With allergy season already here, it’s a good time to review some helpful tips. Seasonal allergies can be quite bothersome and proper management of symptoms can be key to your comfort.  Managing your environment can be just as important and so here are some suggestions. The most obvious and effective intervention is to avoid contact with the allergen. Remember to keep doors and windows closed to decreased the influx of pollen into your home and change your clothes immediately after coming inside when pollen counts are high. Dusting furniture with a damp cloth, vacuuming weekly, and getting a high efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filter or an electrostatic air purifier can also help keep your home allergen free. When allergen avoidance is ineffective or just impractical drug therapy is suggested. There are actually no medically recommended first line drugs for seasonal allergies. The choice of medication more depends on the patient’s current symptoms, tolerability, adherence factors, and cost. Since many allergy medications can cause sedation and performance impairment please choose wisely if you are already combating fatigue or are conducting activities such as driving or working with machinery. Medications like, Zyrtec, Clarinex, Allegra, and Claritan are a good group to start with. These medications tend to have fewer side effects and have simpler dosing schedules. Keep in mind these medications will not relieve nasal congestion, so if you are suffering with significant nasal congestion, medications like Claritin-D and Allegra-D are best.