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Natural Allergy Relief
Wed, 05/18/2011 - 1:37pm
Allergists around the country are declaring this spring one of the worst for seasonal allergies. The Associated Press
Here in North Carolina I am seeing signs of sniffling, sneezing, and the general malaise that comes with an overactive immune system. Over the counter or prescription medications can useful treating allergies in the short term, but they also have a number of undesirable side-effects. Check out the Mayo Clinic Site on allergies for more details.
More and more people are looking for a more natural approach to reducing allergy symptoms, or preventing allergies from happening in the first place. Generally more successful with mild allergies, the following natural remedies can help reduce the severity of symptoms. Of course, you will want to discuss with your allergist or general practitioner before making any changes in your prescription regimen.
Six Natural Ways to Reduce Allergy Symptoms
1. Avoidance: one of the most commonly stated ways to reduce allergies is to reduce exposure. In fact, most allergy action plans promoting prevention include avoidance. Not always easy. Yes, if you are allergic to animal dander, you might succeed. But what if tree pollen is your trigger? or mold? How about grass? You can pay attention to pollen counts, close the windows, and use air filters, but sometime you do have to go outside.
2. Cleanliness: Shampooing and showering daily is also a given. When you arrive home, simply washing your hands and face will also remove much of the pollen that irritates your nasal passages. But stay away from that hand sanitizer: immunologists are becoming concerned that excessive cleanliness may be one cause of allergies in children. Dr. Guy Delespesse, an immunologist and director of the Allergy Research Laboratory at the University of Montreal, states "There is an inverse relationship between the level of hygiene and the incidence of allergies and autoimmune diseases. The more sterile the environment a child lives in, the higher the risk he or she will develop allergies or an immune problem in their lifetime." Which leads us to a slightly more unusual approach to allergy care:
3. Probiotics: While cleanliness helps us avoid some harmful allergens and bacteria, it also eliminates the good bacteria. A new study out of Sweden (epub in Current Allergy and Asthma Reports, May 3, 2011) suggests that the use of probiotics as well as other specific dietary nutrients throughout pregancy can have an effect on allergen tolerance of the child. "Emerging evidence suggests that exposures during pregnancy and the early postnatal period can modify gene expression and disease propensity. Diet is a major environmental exposure, and dietary factors, including polyunsaturated fatty acids, probiotics, oligosaccharides, antioxidants, folate, and other vitamins, have effects on immune function. Some also have been implicated in reduced risk of allergy in observational studies." (2) For more information concerning the benefits of probiotics, check out my earlier blog post on the subject.
4. Foods: Anti-inflammatory foods rich in anti-oxidants are touted as beneficial for allergy sufferers. The Huffington Post of May 15, 2011 pictures a number of foods to eat such as berries, nuts, pineapple, and legumes. Avoiding processed foods that increase inflammation is critical. That being said, sometimes any foods can be allergy triggers, worsening seasonal allergy symptoms and other health conditions. Again, it is best to talk to your doctor to determine which course of action is best for you. If you suspect foods to be exacerbating your symptoms, you may want to learn more about food sensitivities at http://leapdiet.com
5. Supplements: During an allergic response our immune system has become our "enemy". The resulting chronic inflammation depletes our anti-oxidant defense system, leading to damage to surrounding normal tissue. Scientists have been studying a number of nutrients that have shown to decrease the inflammatory process. (3,4) Among the most popular are grape seed extract and a flavonoid compound known as quercetin.
Quercetin belongs to a group of polyphenolic substances known as flavonoids. High quality multi-antioxidant supplements similar to USANA's Mega Antioxidant contain bio-available quercetin, which is also found in onions, red wine, and green tea.
Grape Seed Extract, especially when combined with vit C, is a powerful anti-oxidant and anti-inflammatory nutrient with multiple health benefits, including a natural antihistamine effect. USANA's Proflavanol® C100 packs the best of both nutrients into a single, powerful pill. I can personally recommend this product for combating inflammation- one of the main causes for discomfort during onset of allergy symptoms.
6. Saline: Whether you use a neti pot or a saline spray, saline helps remove pollen from your nasal passages and also clears and thins the mucus. Using saline also helps keep the cilia in your nostrils healthy. Cilia are small hair-like structures in your nose that help humidify air to your lungs, trap bacteria and particulates (like pollen) to prevent them from entering the cells, and aid your sense of smell. (5)
Have you been suffering from allergy symptoms this spring? Tell me your story, and let me know of any other natural remedies you have found to work. Personally, I have been able to significantly reduce my own allergies through nutrition, including a high quality multi-antioxidant supplement. The results were not immediate, but over the course of time, I realized that those annoying allergy symptoms were no longer part of my life. This has been uplifting for me- as I'd much rather be enjoying my garden than cooped up in the house all pollen season. :~)
Live Well!
Robin
References:
1. http://www.newsonwall.com/103/the-excessive-hygiene-is-the-cause-of-allergies/
2. Curr Allergy Asthma Rep. 2011 May 3. [Epub ahead of print] Dietary Immunomodulatory Factors in the Development of Immune Tolerance. West CE, D'Vaz N, Prescott SL.Department of Clinical Sciences, Pediatrics, Umeå University, SE-901 87, Umeå,Sweden
3. Rogerio AP, Dora CL, Andrade EL, Chaves JS, Silva LF, Lemos-Senna E, Calixto JB. Anti-inflammatory effect of quercetin-loaded microemulsion in the airways allergic inflammatory model in mice. Departamento de Farmacologia, Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina, Campus
Universitário Trindade, Centro de Ciências Biológicas, Florianópolis, SC, Brazil.
4. Kulka, M., The Potential of Natural Products as Effective Treatments for
Allergic Inflammation: Implications for Allergic Rhinitis
http://nparc.cisti-icist.nrc-cnrc.gc.ca/npsi/ctrl?action=rtdoc&an=13958393
5. WebMD http://webmd.com
__________________
Robin started contributing to Lumigrate in August 2010. "Meet Robin Thomas", a topic in our biographies/vitae forum is at http://www.lumigrate.com/forum/meet-robin-thomas to read all about her journey, which was greatly influenced by the need to help solve her youngest son's significant health challenges. For those who want just the overview here: After working over 22 years in medical research at the University of North Carolina on chronic inflammatory diseases she switched her focus to preventive health in 2004 when she was introduced to USANA Health Sciences. Robin is passionate about helping others improve their health, have more energy, manage their weight, and improve their skin.
I love meeting new friends !
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"I dream of a world free from pain and suffering. I dream of a world free from disease. The USANA family will be the healthiest family on earth. Share my vision. Love life and live it to its fullest in happiness and health."
-Dr. Myron Wentz, Founder and Chairman, USANA Health Sciences
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e-mailThis forum is provided to allow members of Lumigrate to share information and ideas. Any recommendations made by forum members regarding medical treatments, medications, or procedures are not endorsed by Lumigrate or practitioners who serve as Lumigrate's medical experts.
This is WONDERFUL, Robin, thank you! I'm going to get this out there to a lot of people in the future locally, I hope. When I moved to the western slope of Colorado, which is very agricultural so has a lot of water so has a lot of mold I have been told, I could not BELIEVE the miserable people here. I became one of them -- I've never in my life had 'seasonal allergies'.
I personally have noticed that as my adrenals recovered, my problems with seasonal allergies got better. I also see less problems from inhalants if I'm being more stringent related to foods I know I am allergic to in an IgG way (which for me were wheat, dairy, eggs, yeast, beans). I can eat differing amounts of them without having any symptoms that are clearly from that, but if I really reduce all, then I do overall do much better in all regards. It's just a matter of finding that 'happy medium'.
This last year when I lost some ground on the adrenal fatigue aspect, the allergies came back some in the spring. So the nutritional aspect makes a lot of sense overall to me. I also noticed that when I got much more compliant about the food allergies/sensitivities there were fewer things for my body to be fighting or dealing with and that seemed to make a difference, even within a few days of making the improvement in my eating choices.
So then it makes me think about the 20 minute (and $0.00/free) video on Lumigrate about chronic illness: full barrel syndrome. I really encourage people to put it on the list of 'things to do' and set an appointment with your computer or other device to watch it and make that learning happen if you'd like to learn more about that concept.
~~ Mardy
Added note, September 12, 2014: I saw that Dr Spurlock had shared this link on Facebook about essential oils and allergies and I thought I'd add it here. It's at a blog at blog spot about alternative medicine, and from it there's a link to continue out for more information at another source. I thought it looked like a good resource:
alternativemedicine-blog.blogspot.com/2014/09/steps-on-how-to-use-essential-oils-for.html
Live and Learn. Learn and Live Better! is my motto. I'm Mardy Ross, and I founded Lumigrate in 2008 after a career as an occupational therapist with a background in health education and environmental research program administration. Today I function as the desk clerk for short questions people have, as well as 'concierge' services offered for those who want a thorough exploration of their health history and direction to resources likely to progress their health according to their goals. Contact Us comes to me, so please do if you have questions or comments. Lumigrate is "Lighting the Path to Health and Well-Being" for increasing numbers of people. Follow us on social networking sites such as: Twitter: http://twitter.com/lumigrate and Facebook. (There is my personal page and several Lumigrate pages. For those interested in "groovy" local education and networking for those uniquely talented LumiGRATE experts located in my own back yard, "LumiGRATE Groove of the Grand Valley" is a Facebook page to join. (Many who have joined are beyond our area but like to see the Groovy information! We not only have FUN, we are learning about other providers we can be referring patients to and 'wearing a groove' to each other's doors -- or websites/home offices!) By covering some of the things we do, including case examples, it reinforces the concepts at Lumigrate.com as well as making YOU feel that you're part of a community. Which you ARE at Lumigrate!
Thank you for the article. My wife has bad allergies but seems to be getting better with chronic Flonase and Zyrtec, but I will let her know about your suggestions to hopefully wean off those meds. One big problem is, she occasionally likes to run and last year we did our first 5Ks together but she had intense reactions to all that pollen and breathing heavily during the run. Her docs just tell her to preload on meds but that didn't work.
This was in CO and havent tried in our new home in Oregon. Any suggestions?
Thanks again,
Don
I am a recent physician assistant graduate who has stepped into the daunting field of interventional pain management. I am eager to contribute what I learn along the way and, more importantly, learn from the experts who deal with pain every day, with the goal of providing compassionate and evidence-based care.
Glad to see this information is helping you personally as well as professionally to refer patients to or learn other ideas to share verbally, Don. I've added a bit more to my description related to products to get your sinuses cleaned out, as I found a NEW bottle I like better for the squeezing. I had a friend stop off at the holidays who was getting over that AWFUL cold virus that went around this year, and I find it remarkable how difficult it is to get the point across that this is not like the saline spray that became popular many years ago to soften the tissues and keep things hydrated naturally (saline), it's a blast of irrigation.
I often find it helps to convey things if I pull a story from my 'fund of knowledge' (past), and in particular if it's appropriate, a FUNNY one. So I told him about a friend a few years back that he met when we all ran into each other in on a holiday weekend in a mountain town. He was so used to snorting out to get water out of your nose he about got the whole bottle on the counter and floor his first time! It was hysterical! So starting in the shower might be a piece of advise.
Photo from www.sinucleanse.com - MUCH GRATE info there!
I found a company which 'built a better mousetrap' so to speak, with their bottle for sinus irrigation, as it has a bigger mouth to dump the packet of whatever product you use into it. SinuCleanse®Squeeze® Nasal Wash Bottle. With anti-backflow technology, wide mouth bottle for easy filling and cleaning and a comfortable tip, I now prefer it over the Neil-Med (below). Made in America too! It comes with 30 All Natural Pharmaceutical Grade Saline Packets, which are fine, I just find the netiXlear® superior with comfort and what's in them just makes more sense as being even MORE beneficial. Remember... bad, better, good, better, best --- different people have different needs and abilities with the costs of these things too.
I got the SinuCleanse/Squeeze at my local Kroger supermarket, in the pharmacy area where the other saline / cold / sinus products are. Vitamin Cottage/Natural Grocers, last I looked, didn't sell any kind of soft plastic squeeze bottle technology, perhaps because of the anti-that kind of plastics due to it's association with diseases, which to me, when it's warm water for a moment to dissolve and shoot into your nose is not a significant factor.
A good 'starter' is the Neil Med kit, and if you prefer them, then they have really good prices on their packets (and their bottles). I recommend it because you can get a bottle and 5 packets for $3.99, and they're now available about everywhere you might shop, which is important for those wanting 'something NOW'. They do an extremely thorough job with their patient information packet that comes inside it. I just don't like their bottle as well as the SinuCleanse overall because it has a narrower top and it's hard for feeble and wet fingers to get the powder into the bottle. The packets are foiled / plastic like wipes you get with sticky foods and are also very difficult to open. And it's nicely buffered, the knock-off Walgreens packets are WAY more irritating and so not buffered as well. But when I used netiXlear's it was a huge step up just in terms of comfort/lack of discomfort and naturally, it just makes sense what is in them. Naturally, these are just MY preferences and I'm giving THREE suggestions here for YOU to pick from for YOU...
I've provides a photograph of the NeilMed Starter Kit as well, so you'll know how to see their products on the store shelves as well. They have much information at their website: www.neilmed.com - please go see!
It won't hurt to try each one and see which YOU like best. In my experience, I wanted one in the shower and one by the sink and one in my travel kit. A total of $40 maybe. Which is the average copay for a lot of people who have insurance and a lot cheaper than what the conventional medicine providers' solutions are. Not that there's anything 'wrong with that' as they say!
AND you never know when someone is going to come visit and be needing one and you can disinfect and pass along something that can help them NOW. Always a nice thing when someone's miserable. ~~ Mardy
Live and Learn. Learn and Live Better! is my motto. I'm Mardy Ross, and I founded Lumigrate in 2008 after a career as an occupational therapist with a background in health education and environmental research program administration. Today I function as the desk clerk for short questions people have, as well as 'concierge' services offered for those who want a thorough exploration of their health history and direction to resources likely to progress their health according to their goals. Contact Us comes to me, so please do if you have questions or comments. Lumigrate is "Lighting the Path to Health and Well-Being" for increasing numbers of people. Follow us on social networking sites such as: Twitter: http://twitter.com/lumigrate and Facebook. (There is my personal page and several Lumigrate pages. For those interested in "groovy" local education and networking for those uniquely talented LumiGRATE experts located in my own back yard, "LumiGRATE Groove of the Grand Valley" is a Facebook page to join. (Many who have joined are beyond our area but like to see the Groovy information! We not only have FUN, we are learning about other providers we can be referring patients to and 'wearing a groove' to each other's doors -- or websites/home offices!) By covering some of the things we do, including case examples, it reinforces the concepts at Lumigrate.com as well as making YOU feel that you're part of a community. Which you ARE at Lumigrate!
I posted a new topic in this same forum at Lumigrate and thought I'd share the link here. I was excited and pleased with the number of reads, there appears to be a lot of interest here at Lumigrate about allergies and sinus information. It's neat to see the way it all comes together with the different people who write!
www.lumigrate.com/forum/sinus-hygiene-really-neti-or-not-here-winter-comes
Faith Young is the pseudonym used by one of Lumigrate's longest content providers, as she began writing at the age of 24 in Lumigrate's FIRST year on the Internet! In real life, this young woman who has been living with FMS for many years received her Bachelors degree in Health Education from Montclair State University and graduated Magna Cum Laude. To further her career, she is currently working on two Masters degrees, one in Counseling from Seton Hall University. Since she is a 6th grade health teacher working to educate students on the importance of being physically and emotionally healthy, we found it best to provider her with a pseudonym of her choice and "Faith Young" is what resonated. In the long run, this very real young woman has faith and hopes be able to use health education in counseling and provide up to date information at Lumigrate which will appeal to the younger people 'out there' and bring them 'in here' to Lumigrate in addition to our more mature adults. In addition, she is a LumiLiaison for Lumigrate.com and helps facilitate Lumigrate FMS fan pages on facebook. Search on Lumigrate and Lumigrate: Fibromyalgia and join us related to general and/or FMS specific information; Like us and those #s count with our advertisers and supporters and also allow YOU to keep up with what we're up to!
Thanks for your input, Faith. I haven't had to use a neti pot for a few years, but I do have many clients who swear by them!
Don, How has your wife's allergies been in Oregon? I know that adjusting to a new environment, with different plant-life and resulting new allergens can be tough.
I wonder if there is a connection between her diet and worsening of symptoms? Often with allergies there is an underlying sensitivity to certain foods (commonly gluten, wheat or dairy) but not necessarily those particular foods. Dairy products in particular increase congestion and excess mucus. Artificial sweetners are another common trigger.
A general decrease in any inflammatory reaction is helpful. I do highly recommend the proflavanol grapeseed/vit C product. It has a natural anti-histamine effect as well as decreasing general inflammation. The beauty of the proflavanol is that one is able to adjust dosage according to needs without the side-effects of the meds frequently offered. If under more physical stress, up the dose. In a daily situation, I reduce the dose. Works for me!
Robin started contributing to Lumigrate in August 2010. "Meet Robin Thomas", a topic in our biographies/vitae forum is at http://www.lumigrate.com/forum/meet-robin-thomas to read all about her journey, which was greatly influenced by the need to help solve her youngest son's significant health challenges. For those who want just the overview here: After working over 22 years in medical research at the University of North Carolina on chronic inflammatory diseases she switched her focus to preventive health in 2004 when she was introduced to USANA Health Sciences. Robin is passionate about helping others improve their health, have more energy, manage their weight, and improve their skin.
I love meeting new friends !
LIKE me on Facebook Connect on LinkedIn
Follow me on Twitter Learn more at my BLOG
"I dream of a world free from pain and suffering. I dream of a world free from disease. The USANA family will be the healthiest family on earth. Share my vision. Love life and live it to its fullest in happiness and health."
-Dr. Myron Wentz, Founder and Chairman, USANA Health Sciences
At this link you will find my summary of a seminar I attended on 3/20/12 in Grand Junction, Colorado (my home town/base), related to inflammation and chronic disease. It supports what I was saying, above, about eating things which our bodies are reacting to, in my mind, at least, though the seminar did not include this type of condition specifically. The MD presenting did a really excellent job in my opinion, but I don't agree with what he said about supplementing nutrition generally, because I believe that's a study unto itself of deciphering the studies about that industry and there's much at stake for various 'factions' so there's some trickery going on, in my opinion, related to what we are presented with related to supplements. And since Robin Thomas had previously helped me decipher the Iowa Women's Study when it hit the mass media in 2011, I refer to it, and it hopefully presents as a complement with this for those who want to more fully understand these concepts OVERALL.
www.lumigrate.com/forum/nutrition-and-chronic-disease-presentation-jimmy-thompson-md
(Note: I'm currently only about 1/3 of the way through writing up my summary on this hour-long seminar, he just packed a lot in and it was ALL exceptionally good and there is nothing I'm wanting to cut out. I actually might break it into another section after what you see at the link, above. But there's a TON at the link of you go there now. Promise!
Live and Learn. Learn and Live Better! is my motto. I'm Mardy Ross, and I founded Lumigrate in 2008 after a career as an occupational therapist with a background in health education and environmental research program administration. Today I function as the desk clerk for short questions people have, as well as 'concierge' services offered for those who want a thorough exploration of their health history and direction to resources likely to progress their health according to their goals. Contact Us comes to me, so please do if you have questions or comments. Lumigrate is "Lighting the Path to Health and Well-Being" for increasing numbers of people. Follow us on social networking sites such as: Twitter: http://twitter.com/lumigrate and Facebook. (There is my personal page and several Lumigrate pages. For those interested in "groovy" local education and networking for those uniquely talented LumiGRATE experts located in my own back yard, "LumiGRATE Groove of the Grand Valley" is a Facebook page to join. (Many who have joined are beyond our area but like to see the Groovy information! We not only have FUN, we are learning about other providers we can be referring patients to and 'wearing a groove' to each other's doors -- or websites/home offices!) By covering some of the things we do, including case examples, it reinforces the concepts at Lumigrate.com as well as making YOU feel that you're part of a community. Which you ARE at Lumigrate!
In response to Robin's wonderful article on Allergies, I would like to add my 2 cents worth:
Another huge agitator of allergies is dairy products. Dairy is not the culprit itself, but it adds a huge dosage of mucus to the mix. By eliminating dairy from the diet of the allergy sufferer, you can have a large reduction in symptoms with these patients. Thick mucus often blocks nasal passages leading to headaches and impaired breathing. We all know that allergy sufferers may also have lung breathing problems along with the nasal symptoms, as allergies affect both tissues. Reducing or eliminating dairy may help tremendously.
I use Quercetin frequently as a natural treatment with my patients for allergies symptoms. Stinging Nettle is often included in these products along with Vitamin C, Bromelain and N-Acetyl-L-Cysteine. Many of these either promote nasal passage health or are mucolytics. I happen to particularly like the Ortho-Molecular combination brand, "D-Hist".
I am unaware of any significant interaction with Quercetin and thyroid hormones. I use D-Hist in both my patients and myself without any side effects in the thyroid areas. There was a study in 2008 that did show some decreased Iodine uptake in the thyroid when exposed to Quercetin, and possibly decreased thyroid function ....http://endo.endojournals.org/content/149/1/84.full
However, I believe limited Quercetin usage has no long term negative effects to the thyroid gland. Just be careful not to over do the Quercetin.
There is also a product by doTERRA called "Breathe" that is an essential oil blend that helps with both allergies and asthma. It works well also.
Greetings from a fellow allergy sufferer,
Wm. Marcus Spurlock, MD
"There is no one to blame. There is simply taking action!"........Wm. Marcus Spurlock, MD Dr. Spurlock presently works in Dallas, TX treating people with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, Fibromyalgia, Bio-Identical Hormone Deficiences and Environmental Illnesses. He has been doing this work exclusively for the last 9 years. In the fall of 2011 he opened a new health center; please visit his website, which is where he posts education beyond what is sprinkled at Lumigrate. http://www.renewedvitalitymd.com/ Through a total body approach, the treatments he and his team provide are 85-90% successful in returning patients to their previous health potential. You can see his complete vitae in Lumigrate's forum "About Our Writers" (link: http://www.lumigrate.com/forum/my-vitae-wm-marcus-spurlock-m...), and the majority of his contributions on Lumigrate are in the FMS/CFS/CPain section, where you'll see a forum which includes his name: http://www.lumigrate.com/forums/health-issuesdis-eases/fibro....
"There is no one to blame. There is simply taking action!"........Wm. Marcus Spurlock, MD Dr. Spurlock presently works in Dallas, TX treating people with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, Fibromyalgia, Bio-Identical Hormone Deficiences and Environmental Illnesses. He has been doing this work exclusively for the last 9 years. In the fall of 2011 he opened a new health center; please visit his website, which is where he posts education beyond what is sprinkled at Lumigrate. http://www.renewedvitalitymd.com/ Through a total body approach, the treatments he and his team provide are 85-90% successful in returning patients to their previous health potential. You can see his complete vitae in Lumigrate's forum "About Our Writers" (link: http://www.lumigrate.com/forum/my-vitae-wm-marcus-spurlock-m...), and the majority of his contributions on Lumigrate are in the FMS/CFS/CPain section, where you'll see a forum which includes his name: http://www.lumigrate.com/forums/health-issuesdis-eases/fibro....