Japan's pollen solution: Spite hay fever, cut off your nose

Come spring every year, savvy Japan residents who know and fear the onslaught of the country’s notoriously high pollen levels reach for an unusual high-tech product that nips the hay fever problem in the bud -- nose filters. 

Unlike antihistamines, nose filters are an entirely external remedy. Or at least, you don't need to consume them, as the little plastic and gauze discs are inserted up both nostrils to prevent the cedar and cypress pollen that much of Japan is currently drenched in from entering the body.

Throw on a hat, a mask, a pair of anti-pollen glasses and maybe even some gloves and you have an idea of the typical extremes many of the nation’s estimated 20 million hay-fever sufferers have to go to each day. 

At least the fierce competition among filter makers has given us near-invisible plastic ties between each nostril, otherwise, we’d all look really silly. Among the most popular brands are Nose Mask Pit -- like most filters, ¥525 ($5.80) for three pairs -- and its wonderful Engrish tagline “Mask inserted in nose of not seeing,” Nose Filter, which promises a spectacular 99 percent reduction in pollen ingress, and our favorite, Pit Stopper. 

Pit Stopper wins out simply because it’s that little bit more functional than the others, as it contains tiny sponges to soak up that pesky mucus. Runny nose be damned.