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Allergies: 16 departments on red alert for ragweed pollen
Allergies: 16 departments on red alert for ragweed pollen
(France 2)
On Tuesday, September 10, 16 departments in the south and center are on red alert due to the peak of ragweed pollination, a particularly allergenic plant.
Recognizable by its hairy, slightly red stem, ragweed is one of the most allergenic plants. Only five grains of pollen per cubic meter of air are enough to trigger symptoms in allergy sufferers. On Tuesday, September 10, 16 departments are on red alert at the peak of pollination from Gard to Nièvre. Charente is also affected.
Arriving from North America in the 19th century, ragweed has conquered the territories, taking advantage of climate change and summer heat waves. In a pharmacy, allergic customers parade. “We are talking about a threshold phenomenon. We are in contact with an allergen and the more we are in contact, the more the body will react. One day, we have symptoms.”explains Florence Vernay, a pharmacist in L’Isle-d’Abeau (Isère). Some are trying to raise awareness about the removal of ragweed. On the Internet, an application can be used to report the presence of ragweed to warn people with allergies and local authorities so that they can remove it.