Pollen in central NC at highest levels of the season

A yellow cloud of pollen is hovering over central North Carolina. Monday, tree pollen levels in Raleigh reached some of the highest levels of the season.

So how can you tell if the symptoms you're experiencing are allergies or could be COVID-19?

Chris Olive is like many North Carolinians who are sniffing, sneezing and coughing through the pollen this Spring.

“I can’t really breathe," said Olive. "But I’m pushing through.”

Dr. Edwin Kim at UNC Health says some patients are confused if they have COVID-19 or allergies.

"If you take that allergy tablet and it clears right up, COVID-19 won’t do that,” said Kim.

Kim said the pollen should decrease in May as the temperatures warm up.

For Olive, that warmup can’t come soon enough.

“They are getting progressively worse every year, severely," said Olive. "So it starts earlier and ends later.”