How Do I Properly Make Sense Of Pollen Counts And Are They Accurate?

Question: How do I properly make sense of pollen counts and are they accurate?

Answer: The pollen counts need to be performed by a certified pollen counting station. If indeed that is the way they're reported from a certified station, they are very reliable and accurate. The certified stations use samplers and they position those samplers in an appropriate place where they're not obstructed by buildings and other factors. What one needs to realize when they hear the local pollen count on the news is that the count reflects the previous 24 hour period, not the count at that moment when they heard it. The counts can be very helpful in the sense that if it's a heavy day, the patients that are allergic at that time of the year may want to spend more time indoors and the counts are also very useful for the allergy healthcare provider in providing advice for their allergy patients.

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