Media Contact: Michael Schwartzberg, GBMC Media Relations Manager

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GBMC Expert Offers Tips To Avoid Holiday Allergy Triggers

BALTIMORE, Md. –  December 12, 2007 – As the winter holidays approach, millions of Americans are preparing to decorate their homes, gather for meals, and travel to visit friends and relatives.  For allergy and asthma sufferers however, the holiday season presents several potential problems, according to Alvin Sanico, M.D., FAAAAI, medical director of the Asthma Sinus Allergy Program at Greater Baltimore Medical Center (ASAP@GBMC).

"If you’re setting up a Christmas tree, visiting relatives with pets, being around kids with sniffles, eating unfamiliar foods at parties, or looking at outdoor displays and breathing cold dry air, your symptoms can get worse because of various triggers," said Dr. Sanico.  “However, taking the proper precautions can help keep your allergies or asthma under control.”

Dr. Sanico and the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology suggest the following tips to help keep allergies and asthma under control this holiday season:  

• If you have food allergies, inform the host of the holiday gathering you are attending about your condition and ask about the ingredients used to prepare the meal.
• If you have been prescribed a self-injectable epinephrine, make sure that you always have it with you to be used if needed for any life-threatening allergic reactions.  Teach others when and how to administer the epinephrine.
• If you are allergic to cats or dogs and are visiting homes with these pets, take your allergy medication in advance to minimize any reaction.
• If you are allergic to molds, be aware that Evergreens can carry these microscopic allergens and trigger your symptoms as you decorate your Christmas tree.  Make sure that decorations and artificial trees are not kept in damp storage where they can also gather molds.
• Respiratory infections such as common colds can exacerbate asthma, so avoid getting these from others by frequently washing your hands.
• If you are allergic to dust mites and are using dust mite proof covers for your pillows and beddings, bring and use these when you travel and stay at a hotel or a relative's house.
• If you have asthma or rhinitis, remember that inhaling cold dry air can trigger your symptoms so try to use warm protective clothing to cover your nose.  Make sure that you continue to use your preventive medications regularly and always carry your rescue medications to be used as needed if you have breakthrough symptoms.

ASAP@GBMC (www.asap-gbmc.com) offers patients "one stop" care for asthma, sinus and/or allergy problems. The center offers needle-free allergy testing, with results in 20 minutes.   If needed, patients can have a sinus CT scan and also be evaluated by an ear-nose-throat specialist during the same visit.

About GBMC
GBMC includes Greater Baltimore Medical Center (GBMC), Central Maryland’s leading community hospital; Hospice of Baltimore, which provides comfort and care to patients with life-limiting illnesses; and the GBMC Foundation, which supports the GBMC mission by managing fundraising efforts.  The 292-bed Medical Center, located on a beautiful suburban campus, serves nearly 22,000 inpatients annually and provides approximately 60,000 emergency room visits. For more information, go to www.gbmc.org  

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