Natural Ways to Fight Allergies
By Sara Butler
As the season gears up to change, you may be experiencing its side effects in the form of seasonal allergies. Some people don’t suffer from seasonal allergies because their bodies don’t react to the pollen in the same ways yours does. The reasons you might have the sniffles and watery eyes is because your body can't adapt to changes in the environment. If you suffer from seasonal allergies, here are a few natural strategies you can use to help find some relief!
An Allergic Response
The stuffy nose, the red, watery eyes, and the sneezing are all a part of your body’s inability to deal with things such as pollen, dust and pet dander in the air you breathe. Your immune system overreacts to the exposure to these substances by flooding your system with histamines in order to neutralize the threat and correct the problem. The problem is this overcorrection creates new problems and symptoms for you.
Many people think seasonal allergies are something you just have to suffer through, but this really isn’t true. There are steps you can take to restore balance to your body and return it to optimal functioning.
Chiropractic Care
If your nervous system is functioning properly without interference then your immune system is able to function properly and optimally as well. It is important to remember that chiropractic care doesn’t actually treat allergies, but it does treat misalignments of your spine that are keeping your body and immune system from functioning how they should.
Traditional treatments for allergies normally just address the symptoms of the allergies without treating the underlying cause. This is why, if you take allergy medicine, you may notice it working great for a while but then find yourself right back where you started when the effect begins to decrease.
Other Natural Strategies
Aside from seeing your chiropractor regularly, you can also try to employ some of these strategies to help treat your allergies:
- Avoid certain foods – Some foods have histamine in them that can make your body’s reaction worse. Any foods that have been aged or fermented are likely to contain histamines, so try to steer clear of pickles, cheese, sausages and beer if you suffer from allergies.
- Eat more anti-inflammatory foods – This isn’t something you should only do when you’re in the throes of an allergy attack; it’s really a good strategy all year long. Eat fresh and seasonal fruits and vegetables as well as nuts and fish. Try to stay away from a lot of grains and overly processed foods.
- Drink more water – Staying well hydrated can help to relieve allergy symptoms. You may want to throw in some green tea for good measure since the antioxidants contained in it help to block histamine production as well as reduce inflammation!
