Lloydspharmacy reveals hayfever misery to hit one in two people by 2060
Published June 12th, 2009
New images released by Lloydspharmacy show how the UK’s hayfever time bomb is set to explode within the coming years. Currently, the condition affects around a quarter of the UK population, one of the highest prevalence rates for hayfever in the world. By 2040, up to 28 million people will have hayfever due to severe pollen seasons caused by climate change.
City-dwellers will be worst affected by hayfever as warmer summers will intensify air pollution which affects the respiratory tract and allergenicity of pollens. In 50 years time, it is likely that almost three quarters of the population of London will be affected by hayfever whilst almost half of the population of East Anglia, including Cambridge and Norwich, will have hayfever by 2040. North Scotland has been deemed the best place to live for people who want to avoid hayfever with only a third of the population forecasted to be affected by 2060.
As hayfever is already one of the most common forms of allergy, with almost 12 million people in the UK affected, Lloydspharmacy has made its full report and hayfever maps of the UK available for sufferers to download through its website.
Chris Frost, head of medicines at Lloydspharmacy, said: “Increasingly we are going to need treatments which help people to reduce their susceptibility to hayfever in the first place rather than simply alleviate the symptoms.
“A study conducted by the National Pollen and Aerobiology Research Unit, and published online by the Current Medical and Research Opinion concluded that the Lloydspharmacy Hayfever Reliever significantly reduced the main symptoms of hayfever – sneezing, runny nose, watering eyes and an itchy palate. In fact it’s so effective some people may feel a reduction in hayfever symptoms after using it just a few times. This device has been clinically proven to help to reduce susceptibility to some types of pollens, making it very useful for the severe pollen seasons forecast over the next ten to fifty years”
UK areas least susceptible to increases in allergenic pollen loads include coastal areas, especially in the west. The further north one goes, the shorter the growing season and the shorter the pollen seasons, causing less misery for hayfever sufferers. Highland and moor land areas are good places for hayfever sufferers as the type of vegetation there produces less pollen.
