What do you think to face masks helping with serious pollen allergies?
Monday, March 1st, 2010 at
5:30 am
Hi, i cycle and love to be outdoors, however, since moving to the USA I’ve developed serious pollen allergies. I’m thinking of buying an allergy mask from 3M to wear while playing outdoor.
Does anyone have any experience with these? are they any good? are they re-usable? which is the best?
thanks
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overkill -see your doctor for practical treatment.
In order to keep pollen out you have to wear some heavy duty masks, the type painters use. They have thick filters on either side of the mouth and as far as bicycling, impossible to wear and breathe through.
Your best bet would be some non-drowsy antihistamine, like Claritin.
I have severe pollen allergies and receive allergy shots weekly, which has been the biggest help in making my allergies more manageable. (It is not a drug, but they inject you with the substances you are allergic to and your body naturally builds up resistance to those substances).
The second piece to that is to avoid your allergy triggers, so if you have a tree pollen allergy, then you would avoid heavy activity during peak season. I am supposed to wear a mask when I garden, dust, vacuum, or brush my dog–and it does help quite a bit. For small or dirty tasks, I use the disposable 3M masks–and I am purchasing a HEPA mask for other projects. But I do not jog in a mask–during my trigger seasons, I run on my treadmill.
I have dealt with severe allergies for years and the allergy shots have been the best relief. I highly recommend for you to make an appointment with an allergist or Nose, Ear, and Throat Specialist. I hope this information offers you a few options…have a great week! Peace…