Pollinosis, or pollen allergy, is a disease caused by the hypersensitivity of some people to tree and plant pollen.

Pollen that gets on the mucous membranes (eyes, respiratory tract) causes an allergic reaction, which is accompanied by several ailments:

- itching, redness, swelling and tear flow of the eyes; - itching of the nose, redness, frequent sneezing, a lot of watery runny nose or obstructions to breathing through the nose; - itching in the throat and coughing; - difficulty breathing (asthma attack) in more severe cases.

In addition to the above, there may also be: - skin rashes; - migraine-like headache; - joint pain; - indigestion; - temperature rise (hence the popular name of the disease - hay fever).

People with pollen allergies may have problems with foods that can cause digestive disorders (nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal pain, flatulence), skin itching, swelling and blisters on the lips, tongue and oral mucosa; as well as colds, eye conjunctivitis, asthma and skin reactions (hives).

Migraines, throat swelling, facial swelling and, in severe cases, a state of shock may be added.

The reason for cross-allergy is that the plants are related to each other, as a result of which the allergens are similar to each other. The immune system reacts not only to pollen, but also to some foods such as fruits, nuts or spices

to the substances contained. Food intolerance depends on which pollens a person is allergic to  (1;2; 3).

There is a good example in life where a rabbi went to get the results of an allergy test and an unusual situation arose where a person was allergic to crustaceans. But crustaceans are forbidden in Judaism, as is pork. The patient had never eaten crustaceans, so how can the test show such a result? Earlier, however, the rabbi had taken another test, which showed that he was allergic to house dust mites, probably because he  had developed antibodies against the muscle protein of house dust mites, which is also found in shrimps. Of course, this does not mean that all people have such a cross-reaction (1).

Cross allergy is characterized by the following list (3):

birch pollen - apple, pear, kiwi, carrot, celery, dill, paprika, nuts, sunflower seeds, chamomile

juniper- herbs, garlic, celery, mustard, parsley, coriander, carrot

grasses - cereals, flour, peanut, tomato, potato, paprika, melon

furry domestic animals - milk, pork

bird feathers - egg white and egg yolk, chicken meat

dust mites - molluscs, oysters, crustaceans, kiwi

latex- apple, pear, nectarine, plum, cherry, kiwi, mango, cucumber, banana, pineapple, melon, almonds, avocado, tomato

ambrosia- melon, mango, banana, cucumber

Symptoms are stronger at noon in windy and sunny weather.

• From March to May, pollinosis is mainly caused by hazel, alder and birch pollen. At the end of May, oak and dandelion pollen are added.

• June-July is the time for the flowering of meadow grasses (titum, sedge grass, fescue, ryegrass, foxtail, grass, and grasses) and grasses (rye, wheat).

• From August to September, weeds (wood, wormwood, malt) and autumn flowers (asters, chrysanthemums, etc.) bloom.

Read more From the website of the Estonian Allergy Association