Allergy Triggers and Symptoms

Common Triggers

Depending on the season and where you live, a great number of substances found indoors and outdoors can trigger an allergic reaction. It's important to identify which allergens affect you because avoiding those allergens is ultimately the best way to prevent an attack and keep symptoms at bay.

Here's a list of common allergy triggers:

Ragweed: This weed, the most common cause of hay fever, flourishes along roadsides and throughout North America east of the Rockies.

Dust mites: These microscopic, sightless creatures are natural inhabitants of indoor environments and are the most common trigger of perennial allergy and asthma symptoms, especially in humid regions where dust mites thrive.

Cockroaches: Between 17 and 41 percent of children and adults are allergic to cockroaches, primarily to their waste.

Pets: Allergic pet owners suffer from reactions to their pet's dander, skin flakes, saliva and urine. Pet hair or fur can also collect pollens, mold spores and other outdoor allergens, bringing them inside to you.

Molds: Mold and fungus spores are abundant in humid environments and grow in damp locations, such as basements and bathrooms, and in less obvious places such as upholstered furniture, rugs, books and wallpaper.