Can a person have allergies from being around cotton while it is being harvested?

Question

I just got back from visiting my family in south Georgia, where I grew up, and I noticed that there was a fine dust in the air, emanating from the local cotton gin, and I just wondered if that causes people to develop allergies. I never noticed that when I lived there, and I know that the peanut dust that hangs in the air isn't good for anyone, but peanut harvesting is mostly past now. And my six-month-old daughter and I were both sneezing like crazy. What do you think?

Answer 1

Allergies r a common prob now a days. Mostly caused by the lack of contact with the allergen producers. Your body had probably grown unused to the dust from the cotton and had a adverse reaction to the dust. Air filters and disinfectent have essentially weakened our systems to the point where they can no longer handle contact with the most common things we come into contact with. Like dust pollen germs and bacteria. Your body would eventually become immune again to the dust and so would your daughters. But u would suffer quite abit before that happened. So now u must resort to antihistamins. The human body is not as fragile as everyone thinks it is nowadays. It has the capability to overcome minor irritations. How have we lasted all this time before airfilters and disenfectents??? Yes we have much more pollutents in the air due to industrialization. And more contact with germs and bacteria due to our ability to move around more freely. And it is good to wash your hands and use handsanitizer and clean up after handling poultry and meat. But the old saying still holds true a little dirt never hurt. And as allways moderation. Over contact with germs and bacteria and allergens is bad but a little wont hurt u.

Answer 2

Cotton Allergies

Answer 3

Oh yes, i live in cotton & peanut country in Texas, we also have a cotton gin at the edge of town. The dust and crap from the stripping of the cotton and then the ginning of it can and does cause allergies, asthma attacks and so on. The Dr's in our area see a huge increase in allergies and breathing problems during this time of year

Answer 4

Yes, the fine dust is probably irritating your air passages.

Next time, use a Neti Pot to flush your sinuses after exposure to the dust. I use this everytime I mow the yard and it works great.
And for the baby, apply a natural lip balm around her nostrils. It will help collect the dust/pollen from getting into her nose.

Answer 5

allergies, yes, and maybe more harmful things. The cotton is "poisoned" for bugs and a defoliant is sprayed on to make the leaves fall off. All those chemicals! Wonder what they are doing to those of us who live beside cotton fields?

Answer 6

Yes, and if it is a rural area then there could be all kinds of allergens in the air

Answer 7

Absolutely!!