hay fever

Hay fever in Japan

Do you get hay fever? graph of japanese statisticsWith the main hay fever, in particular cedar fever, season nearly over, this report from japan.internet.com on a survey by goo Research Inc into hay fever is interesting to see how it has affected people this spring.

Demographics

Between the 3rd and 5th of April 2008 1,096 members of the goo Research online monitor group completed a private internet-based questionnaire. 52.9% of the sample was male, 16.4% in their teens, 18.1% in their twenties, 21.2% in their thirties, 16.3% in their forties, 16.1% in their fifties, and 11.9% aged sixty or older.

I actually had my worst hay fever this year, when about three weeks ago my nose started running freely. I went to a local ear, nose and throat clinic and got some anti-histamines, nasal spray and eye drops. The pills knocked me for six, such that I was unable to take the prescribed two per day, just one, and I quit after three days. The nose spray did the trick, though, and although it lasted less than two weeks I’ve had almost no problems even after it finished.
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By Ken Y-N, ago

Two in five Japanese are hay fever sufferers

Hana celeb tissues with Hello Kitty branding

With the hay fever season upon us, and predictions of between three to five times the amount of cedar pollen flying around compared to last year, and with yellow sand from China also paying a visit, this recent survey from DIMSDRIVE Research into hay fever is quite timely.

Demographics

Between the 6th and 14th of February 2008 10,665 members of the DIMSDRIVE Monitors completed a private internet-based questionnaire. 52.8% of the sample was female, 1.2% in their teens, 14.9% in their twenties, 35.8% in their thirties, 29.1% in their forties, 13.3% in thei fifties, and 5.7% aged sixty or older.

Pictured above is Hello Kitty-branded Hana (nose) Celeb lotion-impregnated tissues that may or may not prevent redness after blowing one’s nose a lot while suffering from hay fever.

The thing that irritates me the most about hay fever in others is the Japanese reluctance to blow their noses in public, as it is too embarrassing compared to pulling a face as one makes sniffing noises at regular intervals. It’s almost enough to get me over my dislike of MP3 players and drown out the rest of the carriage on the ride home.

I don’t get cedar hay fever fortunately, although I do have a couple of other allergies that usually result in a runny nose and the occassional sneeze.

Last year I looked at a similar survey into hay fever by MyVoice that might be a useful cross-reference.
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By Ken Y-N, ago