Shropshire hayfever hell as heat and pollen level rises

Doctors in Shropshire say they are seeing patients who have not suffered before.Grass pollen levels – responsible for sneezing, itchy eyes and sore throats – are peaking after perfect conditions for growing. The Met Office said very high pollen levels will coincide with rising temperatures this week with highs of 25C (77F) due today in some areas.

It comes as a new report was published saying the condition is affecting more people than ever before. Experts in immunology and allergies have calculated that more than one in four Britons is a sufferer – compared with one in eight in the early 1980s.

More surprisingly, it seems that not only is hayfever on the increase now, but 200 years ago the illness was unheard of.

Dr Mary McCarthy, who has worked at Belvidere Surgery in Shrewsbury for more than 20 years, said: "What I have seen is older people, previously unaffected, now getting symptoms and some patients who in other years have suffered, apparently immune this year."

The pollen count season is normally March to August. But it can start as early as January and end as late as November. Asthmatics and people with chronic health conditions are warned to take extra care.

The pollen and spore counts are very high for today, but are expected to dip on Friday. Experts claim sufferers could face worse symptoms than usual as high pollen counts mingle with heavy pollution and Saharan dust. Invading plants like ragweed are also bringing increasing amounts of allergy-inducing pollen to Britain.

Hayfever is twice as common in towns and cities as in the countryside, largely because of higher levels of traffic pollution.