Data spotlight: What are the most common allergies troubling Americans?

A seemingly innocent drive can turn into an unexpected allergen adventure, swapping scenic road trip views for medical waiting rooms. We look at YouGov data to see what kind of allergies and skin conditions trouble Americans.

Data from YouGov Profiles, which covers demographic, psychographic, attitudinal and behavioural consumer metrics, reveals that 37% of Americans say they do not have any allergies or skin conditions.

However, among those suffering from allergies, 27% of Americans say they’re allergic to pollen, while less than one in five (17%) have drug allergies, followed by skin conditions like eczema or dermatitis (15%) and dust allergy (14%).

YouGov’s demographic data reveals that more women than men report having allergies and skin conditions.

Overall, more than two in five men (43%) say they don’t have any allergies or skin conditions, nearly a third of women (32%) say the same.

For example, pollen allergy is the most common allergy for both, men and women - but a larger proportion of women (31%) suffer from it than men (23%).

The gap between men and women is most significant when it comes to drug allergies (men 12%, women 21%), dust allergy (11% men, 17% women) and mold allergy (men 7%, women 13%).

Allergy medication is also among the top five over-the-counter (OTC) drug types Americans purchase.

Nearly two in five Americans (38%) bought OTC allergy prevention and treatment drugs in the last six months. Cold and flu relief medication claim the top spot (42%), followed by painkillers (38%).

Further, women are significantly more likely than men (43% vs. 32%) to have bought OTC allergy prevention and treatment drugs in the last six months.

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Methodology: YouGov Profiles is based on continuously collected data and rolling surveys, rather than from a single limited questionnaire. Profiles data for the US is nationally representative of the online population and weighted by age, gender, education, region, and race. Learn more about Profiles.

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