Tips for Managing Allergies on the Road

The new green leaves and budding flowers are out this time of year, and with them come all of the unpleasant aspects of springtime. Sure—it’s pretty out and it’s finally warming up, but it can be hard to ward off dry eyes, sneezes, and other symptoms of sinus problems that the spring season brings. As we all know, everyone seems to have a recipe or two for avoiding allergic ailments, but what about professional drivers? What can truck drivers do to reduce the risk of driving under the weather?

Here are a few tips from Smith Transport to keep your next few weeks on the road free from allergy troubles:

1.         Spend a little time on a good, thorough cleaning of your rig. Anything cloth – like seats, doormats, or various trim items – are excellent places for pollen spores and other materials to gather and settle. As long as you’re leaving these items in your environment, you’ll may end up feeling the consequences.

2.         Keep the windows up if you’re traveling through a part of the country where the spores and such are particularly hardy. For example, the pines of the Deep South are famous for producing layers of yellow, dust-like spores that will put a hurting on the best of us. Keep the cab sealed and let those irritants find another place to settle.

3.         Lose the additional air fresheners to cut down on complications to your existing allergies. Although air fresheners are certainly helpful at times, they may contain chemicals that could aggravate your allergy symptoms. The purer the air, the better all around.

4.         Finally, consider a proactive approach. If you are particularly affected by allergies, keep a brief journal of days where you felt more or less affected. What was the weather like? Where were you? Did you pick up a load at a dusty site? Even the most minor of day-to-day differences may tip you off to allergy triggers. The more you know, the more you can avoid these situations or adjust for them to keep your driving comfortable and enjoyable.

So there are our first few basic tips for keeping the discomforts of springtime allergies at bay while you’re on the road! Of course there are plenty of other ways to eliminate the pains of pollen, and we hope you’ll seek them out and share your own tips with us on Facebook and Twitter.

In the meantime, if you’re keen to learn more about truck driving careers or what it’s like to drive for the best, get in touch with Smith Transport at 866-265-3718 or shoot us an email at smith-recruiting@smithtransport.com. And if you’d rather, you can apply online now. We’ll look forward to hearing from you!