{"id":9404,"date":"2011-08-14T21:30:34","date_gmt":"2011-08-15T05:30:34","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.aboutorchids.com\/blog\/?p=9404"},"modified":"2012-01-03T09:15:00","modified_gmt":"2012-01-03T17:15:00","slug":"orchid-allergies-and-sensitivities","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.aboutorchids.com\/blog\/2011\/08\/14\/orchid-allergies-and-sensitivities\/","title":{"rendered":"Orchid Allergies and Sensitivities"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Are you an allergy sufferer who fears that your nose has confined you to a life of plastic flowers? Orchids may be the answer. Allergic reactions to orchids are rare because they don&#8217;t have airborne pollen. Instead, their pollen clumps in waxy little balls called <a href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Pollinium\" target=\"_blank\">pollinia<\/a>. Since it doesn&#8217;t float freely in the air, it&#8217;s unlikely to cause sneezing, itching, or watery eyes. People with hay fever, like me, often remain symptom-free in a room full of blooming orchids.<\/p>\n<p>Any organic matter can cause allergies, and orchid sensitivities do exist. Naturally occurring chemicals in plants may be benign to most people&#8217;s immune systems, but bother others. In addition, orchid growers may use <a href=\"http:\/\/www.aboutorchids.com\/problems\/index.html\">pesticides,  herbicides, fungicides<\/a>, or growth hormones. These chemicals can sometimes cause symptoms in sensitive individuals, ranging from mild reactions to more severe rashes or breathing problems.<\/p>\n<p>For those affected by fragrances, there are many scentless orchids. Most commonly sold <a href=\"http:\/\/www.aboutorchids.com\/identify\/orchids\/phalaenopsis.html\">Phals<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.aboutorchids.com\/identify\/orchids\/paphiopedilum.html\">Paphs<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.aboutorchids.com\/identify\/orchids\/dendrobium.html\">Dendrobiums<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.aboutorchids.com\/identify\/orchids\/epidendrum.html\">Epidendrums<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.aboutorchids.com\/identify\/orchids\/masdevallia.html\">Masdevallias<\/a>, and <a href=\"http:\/\/www.aboutorchids.com\/identify\/orchids\/oncidium.html\">Oncidiums<\/a> have no perfume. Avoid <a href=\"http:\/\/www.aboutorchids.com\/identify\/orchids\/cattleya.html\">Cattleyas<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.aboutorchids.com\/identify\/orchids\/cymbidium.html\">Cymbidiums<\/a>, and <a href=\"http:\/\/www.aboutorchids.com\/identify\/orchids\/miltonia.html\">Miltonias<\/a>, which usually have scents.<\/p>\n<p>Artificial <a href=\"http:\/\/www.aboutorchids.com\/care\/details\/fertilizer.html\">fertilizers<\/a> may cause reactions. Some people may be sensitive to <a href=\"http:\/\/www.aboutorchids.com\/care\/details\/potting.html\">potting material like bark or moss<\/a>. A few orchid varieties have sap that irritates skin. Some types of lady slippers grow prickly hairs on their stems and leaves, but they are not commonly cultivated.<\/p>\n<p>No flower is 100% allergy free, but orchids have the advantage of their harmless pollen. In fact, the <a href=\"http:\/\/www.aafa-ca.com\/About_About.php\" target=\"_blank\">Asthma &amp; Allergy Foundation of America<\/a> has chosen the orchid as its official flower. So put away those plastic blossoms, and try orchids instead. Your nose will thank you.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Are you an allergy sufferer who fears that your nose has confined you to a life of plastic flowers? Orchids may be the answer. Allergic reactions to orchids are rare because they don&#8217;t have airborne pollen. Instead, their pollen clumps in waxy little balls called pollinia. Since it doesn&#8217;t float freely in the air, it&#8217;s [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[20,7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-9404","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-misc","category-problems"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.aboutorchids.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9404","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.aboutorchids.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.aboutorchids.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.aboutorchids.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.aboutorchids.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9404"}],"version-history":[{"count":24,"href":"http:\/\/www.aboutorchids.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9404\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9543,"href":"http:\/\/www.aboutorchids.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9404\/revisions\/9543"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.aboutorchids.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9404"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.aboutorchids.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9404"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.aboutorchids.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9404"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}