Asthma sufferers are being warned that Australia will soon be hit with a peak allergy season.
The ongoing La Nina weather event puts allergy sufferers at higher risk, especially between the start of October to the end of December, according to experts.
Unfortunately for asthma sufferers, the La Nina weather event will mean more than just a summer of wet weather.
Experts are warning Australians who suffer from asthma to prepare for a thunderstorm allergy season, as a result of the changing climate.
Asthma sufferers will be at higher risk between the start of October to the end of December, according to the National Asthma Council.
The Council's director and respiratory physician, Professor Peter Wark explains what a thunderstorm asthma event is.
"Thunderstorm asthma is a particular phenomenon we see at this time of year. And it occurs specifically when we get a thunderstorm. We've got all this grass sitting out on the plains and when he weather changes and the wind blows, all the little grass seeds get taken up into the air. They meet the warm, moist air in the upper part of the atmosphere, and that really leads those seeds to explode."
For asthma sufferers this cycle can pose a serious threat.
In 2016, ten people died and emergency services became overwhelmed, after Melbourne was hit with an epidemic thunderstorm asthma event.
Professor Wark says the perfect combination of circumstances must occur for such an event to arise.
"You've got to have lots of pollen in the air, and you've got to have the right kind of atmospheric conditions happening as well. And then the events occur. And of course it also struck very late in the afternoon, just when people were out and about and going home from work. So really it was just the worse of those circumstances there. And it really hit the populated northern suburbs of Melbourne hardest, and that really resulted in thousands of people having worsening asthma. Either presenting to the emergency departments, and sadly of course ten people lost their lives."
Forensic worker, Genevieve Vergara, describes the symptoms she experiences as a result of rapid changes in the weather.
"My asthma is also triggered by sudden changes in the weather, so if the air felt heavier it would trigger my asthma as well. So it would start with sneezing, or like a tingling sensation or itching sensation in my nose or throat, and then it would worsen or develop other symptoms. My eyes would get teary, and then the difficulty in breathing would start as well."
For many asthma sufferers, the Covid-19 pandemic has only worsened symptoms.
Ms Vergara has experienced asthma since she was first diagnosed as a 9 year-old in the Philippines, but she says long Covid symptoms made her asthma more severe than ever before.
"Before it was sort of manageable, but then after Covid it was kind of difficult, more difficult to manage. It was more severe because of Covid. It was more difficult, laborious breathing, my chest felt heavy. And there's wheezing, and I also lost my voice that time."
Australia has one of the world's highest rates of asthma, with one in ten affected.
While Professor Wark says thunderstorm events are very dramatic, he insists it's important for any asthmatic to know exactly what to do in an emergency.
"The best protection that you have against thunderstorm asthma or spring and summer when allergies are prominent is to have good daily control of your asthma in the first place. For everyone with asthma over the age of six - if they are needing to use a reliever more than a couple of times per month then they should be on a regular inhaled preventer. That is best with a low dose inhaled corticosteroid. That significantly reduces risk (of extreme asthma attacks occurring)."
Ms Vergera is on high alert following news of a heightened allergy season.
And she has a message for other asthmatics as Australia approaches the thunderstorm event.
"If they can prepare for it, and avoid what it is they can avoid. And always be in contact with their Doctor, with their GPs, would be very handy."
