Rhinelander - The early spring bloom may have offered a wonderful sight for many, but it's also causing watery eyes and stuffy noses for others.

An allergy expert says if you stay ahead of your symptoms you can solve a lot of the suffering pollen and other allergens bring with them.

Dr. Steven Lamm from the NYU School of Medicine says to understand why this spring is so bad for allergies, you need to look back at the winter we experienced, "There's more pollen, more allergens around that you're exposed to. It's, you know, you have a mild winter, you see the grass, the trees, the flowers, you're going to get more exposure. It's about exposure."

Dr. Lamm says if you keep up with the weather and understand when peak allergen levels are in the air you can avoid a stuffy nose and itchy eyes, "Number one, if you can reduce the exposure. So if you know it's a wind blowing day and you know you're going to get it, stay indoors during those peak times. Take off your clothes, wash your clothing, wash yourself. But what's really interesting is the pollen seems to focus and concentrate often in your nose."

There are several over the counter products you can use to flush your nose and clear out the pollen, because irritants in the nose cause a trickle down effect of symptoms in the eyes and even throat.

Other advice, shower at night to clean the daily debris off, wash your bed sheets once a week in hot water and consider switching out carpeting in your home for easy to clean hardwood flooring.