FORT WORTH, Texas — April showers, wildflower smoke and pollen. It’s all hurting Dallas-Fort Worth's air quality and has left many suffering from allergies and respiratory issues.
The wind is only making it worse, but it didn’t hold people back from visiting the Fort Worth Botanic Garden on Friday.
Isaiah Malone visited the garden with his grandmother and family.
“It’s just a lot of sneezing,” Malone said. “It’s horrible, I can’t sleep.”
Despite strong winds blowing pollen through the air, the garden was bustling with people eager to get a glimpse of flowers and trees in bloom.
The latest pollen count showed Oak, Hackberry and maple pollen levels were high.
On Friday, D-FW’S air quality was intermediate, which means people with respiratory issues should try to avoid spending a lot of time outdoors.
Dr. David Winter, a internal medicine physician at Baylor Scott & White Health told WFAA he saw a rise in patients with allergies and respiratory issues this week.
“We’re seeing more this week than last week, and if you look outside at the trees you can actually notice the reason why,” Winter said. “We’re also seeing the big cities across the country that have lesser quality air every year, it’s a problem. Dallas is one of those. If you’re in Dallas and there’s O-zone being put out and all kinds of stuff in the air, that’s not good for our lungs or sinuses. We’re seeing the air decline in quality and that’s causing symptoms in patients.”
Molly Ramirez, a new Texas resident who recently moved from Maine, said the region has brought out allergies she never developed in the past.
“It has been the most violent allergies I’ve ever experienced,” Ramirez said. “It’s crazy, you need goggles on to go outside.”
Medstar reported 30 calls for patients with trouble breathing on Thursday, which is about one call per hour. According to MedStar spokesperson Matt Zavadsky, the amount of trouble breathing calls they’ve received is typical for this time of year. Zavadsky said trouble breathing calls were higher in previous weeks when several wildfires burned in West Texas.
Dr. Winter recommends patients use nasal spray at night and allergy medicine to offset symptoms. Additionally, Winter recommends spending less time outdoors for those who are prone to allergies and respiratory issues.