Once Upon a Time...with Allergies
Once Upon a Time…with Allergies
by Albert Vaca, L.Ac.
It’s that time again. The sun is shining, the wind is blowing, flowers are blooming, and allergies are flaring. Pollen dancing on air currents can trigger nasal congestion, watery/itchy eyes, sneezing, coughing, and sinus pressure. Fatigue, lack of productivity, headache, and loss of taste are other allergy symptoms that can spoil your day and make you want to stay indoors.
50 million Americans are affected by various forms of allergies. In modern times, our natural defenses have been so overwhelmed by chemicals and pesticides that our immune systems have become hypersensitive to harmless substances like pollen. In allergic people, the body identifies pollen as a threat and releases antibodies to fight it, that in turn sends out histamines to trigger protective inflammatory processes in our eyes, lungs, skin, nose, and sinus passages.
We see many cases of allergies at Tao of Wellness, especially at this time of year. I recently had a patient who presented with red, itchy, watery eyes, and congested sinus passages. I treated her with a personalized combination of acupuncture, Chinese herbal medicine, and dietary recommendations in order to alleviate her symptoms and reestablish a normal immune response.
Customized Chinese herbal allergy formulas often include herbs like magnolia flower, Angelica root, and Xanthium flower to help reduce microbes that cause inflammation. Taken in a tea or in capsule form, these herbs alleviate symptoms while, over time, decreasing immune system hyper-reactivity.
Eating foods that are high in quercetin, like onions, green tea, and apples can help diminish allergic reactions. Wash your hands throughout the day. Avoid smoke, and smoking, and limit alcohol consumption. Avoiding mucus-producing foods like dairy can also be helpful. At Tao of Wellness, we offer an amazing nasal spray that helps with allergies and nasal congestion―our patients swear by it―and so do I.
You might need to install high-efficiency particular air (HEPA) filters in your home. You could also consume foods of all colors in order to get a broad spectrum of fiber and nutrients that will nourish your gut microbiota, and remember that maintaining adequate water intake helps maintain normal levels of histamines. As always, get an adequate amount of sleep, engage in light exercise in the early morning or early evening when pollen counts are at their lowest, and do what you can to minimize stress.
Our job as acupuncturists is to find the underlying cause of your allergy attacks and to help normalize your overactive immune system reactions. We welcome you to come see us; there is certainly no need for you to have to spend another season trying to live with allergies.