (multiple times a day), particularly when you have allergic reactions.
*Make sure it's from outside and not another source (my gf gets them bad after she drinks beer of all things)
*Keep your doors shut and switch to refrigerated air from swamp, if you can
*Make sure your furnace filters are clean and high-density
*Try employing HEPA or Ionic Breeze type stuff where you sleep
*Wash bed linens regularly
*Wash your pets regularly (in some cases, daily)

[veggggies]

Originally Posted by Zoidberg

The wisdom for allergies is as follows:

*Wash your hands and face regularly (multiple times a day), particularly when you have allergic reactions.
*Make sure it's from outside and not another source (my gf gets them bad after she drinks beer of all things)
*Keep your doors shut and switch to refrigerated air from swamp, if you can
*Make sure your furnace filters are clean and high-density
*Try employing HEPA or Ionic Breeze type stuff where you sleep
*Wash bed linens regularly
*Wash your pets regularly (in some cases, daily)

We do all this and still it doesn't work. *sigh* That's ok, though! I don't regret moving to RR for a second. I love it and would gladly suffer from allergies just to live here!

[yukon]

Try showering when you come inside, or before going to bed. Tried this not too long ago and was surprised that it worked

[ABQConvict]

I never had any significant allergies until I moved to Albuquerque.

Turns out that when the Juniper is out (March or so) I get really stuffy and can go through a box of tissues in 3 or 4 days. I'll have some sneezes here and there through the rest of the summer. In fact the last few days have seen a few people with allergies. I'm not sure what's in the air right now.

In a nutshell, Albuquerque is not an allergy-free utopia but if ragweed is your problem it is not too bad here.

ABQConvict

[veggggies]

Originally Posted by yukon

Try showering when you come inside, or before going to bed. Tried this not too long ago and was surprised that it worked

I have to agree! This does work! However, make sure you clean your bed linens in HOT water first or it won't help as much!

[mortimer]

yukon advised:

> Try showering when you come inside, ....

Some of the benefits of that behavior must come from the
change of clothes. Even if you put the same clothes back
on, the act of disrobing must tend to shake stuff off.

[janjuberry]

Our family's allergies have lessened. We moved from Fl and they were quite bad year round. Two of my children are highly allergic to mold. Not an issue here.
My husband has a severe allergy to pollen. Is has not been an issue here except for the spring when we hiked up in the Sandia Mountain area.
The sand has not been a prob either. Overall, it's been much better for us.