RALEIGH, N.C. (WNCN) — If your face is puffy, eyes are itchy, and your head just straight up hurts it's more than likely the pollen.
The latest pollen report from the North Carolina Division of Air Quality has grasses at a moderate level and trees at a high level. No pollen grains were measured for weeds because that normally spikes in the fall.
The main trees right now are pine, juniper, cedar cypress, and oak, with 114 pollen grains per cubic meter (grains/m3) measured. Pollen in this instance is measured as a type of volume, which is why it's measured as pollen grains per cubic meter.
Tree pollen has been trending up since the beginning of March, bouncing around between moderate and high levels for the past few weeks.
Monday, tree pollen was higher than Tuesday, with 766 grains/m3 measured, which was the highest since April 2024.
Last April was a bad time for people with tree allergies: two days in early April had pollen measurements at the top of the all-time biggest pollen measurements in the DAQ's records, which go back to 1999. The end of March and beginning of April was particularly bad, with one measurement recording more than 5,000 tree pollen grains/m3.
While we're not that bad just yet this year, tree pollen typically doesn't peak until early to mid-April, so it's going to get worse before it gets better. After trees are done, grass takes over by early spring and late summer, while weeds peak in the fall.
So, if you're feeling bad when you wake up every morning, you can probably blame the pollen.
If you want to sign up for daily pollen reports from the Division of Air Quality, you can find that here. You can also learn more about how pollen is collected at the division's website.