As a native of Austin, Texas, Dr. William Howland knows all too well the sneezing, wheezing, and coughing that comes with life in his hometown. “I grew up in Austin at a time when there were few effective medicines or treatments,” Dr. William Howland says. Dr. William Howland tried out for football, track, and basketball, but struggled due to his asthma.
Dr. William Howland’s own experience with asthma drew him back to Austin after practicing in South Carolina and Florida. In addition to his Austin-based medical practice, Dr. William Howland has spent the past fifteen years researching revolutionary asthma and allergy treatments with his research company, Sirius Clinical Research. Dubbing Austin the “allergy capital of the world,” Dr. William Howland is passionate about helping allergy sufferers, especially children and athletes.
Allergies are increasing everywhere, according to Dr. William Howland, but Austin appears to be worse than any other area. Unlike other regions, where allergy season is primarily in the spring and fall, Dr. William Howland points out that Austin has three major allergy seasons. This is mostly due to the Mountain Cedar, considered by Dr. William Howland and other experts to be the most heavily pollinating plant in the world. This tree alone caused experts to coin the term “Cedar Fever,” which Dr. William Howland treats every December to February as Austin residents find themselves overcome by allergy symptoms.
According to Dr. William Howland, another reason for Austin’s allergy prevalence is the heavy vegetation and moderate rainfall, which creates high mold counts. The number of lakes and rivers in the region adds to the mold problem, causing allergy symptoms year-round in addition to seasonal allergies, Dr. William Howland says.
While Cedar seems to cause the heaviest reaction among local residents, ragweed causes flare-ups among many allergy sufferers in the fall, while oak causes problems in the spring, says Dr. William Howland. This is in addition to indoor allergies such as dust mites and pet dander, which can affect allergy sufferers in every region of the United States, Dr. William Howland concludes.
Dr. William Howland is an Austin-based medical doctor specializing in the treatment of allergies and asthma. Board certified in Allergy and Immunology, as well as Internal Medicine, Dr. William Howland is research director at Sirius Clinical Research, an allergy research facility in Austin.