Pirate's Cove

Are they implying that seasonal allergies could cause suicides?

Climate change leads to worsening seasonal allergies … and maybe even more suicides

This is not an April Fool’s Day joke, even though many may wish it were. March is coming to a close, but for those with seasonal allergies, the suffering is just beginning.

Cities like San Diego, which have ranked low on lists of the worst cities for seasonal allergies, jumped into the top 20 this year, thanks to high pollen counts.

The cause? Climate change.

It couldn’t have anything to do with the types of trees, bushes, and flowers being planted in San Diego, could it? And the fact that warm periods have been happening on and off throughout the Holocene?

Numerous studies have found that climate change is to blame for longer allergy seasons and worsening symptoms. Freezing temperatures are waning sooner, allowing plants and flowers to bloom and release pollen earlier.

“There are these extreme, chaotic conditions that climate change is associated with,” Kari Nadeau, chair of the Department of Environmental Health at Harvard’s T.H. Chan School of Public Health, told a Boston television station. “And that warming is affecting our pollen seasons.”

A few extra days a year? Big deal. This has happened before and will happen again.

That toll can also affect mental health.

In a study published last October, the Journal of Health Economics said deaths by suicide rose by about 7.4% on days when pollen counts were the highest. Although the study did not establish a definitive link, it suggested that allergy symptoms lead to diminished cognitive function and disrupt sleep, both of which are “predictors of suicidality.”

So, no link, but, they’ll fear monger regardless. Cult.