Grab the tissues and allergy pills. It is the sneeze season again.

"We are in the throes of it," said Travis Miller, M.D., an allergist and Sutter independent physician with Capital Allergy practice. "With these dry, warm days, the tree and grass pollen has really gotten up very quickly."

Miller said the lack of a rain pattern has let the trees and grass do as they please. Trees releasing the most pollen are birch, mulberry and elm.

"We would expect oak and olive will be shortly following," he said.

The website Pollen.com notes that the reading for Monday is 9.1, which is in the moderate-to-high range. The National Weather Service is calling for rain in the Sacramento region Tuesday night, which according to the website will knock the pollen reading to 6.6 on Wednesday.

However, by Thursday, the reading will boomerang into the high category at 9.7. Miller said the allergy season is not early.

"It is more that in past years we have had breaks where we have had two- to three-day rain cycles that can knock pollens down," said Miller. "There was a light, little rain about 10 days ago for a couple hours. But we have not had a good rain for a while."

Symptoms being experienced by patients at the Folsom, Sacramento and Roseville Capital Allergy offices are: itchy, red eyes; sneezy, running noses; and coughing and wheezing.

Fatigue can also be associated with pollen sensitivity, said Miller.

Tips from Miller to fight allergies:

--If symptoms are significant enough, see a medical provider.

--Take showers in the afternoon or evening after being outside to get pollen off your hair and face.

--Keep windows closed, so that when winds blow, pollens will not enter the home.

--Saline, both eye drops and nasal rinses, can be effective.

--Take over-the-counter treatments, which are getting better.

--Wear glasses and a hat to help block pollen from getting on the face.

Although few look forward to the searing days of summer, really hot weather can knock the stuffing out of allergies.

One-hundred-degree days make the trees and grasses less likely to release pollen - and the pollen that is out there is sort of scorched.

"Three days of back-to-back, 100-degree weather seems to significantly knock the pollen level down," said Miller. "Until we get there, the pollen can be relatively unchecked."

Call The Bee's Bill Lindelof, (916) 321-1079. Follow him on Twitter @Lindelofnews.

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