Southern U.S. cities top poll as worst for allergies

NEW YORK (Reuters Life!) - For allergy sufferers, the arrival of spring is always unpleasant, but if you live in Tulsa, Oklahoma, this could be a particularly miserable season.

Tulsa was listed as the most challenging place to live with spring allergies in the United States, according to a new ranking by the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America (AAFA).

The study looked at data from 320 metro areas across the country. The south ruled the top spots with Dallas-Fort Worth in Texas, Fort Myers in Florida, San Antonio in Texas, and Tucson in Arizona rounding up the top five.

Dr. Rollie Rhodes of the Eastern Oklahoma Ear, Nose and Throat Clinic in Tulsa was not surprised by the city's poor showing.

"Since the middle of February -- since we've had a milder winter than usual -- we've had increasing numbers of people coming in. It's been more active this spring than usual," Rhodes said in an interview.

The longer allergy season doesn't help.

"What used to be a six to eight week season is now eight to 12 weeks," said AAFA spokesman Angel Waldron.

The AAFA's 2007 spring ranking is based on scientific analysis of pollen data, the number of allergy medications used per patient and the number of allergy specialists per patient.

According to the foundation, allergies (hay fever) are the fifth leading chronic disease, costing an estimated $7 billion a year in medication costs, office visits and lost work days.