I live in Maryland, between Baltimore and Washington, and I suffer terribly from allergies. I pop Claritin like Elvis and Betty Ford popped Valium. What are some of the best locations in the lower US continental states to live for allergy sufferers? Mid West? Rocky Mountains? North West? I am ready to move to any other location if it will reduce my allergy problems.

Chuck

I live between washington and baltimore also! I know allergy season is the worst! I feel your pain. Hope you find come anwers soon!

That completely depends on what you're allergic to.

They used to say the Southwest was the best, since there are no trees or mold no mold, but since so many people have been moving there and planting trees, it's not that great anymore. Probably still better than most places, I imagine.

I, too, have always heard that Arizona, New Mexico, and Colorado were the best places for persons with allergies to live. The air is supposed to be drier and not moist which can aggrevate sinuses and allergies.

I've always heard one of the best is to live near the ocean (like within a mile). The desert also works for some.

I've always heard one of the best is to live near the ocean (like within a mile). The desert also works for some.

I was in Santa Barbara last year, within about 1/4 mile of the ocean, and the friend I was with had the worst allergy attack of her life. She got hives for the first time. She thinks it was the mold. We can't be sure that's what she's allergic to, since she hasn't been to an allergist, but she thinks it's mold, and the house we were in had previously had some mold problems.

Funny you should mention that. I went to school in Santa Barbara and had some bad allergies in the summer. That area would have "sundowner" (offshore) winds that whipped up in the evenings and brought every airborn allergen whipping into town. The inland chaparral vegetation can be brutal when it dries to a crisp in the summer. The rest of the year was fine.

I believe the ocean theory takes into account the heavy, moist air - and general on-shore flow. All of which should control allergens to some degree.

I moved from the east coast to California, a mile from the ocean, and my allergies here are worse than ever.

I've lived in Hawaii, California, Connecticut, New York, and now Pennsylvania. Ive spent summers in Colorado. If it wasn't for the nature of my husband's work, we would move to Colorado in a heartbeat. Dry is good for allergies. Also, unless specifically allergic to pines or evergreens, you may do the best in a higher elevation with mostly evergreens. They tend to have a lot less pollen, and not as much gunk in the air. Also, higher elevations have (supposedly) a higher content of oxygen in the air, and the air just FEELS lighter and easier to breathe. It's also cooler. My allergies and asthma are such that summers here in the East kill me. I hide indoors with air conditioning on full and just don't go outside. Check with an allergist or immunologist as to your specific allergies, and go from there.
Good luck!

I have lived in Oregon and Washington State for the past 20 years and have suffered with terrible allergies and eventually developed asthma. I am allergic to many things, but mostly grasses, mold, and pollen.
I moved to the California high desert last June and the difference has been amazing! I have not had to use Beconase for the first time in 15 years, or my inhaler since I've moved. The desert did get a lot of unusual rain this year, so I have a little bit of allergies with the wildflowers blooming this last month. I have popped a Clairiten a couple times, but nothing even close to what I'm used to.
A move worked for me. Just my 2 cents........

I live in Tucson, AZ and have horrible allergies! I use to live in NY and never had a problem. The southwest isn't so great for allergies anymore, there is plenty of stuff in the air to be allergic to and a lot of trees too. (just different kinds than the northeast, etc) I'm allergic to about 12 trees out here.

Also because of our heat you have year round plants that bloom. So if you're like me and have allergies to summer, winter, fall, and spring plants you never get a break (and that's not even counting the indoor allergies) I think the only good thing about the desert is there isn't a lot of moisture, so dust mites are low. I'm highly allergic to them and my dr has said I live in the best place to be so allergic to dust mites.

Katt

New Mexico and CO are not good. I am from Bethesda, MD and had hay fever but my allergies are much worse in NM. They were best in CA near the ocean.

Sharon

I currently live in Alabama and yes my allergies are pretty bad here. We have lots of moisture and foiliage that produces pollen. In April the pollen is so thick your car will be covered in yellow. But, I have also lived in Los Angeles and other parts of California. I believe my allergies were worse in LA, due in part to the air pollution and dust. Remember, its not just natural pollutants that aggravate allergies.

Atlanta was just named the worst city overall for allergies. No wonder I can't enjoy springtime.

Miami, FL, without question, is the best place I have ever lived for allergies. And I have lived in a lot of places:
- Houston, TX
- Dallas, TX
- New Orleans, LA
- Charlotte, NC
- San Francisco, CA
- Palo Alto, CA
- Redwood City, CA
- Ann Arbor, MI

And right behind Miami, I would place Ann Arbor. Not sure why, but I have bad sinusitis, allergies, and asthma, and Miami and Ann Arbor have agreed with me the most. Good luck!

It sounds to me, after reading all these posts, that what really matters is WHAT you're allergic to! Different areas of the country have different pollen-bearing plants, and different levels of mold due to different levels of humidity, and different amounts of smog, etc. It probably matters, too, whether you're talking about moving to a rural area or a big city. The rural areas might have air-born dust and plant material from plowing, and "material" (ahem) from the chickens, pigs, cattle that may be raised in large numbers nearby. The cities are going to have pollen-bearing trees planted in the parks and people's yards, and car exhaust fumes, and mold in apartment houses, and general smog. And humidity levels are different everywhere. I suggest that before you pack up and move, you try to narrow down (easier said than done, I know!) the specific substances you are allergic to. THEN research areas where you can minimize contact with these substances. Otherwise, you'll be making an expensive move for nothing.

--Rheanna

i would definatly have to agree that it depends on what you're allergic to. i lived in IL for years and wasn't allergic to hardly anything (okra being the exception, and that was skin contact with the plant), then i moved to bladensburg, md, and all of a sudden i was having allergic reactions to just about everything that had pollen. then we moved to biloxi, MS about 4 blocks from the beach....i thought my head was gonna explode. mold was added to the list of things i'm allergic to. also found out that i can't eat okra. now i'm in tucson, az, and it's just as bad, if not worse. the lack of moisture has had my sinus bleeding since i got here (31 dec 04), even with a humidifier running. i'm going back to Il for a visit in the middle/end of august. it should be interesting to see if i have allergy problems when i back there.


alicia

i know i felt my best when i lived in florida, near the ocean....i think it just takes alot of the crap out to sea; the worse for me: i thought it was new england (especially cape cod) but i think where i live now(west virginia) is the worst. the mold here is horrible...

I can tell you NOT to move to Illinois, they are REALLY BAD here. Try down south, like Florida, or maybe Alabama, my allergies are usually a lot better down there. Good luck!

NOT Alabama...horrid for allergies! Lots of mold and mildew due to humidity...and the ragweed is unbelieveable! Grasses have a long season too...and the profusion of blooming plants...yikes! I'm 59, lived here all my life and am on injections for the third time...will finish the 5 year plan in December and can't wait to be done with them...still have to take Zyrtec during bad seasons. Don't come here...unless it's to the beach....

Not Western North Carolina either!! So many come here for the "fresh mountain air" and become very disappointed. We have more varieties of plants, trees, etc that everyone is bound to be allergic to one of them!! Pretty...but not fun if you have allergies. In the towns and cities the air is getting worse from so many people/cars coming here and driving on the Blue Ridge Parkway. I've heard tons of people talk about never having allergies their whole life until moving to WNC...

I just asked my sinus Dr this very question. I live in Atlanta.. plenty of pollen and mold here. He said either the desert or at the beach. He said to get the HEPA effect of ocean air you have to be right on the beach. A block or two away and the effect is minimized.

I can't say that I'm an expert on this subject, but I wouldn't advise going to Austin, Texas! I moved there when I was seven, and previously, I was allergy-free. Not so a few months later. I was chopping walnuts for my mom, and I started to have the itchy eyes and scratchy throat. They say that the pollen down there is really bad, especially on the nut trees. Now, I'm still allergic to all nuts, except peanuts, which is kind of odd because peanut allergies run in my family. (I think it's because they're a legume, not a tree nut.) My worst is walnuts, and I would say that my reaction is severe- not anaphalaxis, but a shade below. I get hives, my throat swells (not that I can't breathe), and I get abdominal cramping. I have an EpiPen, just in case... Anyway, Austin is not advisable if you're trying to get away from allergies- you might even pick some new ones up there!
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