Allergies hold you back from living at your best health. Check out our guide covering the best places to live to avoid allergies.
Seasonal allergies can be a real nightmare. They can ruin meals with friends, make for awkward first kisses, and even push people to relocate for a change in climate. Sometimes all you have to deal with is an embarrassing red nose, but in others, symptoms can be much worse—and way more disruptive.
Depending on the person, allergies can cause a variety of symptoms, including:
Sneezing
An itchy nose or mouth
A runny nose
Watery or red eyes
Although symptoms differ, allergies affect up to 30% of American adults.
If you have seasonal allergies, all is not lost! And if the wide range of treatment options available still doesn’t do the trick, your geographic location may be the real culprit. If that’s the case, you may want to consider moving away from the pain of allergy season.
Read on for the best places to live to avoid allergies.
What Causes Allergies?
Though allergies come in various forms, they are all symptoms of your body’s natural reaction to a foreign substance. Over 60 million people in the U.S. are affected by allergies on a yearly basis, with the condition influencing children and adults equally. Despite symptoms being so common for so many people, there isn’t much awareness of why they happen and where they happen most intensely.
When your body encounters a usually harmless allergen, your immune system reacts by simulating a symptomatic response. Out of all allergens, pollen and mold affect humans the most, resulting in what’s called hay fever. When these symptoms occur in the nasal area, the condition is called rhinitis.
In the U.S., the rate of pollen and mold reactions increases during the early spring through the summer. You know it, you love it—it’s allergy season.
Every person is different, which is why a variety of common allergens affect the population. Allergens can be:
Peanuts
Tree nuts
Strawberries
Shellfish
Milk
Eggs
Gluten
Soy
Fish
Bee stings
Some of these food allergies are so intense that they become fatal. Pollen and mold, however, are still the allergies that are most commonly associated with the environment you’re in. Pollen and mold allergies may be common, but they can be rough enough to make someone want to move to a completely new part of the country.
Nasal Allergies
There are several things that you can do to avoid or prevent allergies that don’t require you to move to a new climate just yet. Before completely hauling over to a new state, try using these tips:
Avoid touching or rubbing your nose at all times
Consistently wash your hands with soap and water
Use an allergen-specific vacuum when cleaning your space
Wash all clothes, bed linens, and other materials with hot water instead of cold water
Keep your pet away from your bedroom (it carries pollen)
Wear sunglasses when exposed to the elements and when participating in outdoor activities
During allergy season, keep your windows closed and indoor air conditioner on
While many of these techniques may be somewhat useful for certain people, most allergy sufferers require some form of treatment to help reduce their symptomatic response. For those who are allergic, common treatments include:
Antihistamine tablets (Claritin, Benadryl, among others)
Decongestants and cold medication (sprays or tablets)
Nasal Spray (Corticosteroids)
Other nasal sprays and prescription medications
Unfortunately, these treatments only help limit symptoms and aren’t always effective for everyone experiencing springtime allergies. Those that do not find relief from allergy medicine may have to switch their geographic location to solve the problem.
Worst Places to Live for Allergy Prone People
Several parts of the U.S. contain higher levels of pollen and mold, making them especially difficult areas to live in for allergy-prone individuals. Sometimes, even walking outside can be a burden considering air pollution, much less going to work or school. Before moving to a new place, make sure you avoid going somewhere even worse.
To measure the worst places to live for allergy-prone people, The Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America measured the level of pollen fall and the frequency of allergy medication purchased in every region of the US. The highest levels were as follows:
Southern Texas
Mississippi
Rhode Island
Southwest Tennessee
Northern Kentucky
Louisiana
Western Pennsylvania
Virginia
If you happen to live in one of these states and suffer from intense allergy symptoms, it might be time for you to move, especially if your symptoms don’t subside when taking the proper preventative measures and treatment options.
Luckily, there are several places within the US that don’t experience high levels of pollen fall and mold during allergy season.
Best Places to Live for Allergy-Prone People
Typically, mountainous areas and cities on the West Coast experience a limited level of pollen levels. Many of these places offer allergy sufferers complete relief, with many individuals no longer needing to take medication to get through allergy season.
Here’s a list of the best places to live to avoid allergies:
These parts of the U.S. provide sweet relief to any individual that suffers from allergy symptoms. If you are considering moving to avoid nasal allergies, it would be a good idea to reference this list before determining where you want to go.
However, it is important to note that pollen levels vary within states. It is very possible that certain areas of a state or even a city will have higher levels of pollen saturation than others. That is why it is important for you to conduct proper research on the location of your choice before committing to a new home.
Tips for Choosing an Allergy-Free Home
If you are committed to moving away from the peril of allergy season in your current state, you may be unsure of how to proceed. We have you covered! Here’s a list of important tips for selecting your new, allergy-free home in one of the best places to live for allergies.
#1 Do Your Research
While the above list will provide you with a suitable starting point for selecting your new home, make sure that you conduct more detailed research before going any further. Many cities measure the pollen count across the area, so you have the opportunity to look into the specifics of potential new homes before even visiting.
#2 Discuss Allergies with Your Contacts
When you select your potential new home, call up anyone you know and ask them how allergies affect their friends and family. Talk to pharmacists and doctors in the area about the commonality of allergies in the region to get a sense of your own risk. This should paint a good picture of what your experience with allergies there would be like.
#3 Visit the Location More than Once
Before making any commitment, visiting your new city more than once is essential. The key here is to visit during different parts of the allergy season. Pollen levels can vary greatly throughout allergy season, so it is crucial to visit once in the spring (when pollen levels are typically highest) and once in the summer.
#4 Select Where You Want to Live Carefully
Always remember that your reaction will be different in specific areas. So, make sure you walk around and see as many areas of town as possible. Try to measure your reaction level in different parts of town and make a mental note of the least sniffly neighborhoods for you.
#5 Try Out Your New Neighborhood First
While you can get a lot of information from walking around town, the best option for really finding the best places to live for sinus sufferers is to try out your new neighborhood before committing. Rent before you buy, just in case you sneeze more than you thought you would.
It is important to spend longer than a few days before committing to a brand new place to live. It would be a shame to move to a new location only to have your allergy symptoms return after a while.
There is no better way to try out a new place than to live like a local. With Zeus Living, you can rent a stylishly furnished studio, apartment, or home in the neighborhoods you want without making any long-term commitment. With Zeus, homes are equipped with comfortable furniture, home essentials like cleaning and bath products, kitchen must-haves, and fresh linens. Have questions or concerns? We’re on-call to help every step of the way. Offering stays of thirty days or longer, Zeus is the best way to learn more about your new home and determine if it is really the right place for you and your allergies.
Your Allergy-Free Life
Anyone who has been through a difficult allergy season will know that sometimes, moving to a new city or state is the only option. If you are considering moving to one of the best states for allergy sufferers, make sure you take the proper precautions and test out the area before making a commitment.
