Los Angeles, Seattle, Portland, Denver, Hawaii
I’m from Los Angeles, and I had minor asthma there, I moved to Seattle and began serious sinus problems, I’m now in Portland, Oregon and I have life threatening asthma as well as very frequent and painful sinus problems. My doc agreed Portland is the worst place for my allergies esp. to grasses. I’m considering Denver, Co I heard there are no dust mite allergies is this true? My doc also recommended Hawaii, any advice on Hawaii for pollen and allergies? Or any other best cities in the US? — Rebecca, California
Dust mites don’t do well in less than 50% humidity. When I visited Denver in Sept. a few years back the humidity was quite low, and my understanding is that low humidity is typical for Denver. However, I’ll let those who have spent more time there comment on the humidity and its effect on dust mites in Denver.
If there are dust mites around, they will still find a cozy place in your mattress or favorite chair. They thrive on dead skin cells that slough off in these, and there is enough moisture from your body to keep them happy.
As to Hawaii, I have an item from a reader in the lineup to post in August. Probably in the last half of the month. Stay tuned!
Anyone else with ties to Denver or Hawaii, feel free to comment.
Comment by AllergyNurse — July 31, 2006 @ 8:01 pm
Aloha from Hawaii,
I live on Oahu and I don’t recommend living here if you have allergies. Because of the climate something is always in bloom. Then due to the rain & humidity mold is also a problem. In addition, depending on the winds, we may have vog (volcanic smog) coming from the Big Island of Hawaii. I don’t know what may be coming off the ocean when the waves are high. You can certainly see the salt mist in the air in the Winter on the North Shore.
Within my first 2 weeks here I got very sick. I thought it was some kind of flu or bronchitis. It turned out to be my allergies.
I’ve heard from other folks who came here & their allergies cleared up for a year or so then came back worse than ever.
It’s much worse on the wet (windward) side of the islands although it’s prettiest there. I’ve read that local folks with life-threatening asthma were recommended to move to the dry (leeward) desert-side of the island. This helped a lot.
Good Luck!
Comment by Trish — August 8, 2006 @ 2:20 pm
I have lived in Denver Colorado my whole life and my allergies are worse this year than ever before! I’ve had allergies since I was a kid. I remember taking a trip to Seattle with my family and having the worst hay fever. I’mm sure Portland isn’t much better. GO TO HAWAII! I recently spent 10 days on Maui and didn’t sneeze once! It was paradise. Then I came back here to Denver and immediately had terrible allergy symptoms. I’ve been taking generic 24-hour Claritin and it hasn’t helped much.
Comment by dom — June 24, 2007 @ 9:54 am
I moved from Sacramento to Oahu for 10 months. My allergies/chronic sinus headaches lessened significantly in Hawaii. I’m no expert, but I would imagine if you are allergic to molds, Hawaii probably wouldn’t be the best place. It seemed like mold grew on everything there! I used to get so much head pressure in Ca, and in Hawaii, it seemed like the humidity kept everything moist/draining, so I rarely had any problems. I have since moved back to Northern Ca, and although my headaches aren’t as frequent as they were here before, it is still bothersome. We are also looking for a healthier place to move…Good luck!
Comment by Autumn — October 8, 2007 @ 5:31 pm
I moved to Oahu in Nov ‘05 and my allergies have never been as bad as they are here–and getting worse. If you’ve got pollen and/or mold allergies, chances are your allergies will get pretty bad on this island. The mango trees are especially giving me problems.
Comment by Jim — January 1, 2008 @ 4:49 pm
It seems from my reading of many people’s experiences that allergies seem to get worse when people move away from where they were raised. Allergies are everywhere. It all depends upon what your allergy triggers are. It weems like no place is immune. Also you might be allergic to something in a new location which you here-to-fore did not know you were allergic to - out of the frying pan and into the fire.
Comment by Dave — January 17, 2008 @ 6:16 pm
Rebecca,
I have lived in several different areas of Colorado nearly all my life, with the exception of Missouri for 3 years and Florida for 1 year. My allergies are the worst here in Colorado. I love my home state, but with all of the wild flowers, plants, grasses, and trees that bloom or bud here in the spring, my son and I have real trouble staying healthy. I get at least one sinus infection every year. Plus, he has asthma, so any allergy he has can trigger an attack. As the summer comes and goes it gets a little better, but not much. Also, during early fall they can get bad because of all the fields being harvested and everything flying into the air.
So, good luck on your quest. Hope this helps.
Comment by Cari — April 23, 2008 @ 1:42 pm
I suffered from allergies all of my life, and used Afrin for the past
20yrs, and Claritin for the last 7. Before Claritin it was another antihistamines.
Last year I met a naturopath who specializes in gastro-intestinal.
All I wanted was a B-12 shot-because I was low on energy.
What I got changed my life.
I asked why she had chosen that specialty. She said it is because of how
critical it is to our sympathetic immune system-affecting everything from
energy to allergies. Allergies? She said-of course and explained why.
She suggested blood work to see how my immune-system bacteria was doing.
Answer: terrible.
Solution: She had me take pro-biotics to beef-up what my body needed to
work correctly.
Outcome: Energy increased, sickness decreased, allergies decreased.
After that, I had been hearing about the netipot.
Bottom line: I started using the neti-pot and taking pro-biotics.
Result: Today is May 8-2008, and I have not yet used any antihistamines this spring.
My conclusion: I saw no downside to trying the netipot and probiotics.
Results: My sinuses are the healthiest in my lifetime and I am seeing
sneezing and pollen around me, and thus far, no problems, and I am off Afrin
Comment by Lee — May 9, 2008 @ 1:58 pm