Upstate NY pollen counts running normal

ALBANY -- A mild winter, unusually warm temperatures and flowering tree buds. They seem like itchy ingredients for a long and tough allergy season.

Pollen counts, however, look normal for this time of year, according to data collected by Certified Allergy and Asthma Consultants in Albany.

On Friday, the pollen count was 159, which is considered "high" but it is all relative. Right now, the pollen count in Atlanta is over 8,000. Upstate New York's highest pollen counts, which appear in the late spring, usually reach the mid-1,000s.

"It's nothing we can't handle," said Dr. Ari Kounavis of Certified Allergy and Asthma in Albany. The medical group sponsors a pollen count station at a farm in southern Saratoga County.

One in 10 Americans suffer from pollen allergies, and spring is when many first get the sneezy, runny nose, itchy eyes and congestion that accompany the allergy. There's no way to escape pollen, which is nature's way of making babies.

The first day pollen reached a measurable level this year was March 13, according to data provided by Certified Allergy and Asthma. -- Times Union