Edward Waters University professor monitors Jacksonville’s pollen count through a pollen station
Edward Waters University (EWU) is working to provide some relief for people suffering from allergies due to pollen.
Dr. Brian Seymour, research director for the center of health disparities at EWU houses a pollen station that collects samples for the American Academy of Allergy Asthma & Immunology.
He tells Action News Jax that his goal is to understand why Jacksonville and surrounding areas have such a high pollen count during certain times of the year, and maybe develop plans to decrease those counts.
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“Duval County is made up of six health zones. We are located in the most orbit part of Jacksonville,” says Seymour.
Dr. Seymour says these health zones cover different zip codes within Jacksonville and the biggest reason why this pollen station was placed in this area is because of the high pollen count it sees.
Seymour says he sends his samples to the American Academy of allegory asthma & immunology to keep records of the pollen count in Jacksonville on their website.
“We want to specifically let the community know of the particular type of pollen in our community,” says Seymour.
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The pollen station sits on a roof of a dormitory on the campus of EWU where it not only collects the pollen count for Jacksonville; but also for northeast Florida.
“There is a higher contraction of oak than pine,” says Seymour.
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So, what type of pollen causes the worst reactions in Jacksonville.
Seymour says it’s one type of pollen in particular that will always have people who suffer from allergies sneezing.
“This one right here this is the oak. This one really gets the high levels and stays up for a long time,” says Seymour.
Seymour hopes to continue this project for at least another five years.
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