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Plants are great, without them we’d die. Even so, numerous plants can trigger our allergies. The main tree culprits are alder, birch, maple, oak, elm, and poplar. Other well-known instigators are grasses, weeds, and spores from fungi and molds.
The Mayo Clinic says the following risk factors may increase your risk of developing hay fever:
• Family history of allergies
• Male gender
• Birth during pollen season
• Being a firstborn child
• Exposure to cigarette smoke during your first year of life
• Exposure to dust mites
And, unfortunately, people with hay fever seem to be more at risk for developing asthma or eczema, and may be more susceptible to sinus infections. Children with allergies are also at a greater risk for developing ear infections.
Some hay fever season survival strategies:
• Keep a journal of what helps and what doesn’t.
• Get allergy tested so you know what exactly is causing your misery.
• Learn more about your allergies and what you can do to reduce them. A good place to start is the Mayo Clinic’s Hayfever Allergy Webpage.
• Ask you doctor about mainstream pharmaceutical treatments, which may include antihistamines, decongestants, and allergy shots among others.
• Think prevention and set up your house as an allergy free zone. Get a HEPA air filtering system. Keep your windows closed when the wind is blowing pollens. Don’t mow or rake the lawn. Avoid mornings outside, which is when pollen counts are highest.
• Watch the Weather Network’s Claritin Pollen Forecast on the Weather Channel or sign up for their Email Allergy Forecast. They’ll send you a daily email of what’s pollinating in the region. Being forewarned allows you to plan for times of bombardment.
• If you have many allergies, work at reducing your exposure to all of them. This will reduce your overall allergy burden.
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• Learn specific qigong exercises to boost your energy, support your lungs, and remove phlegm.
• Like qigong, Chinese self-massage methods help shift imbalances in your acupuncture meridians, enabling you to get relief. Bob Flaws has an excellent allergy self-massage routine in his book Curing Hay Fever Naturally with Chinese Medicine.
• And, when it comes to your kids, don’t be too hasty in decimating all the germs. Interestingly, the Mayo Clinic says, ‘Researchers have found that children may be less likely to develop allergies if they attend child care centers, live in homes with older siblings or are raised on farms. In such environments, children are exposed to more germs and, as a consequence may be less likely to develop allergies.’
Allergy season can create enough misery to make you want to move to the Arctic and live in an igloo, but it doesn’t have to be that bad. Research, experiment, and strategize until you discover the best allergy prevention and treatment methods for you. Then write it down so you remember how to next year!
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