If you’re one of the nearly 45 million Americans living with seasonal allergies, there are at least 100 cities you should avoid this spring. Or at the very least, plan your allergy defense strategy accordingly if you need to visit for work or pleasure. For the 12th consecutive year, the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America (AAFA) has compiled and released its 2014 list of “the 100 most challenging places to live with allergies” during the spring and fall seasons.
To determine the nation’s “Allergy Capitals,” the AAFA measured and compared seasonal data that included:
Pollen scores (airborne grass/tree/weed pollen and mold spores)*
Number of allergy medications used per patient
Number of allergy specialists per patient
Each city was assigned a score out of a maximum 100 points (Hint: Having a score close to 100 is NOT a good thing).
Check out the list below of the top 10 worst cities for spring allergy sufferers. To view the full list of 100, click here.
10. McAllen, Texas
Allergy severity: 87.61
9. Birmingham, Alabama
Allergy severity: 87.71
8. Richmond, Virginia
Allergy severity: 88.68
7. Dallas, Texas
Allergy severity: 88.82
6. Chattanooga, Tennessee
Allergy severity: 90.18
5. Jackson, Mississippi
Allergy severity: 90.61
4. Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Allergy severity: 91.19
3. Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Allergy severity: 91.93
2. Memphis, Tennessee
Allergy severity: 97.10
1. Louisville, Kentucky
Allergy severity: 100
