Hay fever wreaks havoc on productivity.

• Position: Allergies - Brief article

Employers can blame hay fever for the loss of millions of hours of work productivity this year. A study of people with hay fever symptoms, including sneezing, watery eyes, and runny and itchy noses, found that workers missed an hour of work per week during peak hay fever season.

While that may seem small, consider that 20-50,000,000 Americans suffer from at least some symptoms related to hay fever, or allergic rhinitis, says Sheryl Szeinbach, professor of pharmacy practice and administration at Ohio State University, Columbus. "That means the potential loss of millions of hours of work productivity, not to mention the associated economic costs."

Some estimates suggest that nearly 4,000,000 days of missed work each year are due to allergy symptoms, which can disrupt all...