Poplar fluff hit the baby's eye. What to do if you are allergic to poplar fluff

White fluffs by themselves cannot cause allergies, but they can transfer pollen from flowering plants.

Flying through the streets poplar fluff - a temporary phenomenon that lasts about three weeks. Many at this time begin to complain of allergies, they say, the fluff flew - I can't breathe my nose!

We live on Karl Marx Avenue, - Olga Belova called the editorial office. - Every summer begins with torment - the ill-fated poplar fluff flies from all directions from the trees that stand along the road. There is no strength to endure - there is nothing to breathe! And the schoolchildren got used to setting fire to this fluff - we are just scared to leave the house. Why not uproot these trees?

Not only residents of the city, but also technology suffer from the poplar fluff flying everywhere. For example, office air conditioners. Radiators on them clog up very quickly and may well deteriorate from summer snow. Also, purely theoretically, a car can also suffer from fluff - poplar snow will fly into the air conditioner, then it will stop in the radiator and the engine will overheat after a while.

Expert opinion

Sergey Afanasyev, therapist:

I want to say right away - there is almost never an allergy to poplar fluff. The fact is that the peak of flowering of all kinds of plants coincides with the time when fluff begins to fly on the street. And it is the pollen that carries the poplar fluff. He reaches into the eyes, gets into airways... A person can choke on this fluff. I recommend that you endure this period and wear large sunglasses... If the fluff gets into the eyes, it can have consequences such as conjunctivitis or irritation.

Officially

Ideal trees

Poplars capture more than 50 percent of dust, gases, these trees are the best at suppressing noise, - told "KVU" in the Department of Environmental Protection. - The downside is that poplars are very fragile, they do not live long, especially in urban environments where there is a lot of transport. Poplar grows huge, there are many problems with it in harvesting.

Now poplars are not planted, we are content with what has grown since socialist times. Then there was an excellent survival rate, these trees were grown in nurseries. Chestnut or linden, for example, are not suitable for our climate. Today we are trying to plant a Chinese poplar, which does not push as much.

Playing with fire

The Ministry of Emergency Situations warns that jokes with poplar fluff are bad - it is strictly forbidden to set it on fire. Fluff is highly flammable, instantly spreads over wooden buildings and parked cars.

50 years - this is how long poplar has lived in an urban environment.

Allergy symptoms

A person begins itchy skin, edema appears, as well as red spots, the so-called urticaria.
It is difficult to breathe through your nose, you constantly want to sneeze. There is a runny nose, but there are no symptoms of a cold.
The eyes are also affected by the flowering season - swelling of the eyelids, redness, tearing and discomfort are noticeable.
If you notice at least one of these signs of the disease, you do not need to take medications - immediately go to an appointment with a specialist.

Good to know

How to save yourself during flowering?

There are a number of simple guidelines for those who cannot get rid of their spring / summer allergies. The highest concentration of pollen in the air occurs between 11:00 and 18:00. It is during these hours that it is not recommended to be outdoors, especially in dry and windy weather.
If you could not avoid walking in the open air, having entered the room, you need to wash yourself thoroughly, rinse your respiratory tract with clean water.
No one has canceled the rules of hygiene - do wet cleaning of the apartment every day.

How to paint during flowering?

A woman wants to look spectacular at any time of the year. And what to do if the fluff flies into the eyes and you have to look for a fluff in your eyes every now and then.
Give up waterproof mascara, its composition is too tricky and does not always have a positive effect on eyelashes. This mascara contains paraffin resin, which irritates the eyelids. The same goes for super long-lasting lipsticks.

23-72-00 - by this phone number of the department of green spaces of the city administration.

The main allegens, the pollen of which is carried by poplar fluff:

birch tree;
alder;
maple;
willow;
lilac;
plantain;
dandelion.

Process

The pollen enters the human body;
the immune system recognizes pollen as an allergen and produces antibodies;
antibodies attack allergens;
histamine is produced, which causes allergy symptoms.

Are you still suffering from allergies? Then come to us! There is a huge selection of antiallergic drugs for adults and children!

Pharmacy "Flora". Shakhty, per. Red Miner (next to the shopping center "Maximum"), st. Dostoevsky, 73, t. 8-928-172-30-01

THERE ARE CONTRAINDICATIONS. CONSULT A SPECIALIST BEFORE USE.

Photo by Anastasia Fedyaeva.

Dear Readers! How do you save yourself from annoying poplar fluff? Tell us about it by phone. 23-79-09 or 8-928-180-43-04.

The beginning of summer for many residents of Russia becomes a serious test because of poplar fluff, which provokes allergies and obscures everything in its path. Read about how to survive a downy attack in our regular Q&A section.

How to beat allergies?

Poplar fluff constantly gets into the eyes and nose, interfering with normal breathing. According to all allergists, there is no true allergy to poplar fluff.

During the period of lush flowering of poplar, fluff, which is very clearly visible, which, like snow, fills the streets of cities, are female inflorescences in which allergens are not found. Down is an active carrier of pollen, dust and spores of other plants, trees - oak, alder, birch, hazel and thousands of different grasses and flowers that bloom simultaneously with poplars and, in turn, are the strongest allergens for 25% -30% of the population large cities.

If you are going outside covered with a summer white carpet, it is recommended to wear sunglassesthat will protect your eyes from poplar fluff. Feel free to wear a medical mask to protect your breathing.

Change all your clothes when you return home. Rinse your nose and gargle. Purified sea water is best suited for this. It is convenient to use a spray that you can always carry with you. Shower twice a day. Staying outside in the middle of the day and washing your face every time you return home will also help fight poplar fluff. It is worth purchasing antiallergic drugs only after consulting a doctor.

How to beat fluff at home?

To prevent the accumulation of poplar fluff at home, do not open the room for ventilation if the windows are not equipped with screens.

In order to avoid allergic reactions, it is recommended to do wet cleaning of the premises as often as possible. A good alternative to nets is gauze, which can be attached to the window frame using buttons or double-sided tape.

If possible, it is not recommended to open windows at all. This is possible if the apartment has an air conditioner and a humidifier. Air conditioners with built-in humidifier and ionizer are on sale in stores today. With the help of such devices, you can make the atmosphere in the apartment more comfortable, which is especially important for allergy sufferers.

If the fluff has already entered the apartment, you can neutralize it with a spray bottle and collect the wet fluff from the floor. Do wet cleaning of the apartment as often as possible. Particular attention should be paid to wardrobes, surfaces under beds, where fluff is most often clogged. Place the collected down in a bag and take it to the trash can, so that later, when the down dries, it does not scatter around the apartment again.

Why won't poplars be cut down in the city?

Poplar ranks first in the amount of oxygen released among other trees. Poplars trap tens of kilograms of dust, soot and various substances that pollute the atmosphere. It is worth noting that the fluff scatters only from the female specimens of this tree. Complete cutting down of such trees will not bring any result, since the poplar can change the floor.

You cannot set fire to the fluff, because it flares up instantly. Often, children who set it on fire receive thermal burns, and the fire spreads to residential buildings and fences.

“The blizzard covered the whole stitch with white snow” - these lines from the song are relevant in May-June, when poplar fluff begins to fill the cities of Russia. But unlike snow, it not only covers all urban surfaces, but also impudently bursts into houses and apartments, penetrates into car interiors, stuffs into the nose, mouth and eyes. People are perplexed who came up with the idea of \u200b\u200bplanting poplars in settlements, were there really no other trees?

Meanwhile, the choice fell on poplars not by chance. Back in the 60s of the last century, Russian scientists calculated that one poplar, from the period of the first green leaves in the spring to the shedding of the last yellow leaves in late autumn, absorbs from the air from 20 to 30 kilograms of dust and exhaust gases. And the volume of oxygen emitted by one poplar is equal to the volume emitted by ten birches or seven spruces, four pines or three lindens. It is difficult to find such an ecologically unfavorable area where the poplar would not be able to adapt and take root. Therefore, it is extremely difficult to find a replacement for him.

And in 2008, studies by American scientists were published, according to which poplars absorb and break down such environmental pollutants as carbon tetrachloride, gasoline, vinyl chloride and other derivatives of industrial enterprises.

One problem is poplar fluff. Most consider it to be one of the most dangerous allergens. Viktoria Rodinkova, PhD in Biological Sciences from Vinnitsa National Medical University, refutes this assumption. The institute specialists examined samples of poplar fluff from rural and urban areas. It turned out that the “rural” fluff practically did not contain allergenic pollen, but in the “urban” fluff it was in abundance. But that was the pollen of other plants.

Scientists explain this by the high-speed flow of air masses, which is largely facilitated by high-rise buildings. Probably, everyone has encountered the phenomenon when, in windy weather, the so-called chimney effect occurs between houses: the wind blows with violent force over a certain interval of space. Carrying fluff from nearby trees, the wind also carries pollen from other trees, shrubs, grasses and flowers fixed on it. By the way, if we talk about the most allergenic trees, then in the first place scientists will name birch with its earrings, which are very harmful for allergy sufferers. Poplar fluff itself does more harm because of its ability to stuff everywhere. Getting into the nasal or oral cavity, it simply irritates the mucous membranes, and causes irritation and redness in the eyes.

Another problem that poplar fluff brings is connected with cars. The chief expert of Rosoboronexport Yevgeny Serdyuk explains: the smallest particles of gravel, sand, litter - everything that flies out from under the wheels of the car in front falls into the radiator grille, and poplar fluff binds it all together, forming a felt pad. When it reaches a certain size, the car's engine starts to overheat.

The poplar moth is becoming a real disaster for city dwellers. During the period when poplars shed their fluff, the moth settles on trees and lays eggs there. Gradually, she moves to permanent residence in the apartments of the townspeople. Moth repellents are becoming the most popular product in the summer.

Fire is another disaster that comes with poplar fluff. An unextinguished cigarette thrown to the ground, a "downy carpet" specially set on fire by adolescents, followed by a flash of dry grass - and now the surroundings are on fire.

Today, in all major cities of the world, they are seriously concerned about the problem of replacing poplars with other trees. In Russian Moscow, Samara, Tomsk, the planting of poplars is prohibited. And where they still grow, they are treated with a special solution that prevents the seeds from opening.

In a number of European countries, according to Inare Bondare, an employee of the Latvian Botanical Garden, there are programs for the selection of male poplars, which, unlike female poplars, do not produce fluff. Since the early eighties, the city of Edmonton (Canada) has completely replaced poplars with other trees. And if one of the residents still wants to plant a poplar or landscape designers include them in their new project, they are strongly advised to use male poplars, or sterile varieties of this tree bred in special nurseries.