Spain's Salud Responde app launches pollen levels information campaign

This year's allergy season is set to be longer and more intense than usual, especially after the successive storms that hit Malaga province between the end of November and February. This amount of rain has accelerated the pollination of many species and this, combined with the heat, creates a risk for those allergic to different types of pollen.

Head of the Andalusian association of allergology and clinical immunology (Alergosur) Carmen Rondón told SUR: "Climate change is causing torrential rains to coincide with high temperatures, creating a perfect scenario for abundant blooms in the countryside and vegetation, resulting in pollination rates that are surpassing previous years. In Malaga, it seems we're experiencing the landscapes of Galicia and everything is green."

As a result, the Salud Responde app has launched an information campaign of interest to people allergic to pollen, available to the more than 6,777,259 users of the app across Andalucía.

More than 293,000 people in Malaga province are allergic to pollen, according to estimates from Alergosur. Between 20 and 23 per cent of the population is allergic, and of these 75 per cent suffer from respiratory allergies. Finally, of this latter group, 90 per cent are allergic to pollen.

The campaign will run for about three months, alongside the regional ministry of health's initiatives that provide access to information on the levels of allergens (grasses, olive, birch, etc.) by province and allow users to ask questions about the measures to take to prevent allergy symptoms.

Users can access information on pollen levels, divided into four ranges: high, moderate, low or zero/very low. The Spanish aerobiology network (REA) website of the University of Cordoba also provides this information.

Users can find this data in the 'Información Sanitaria' section of the free Salud Responde mobile app.

One can access the app for free in the stores of the main platforms of next-generation devices (App Store for iOS devices and Google Play for Android devices and in the Windows store for Windows Phone devices) and on the website of the Andalusian health service .

To use it, residents must enter their health insurance card number, year of birth and, for those over 14, their national identity card or passport number. This way, the system registers their profile and provides quick and direct access whenever needed. Furthermore, the app allows adding a permanent password or digital certificate to access new features, should they be required.