DFW Air Quality (Dallas, Spring, Sonora: 2014, home, allergies)

[USNomad]

So, I've been living in the DFW area now for the past few years. I've never had a history of respiratory issues however since living here, I've developed bad allergy/respiratory symptoms and each year they have gotten progressively worse. I've lived in several places in the U.S. and this is a first for me.

This year, I've been treated for Strep throat/allergy issues (3) times, and recently visited a Ear, Nose & Throat doctor....I wish I had researched this prior to moving here. The DFW area is not good for persons with sensitive respiratory systems and many studies have confirmed this.

I dislike the DFW summer weather (heat+dew points), even despite a relatively mild summer this year, but combined with water issues, ozone/air issues and more people+cars on the roads+increased water quality & usage, all this talk of a *great quality of life* here is slowly fading for me. Has anyone else experienced issues such as myself?

I'll be moving away soon however, I just wanted to make new folks aware of my findings. There are lots of great things about DFW, and many have made a great living here monetarily however, when your health is under attack, all those "things" you can acquire doesn't matter as much anymore.

http://www.aafa.org/pdfs/FINAL_publi...pring_2014.pdf

http://ecowatch.com/2014/07/11/asthm...one-standards/

[BCB]

I'm sorry to hear your problems with the local air quality.

However, I'm not sure what the point of this thread is.

[USNomad]

Originally Posted by BCB

I'm sorry to hear your problems with the local air quality.

However, I'm not sure what the point of this thread is.

"I just wanted to make new folks aware of my findings"

Lots of people come on here to research the area, so I thought I'd share my experiences. Perhaps this was the wrong place to post.

Thanks for your input.

[Restrain]

DFW is really bad for allergies. Not due to pollution but all the allergies in the air. Asthma, etc, all are much worse in DFW than other areas. We just moved after almost 30 years of allergy suffering, now only very little allergies. Mountain cedar, goldenrod, oak, pine, you name it. The all the stuff rolls in from the Sonora, West Texas, Oklahoma, etc.

[BigDGeek]

I grew up here and both my brother and I have asthma. I didn't have allergy problems troublesome enough to need OTC medication until I moved back here. Now it's Claritin and allergy eyedrops every day.

[SVTRay]

It's all relative. There isn't one plot of land on God's green Earth that doesn't come with it's own set of allergies. The only thing one can really do is to change locations hoping they want have an issue with the new allergies. We did this with our son who's was having a severe allergic reaction to his environment back home in West Texas. It's been 3 yrs living in Dallas and he is a picture of health.

Best of luck with where ever you go.

[bluescreen73]

DFW's one of the worst regions in the nation for ozone pollution, and a huge chunk of the metroplex's air pollution issues comes from all the heavy industry downwind in Ellis County.

DFW also ranks high on the list of allergy capitals. Allergy season starts with the ironically-named mountain cedar in January/February. After that you get a brief respite before springtime allergies kick in (~early March). From that point on it's more or less non-stop allergies until the first frost kills off what's left of the ragweed in November. I popped Loratadine like candy when I lived in DFW and it only served to dull the misery.

If you've got severe seasonal allergies or allergy-induced asthma you should probably think twice about moving to DFW.

[8to32characters]

Originally Posted by bluescreen73

DFW's one of the worst regions in the nation for ozone pollution, and a huge chunk of the metroplex's air pollution issues comes from all the heavy industry downwind in Ellis County.

DFW also ranks high on the list of allergy capitals. Allergy season starts with the ironically-named mountain cedar in January/February. After that you get a brief respite before springtime allergies kick in (~early March). From that point on it's more or less non-stop allergies until the first frost kills off what's left of the ragweed in November. I popped Loratadine like candy when I lived in DFW and it only served to dull the misery.

If you've got severe seasonal allergies or allergy-induced asthma you should probably think twice about moving to DFW.

^This guy provides some fantastic insight and advice about pollution and seasonal allergies in the DFW area. Take his advice, too--since Dallas is just about the worst place in the country for seasonal allergy sufferers and/or those with respiratory issues, you'd be better served by moving just about anywhere else.

[EDS_]

DFW only had five red ozone days last year and no purple days, Dallas rates and A for particulates. For context LA had 19 red days 1 purple day and it rates and F for particulates as well.

Source American Lung Association.

[Aceraceae]

Been here 3.5 years. Didn't have allergies before. Don't have them now.