A pollen and mold report is a report of the amount of airborne allergens currently found in the air at a specific location. This information is useful to anyone who is diagnosing, treating or managing an allergic disease. The report includes counts for four separate types of allergens:

• Tree pollen
• Grass pollen
• Weed pollen
• Mold spores

Levels in the report are expressed as absent, low, medium, high and very high. Low levels indicate that very few individuals with allergies should experience symptoms, while high levels indicate that most allergic individuals will likely experience symptoms.

These types of reports are most useful to those individuals suffering from airborne allergies (e.g., hay fever, allergic conjunctivitis) and asthma. The information can be used to inform allergic or asthmatic individuals about times they may want to avoid going outside. It can also be used to indicate when to take certain types of preventative allergy treatments (e.g., antihistamines).

Pollen and mold reports are compiled through networks of individual counting stations, which each use air sampling devices to test the air in their own area. Usually a single counting station is adequate to report the pollen and mold conditions for an entire city or community.

One of the most accurate and well known reporting networks is the National Allergy Bureau’s pollen and mold report (known as the Aeroallergen Network). This report is provided through the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (AAAAI), and can be accessed by calling 800-9-POLLEN or on the Internet at http://www.aaaai.org/nab.

Pollen forecasts may also be available. A network of counting stations use data on atmospheric conditions and seasonal changes to predict the severity of pollen counts. The report specifies the type of pollen that is most prevalent and is specific to individual geographic regions throughout the United States and Canada.