With the sun resting on the tip of his nose, and the mercury climbing at great speed, it was to be expected: the spring carries with it its share of allergies.

And while the pollution rate is still very high in large cities, allergists sound the alarm, prompting the public to be attentive to the symptoms of a possible allergy. The goal is to treat them as soon as possible to avoid possible complications.

Allergies: react at the first symptoms to avoid complications

Contrary to popular belief, pollen allergy can be triggered at any age, even if it has never been suffered before. So, even if you are not regularly allergic, prevention is better than cure and stay alert for symptoms.

The best known are, of course, sneezing , runny nose , coughing and crying eyes, but also skin reactions such as an upsurge of eczema or itching.

If you are affected by any of your symptoms, it is important to seek medical attention soon. Indeed, a French person waits on average 7 years before talking to a health professional of a possible allergy. And the consequences can be serious: recurrent rhinitis and conjunctivitis, but also the development of respiratory problems such as asthma.

How to treat allergies?

Without consulting a doctor, it is impossible to know precisely what one is allergic to, hence the interest of making an appointment with an allergist.

The first step is to keep people allergic to the source of their discomfort. Relatively easy when it comes to animal hair or mites, to avoid pollens in the air - in quantity in the spring - proves much more difficult.

Specialists advise however to avoid prolonged contact (hiking in nature, picnic in the grass, bucolic walk in the forest, picking flowers ...).

If these measures fail to soothe the symptoms, the next step is through the drug treatments. Antihistamines , corticosteroids or bronchodilators for the mildest cases, or allergenic immunotherapy (better known as desensitization) to sustainably treat a disabling allergy in everyday life.

Be careful however: if we are affected year by year by allergies and we still have drugs on hand, we do not use them! Not only these are surely outdated, but in addition, the nature of our allergy may have changed, especially because of pollution peaks .

The health authorities strongly advise against self-medication and call the patients to consult their doctor before having their prescription renewed or to restart a treatment, if only for acquired knowledge.