MEDFORD, Ore.,-Doctor Ryan Israelsen from the Allergy and Asthma Center told NewsWatch 12 that after a storm, spores in the dirt can break into smaller particles and cause some irritation and even asthma in some people.

"That can actually stir up a lot of allergies like mold spores and that everything else gets blown in the wind and so we do see a lot of people have more symptoms after some of the like storms, rains, and thunder that comes out," says Israelsen.

The best way to avoid asthma symptoms is to use an inhaler. Not all asthma is caused by storm, some asthma is triggered by allergies. Israelsen says that having allergies in the winter is common, and it usually not caused by the same things that causes springtime allergies.

People might be spending more time in their homes in the winter months, and dust mites could be causing winter allergies. Pets also might be spending more time indoors and could be the cause of you runny nose or watery eyes.

"Kids or other young ones that go to school and then go home in the winter we can also see people who maybe get reoccurring viral infections that can have similar symptoms that can seem like allergies as well like runny nose, sneezing, coughing, or things like that that can be mistaken for allergies," says Israelsen.

He says it's important to get checked to see if you are allergic to anything before assuming that you have a cold. If you have a winter allergy, there are a few things you can do in your home to ease your symptoms.

"Things that you probably do pretty frequently but you just have to do them a little bit more often.  So, if you're allergic to dust mites, washing your bedding and getting some dust mites cases for your pillows and sheets can help with exposure to dust mites. And then vacuuming with a HEPA filter vacuum, can help decrease the dust load and allergen load in your house," says Israelsen.