Bhubaneswar: Climate change is affecting the health of human beings apart from causing serious damage to our planet, opined experts.

Climate change is responsible for rise in cases of seasonal allergies among people, they said.

According to them, allergy symptoms including runny nose, itchy eyes, sneezing, and coughing, are worsened by temperature changes and rise in carbon dioxide levels that increase the ability of plants to produce pollen for longer periods.

When a foreign substance enters the human body, our immune system reacts and it causes allergies. In many cases, environmental allergens including pollen cause such allergies.

The immune system in human body releases histamines in response to the detection of an allergen. These chemicals increase mucus production and induce inflammation, causing runny nose and cough, explained the health experts.

Several researches have indicated that allergies caused by environmental factors are very much present during the growing stage of a child.

Pollen is produced by blooming plants and their buds open to let pollinators including bees, hummingbirds and butterflies, access the anthers and stigmas of flowers to deposit pollen for fertilization.

The wind also plays a major role in spreading pollen from plant to plant. Climate change, particularly rise in global temperatures, gives plants more time to produce pollen.

In recent years, pollen seasons are starting earlier and lasting longer. A recent research found that global warming has lengthened the pollen season by an average of 20 days.

Besides, carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas, promotes increased pollen production by plants.