This is the time of year when many people start to wheeze, cough, sneeze, and develop watery eyes due to airborne pollen from trees, grass, and weeds. According to researchers at Ottawa research lab Aerobiology, eight to 10 million Canadians suffer from seasonal allergies. This same research lab also took a look at which cities are the best and worst for those who deal with spring allergies.
Overall, Regina was ranked the third-best city to live in for those who have pollen sensitivities. St. John’s, NL was first followed by Saint John, NB. Moncton, NB was fourth and Halifax, NS rounded out the top five best places. Researchers says these cities have the lowest number of days with significant airborne pollen levels. Temperatures, vegetation patterns, and coastal conditions can affect how prolonged the pollen season and pollen intensity will be in these regions. In terms of tree pollen only, Saskatoon was ranked the fifth least challenging place to be for allergy sufferers.
On the other side of the coin, researchers claim Windsor, ON is the worst city to be in for those dealing with season allergies. This is due to Windsor’s climate, vegetation, and various tree and weed species like birch, oak, and ragweed that, together, intensify the allergies in people. Other notable cities allergy sufferers may want to avoid temporarily are Hamilton, ON, Barrie, ON, Victoria, BC, and Kingston, ON rounds out the top five list.
Aerobiology Research Lab is located in Ottawa, ON and they operate several monitoring stations throughout Canada that gather pollen and spore samples. This information allows them to study pollen and spores and build allergy forecasts for people in various Canadian cities.
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