Urban green spaces are highly important for the health and well-being of urban residents, especially under conditions of ongoing climate change and urbanisation. However, vegetation in urban parks may also present a risk to human health through the presence of allergenic plants and release of allergy-inducing pollen. Using the city of Leipzig as a case study, we monitored pollen abundance in two inner city parks and on the roof of a central university hospital during the pollen season in 2021. We also conducted a questionnaire survey with 186 city residents. Questions related to their allergic symptoms, perceived physical and mental health impairment, potential behavioural adaptations due to expected pollen exposure, and suggestions for urban planning. We found nine plant genera with particularly high concentrations of pollen across the monitoring sites, including especially and . While a high proportion of trees planted in one of the parks were , potentially explaining the high concentrations we monitored, the high pollen load for could not be explained by the local presence of trees at either park. A majority of respondents (61%) indicated they suffered from pollen-related allergic symptoms, with pollen most often mentioned as a main cause of their health impairment. Of respondents with symptoms, 82% indicated they did not change their park visitation patterns due to expected pollen exposure. However, nearly two-thirds of the respondents took allergy medication at least once per week. Participants’ recommendations for urban planning included considering allergies when selecting species for planting, improving urban air quality, and advancing public pollen information and warning systems. We conclude that particularly allergenic trees, such as , should be avoided in densely populated urban areas, because of the potential for a large number of residents to experience allergy symptoms. However, such species should not be completely avoided, as plant diversity is still a crucial element of ecosystem resilience in the face of climate change and urbanisation. Combining objective and subjective data on the burden of allergenic pollen, as was done in our study, can help derive such targeted policy recommendations.

中文翻译：

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城市公园环境中致敏花粉的监测和感知


城市绿地对于城市居民的健康和福祉非常重要，特别是在持续的气候变化和城市化的条件下。然而，城市公园的植被也可能因过敏植物的存在和释放引起过敏的花粉而对人类健康构成风险。我们以莱比锡市为例，监测了 2021 年花粉季节期间两个市中心公园和一所中央大学医院屋顶的花粉丰度。我们还对 186 名城市居民进行了问卷调查。问题涉及他们的过敏症状、感知到的身心健康受损、由于预期花粉暴露而导致的潜在行为适应以及城市规划建议。我们在监测点发现了九个植物属的花粉浓度特别高，包括特别和。虽然其中一个公园种植的树木比例很高，这可能解释了我们监测到的高浓度，但花粉含量高并不能用两个公园当地树木的存在来解释。大多数受访者（61%）表示，他们患有与花粉相关的过敏症状，花粉是最常被提及的导致健康受损的主要原因。在有症状的受访者中，82% 表示他们没有因为预期的花粉暴露而改变公园游览模式。然而，近三分之二的受访者每周至少服用一次抗过敏药物。参与者对城市规划的建议包括在选择种植品种时考虑过敏、改善城市空气质量以及推进公共花粉信息和预警系统。 我们的结论是，应避免在人口稠密的城市地区种植特别容易过敏的树木，例如，因为大量居民可能会出现过敏症状。然而，不应完全避免此类物种，因为面对气候变化和城市化，植物多样性仍然是生态系统恢复力的关键要素。正如我们的研究所做的那样，结合有关致敏花粉负担的客观和主观数据，可以帮助得出此类有针对性的政策建议。