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With warmer weather just around the corner, grass, trees and other vegetation will be sprouting and flowering. While many welcome the signs of spring, others may be less than excited about the arrival of allergy season. As vegetation growth kicks into high gear, so do allergies for many Americans with roughly 55 percent of the U.S. population testing positive to one or more allergens. Additionally, one in five Americans has allergy or asthma symptoms.

"Allergies are a body's immune system overreacting to an allergen," said Dr. Pat Yost, family practitioner at Memorial Hospital of Converse County. Symptoms typically include runny nose, watery and itchy eyes, ear pressure, non-productive cough and sinus congestion. Severe allergies can cause rashes and respiratory distress.

"Any time there's a rash or respiratory issues, those are the times to get in to the doctor," Yost said. "A true anaphylactic response to an allergen is life threatening."

For severe allergies and allergies that people struggle to keep in check with basic remedies, Yost encourages considering more extensive allergy testing and treatment. For those with more mild allergies, a regular annual check with a doctor and monitoring of treatment is recommended.

"See your doctor if you have chronic health issues yearly, and then as needed for additional follow up," Yost said. "If the treatment isn't working well, it may be time move up treatment to the next level."

Advanced treatment can include allergy shots or immunotherapy for allergies and nebulizers for asthma. Because asthma, allergies and eczema are closely related, it's important to be aware of the correlation, Yost said. Many times, these health conditions are also genetic, so parents with a history of asthma, allergies and eczema are more likely to pass the conditions to their children.

"We also often see allergies, asthma and eczema present together," Yost said.

Other factors that may impact Wyoming residents include a drier climate and seasonal smoke from wildfires.

"We have seasonal allergies all year long because of the dry climate and wind kicking up allergens," Yost said. "We see a lot of asthma exacerbates around the same time as fires."

So as the allergy season gets into full swing, here are a few recommendations to help allergy sufferers:

1. Watch the pollen counts. If pollen counts are high, avoid being outside and being exposed to allergens. Several websites monitor pollen counts, including pollen.com, weather.com and the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology that allow you to get an allergy forecast for your area.
2. Know what your triggers are. If you have allergies, know what allergens bother you most. Consider getting allergy testing is your allergies are moderate to severe.
3. Avoid exposure during the height of allergy season. Flush out your sinuses regularly and wash your face and hands often.

It's allergy season. As the allergy season gets into full swing, here are a few recommendations to help allergy sufferers:
Watch the pollen counts. If pollen counts are high, avoid being outside and being exposed to allergens. Several websites monitor pollen counts, including pollen.com, weather.com and the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology that allow you to get an allergy forecast for your area.
Know what your triggers are. If you have allergies, know what allergens bother you most. Consider getting allergy testing is your allergies are moderate to severe.
Avoid exposure during the height of allergy season. Flush out your sinuses regularly and wash your face and hands often.