Airborne pollen boosts corona infections

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The more pollen in the air, the faster the corona infections rise. This has been demonstrated by a worldwide study by, among others, the Leiden University Medical Center.

The coronavirus may benefit from a weakened immune system due to exposure to pollen. This is not only the case with hay fever patients, but also for people who are not allergic. The Leiden University Medical Center (LUMC), the Elkerliek hospital and Wageningen University & Research, among others, were involved in a major international study. The results have been published in the scientific journal PNAS.

Corona benefits from pollen

It has been known for some time that exposure to pollen in the spring reduces the immune system against viral infections in the respiratory tract. This is the case, for example, with the cold virus. This effect occurs both in people who are allergic to pollen and people who are not allergic. During the outbreak of the coronavirus, it was noticeable that in several countries the acceleration in the increase in the number of infections only started when the pollen concentration increased. As a result, researchers suspected that the coronavirus could also benefit from a weakened immune system due to pollen exposure.

To prove that suspicion, a team of 150 scientists examined pollen counts from 130 pollen counting stations in 31 countries. This pollen effect was visible all over the world at the start of the epidemic. The study shows that the contamination rates increased after an increase in the concentration of pollen four days earlier. The contamination figures increased by an average of 4% when the pollen concentration increases by 100 pollen per cubic meter. After the introduction of a lockdown, this effect halved, but the reinforcing influence of pollen was still visible.

Follow-up research on pollen needed

The article in PNAS thus suggests that pollen exposure is contributing to the rise in corona rates in many countries. It remains to be investigated whether the link found is causal. For example, international studies are underway in which cells from the lung are exposed to pollen and the corona virus. Studies like this make it much easier to determine whether exposure to pollen actually weakens the body’s defense mechanism against the virus.

Complaints? Get tested!

The complaints of hay fever can be confused with the complaints of COVID-19. Most of the time, hay fever does not cause a fever or a loss of smell; these are indeed symptoms of corona. So if in doubt, be sure to get tested.

Source: Metro Netherlands

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