Treating Hay Fever (allergic Rhinitis Or Pollinosis)

Treating Hay Fever (allergic Rhinitis Or Pollinosis)
Hay fever (allergic rhinitis or pollinosis), is an allergy
characterized by sneezing, itchy and watery eyes, a runny nose and a
burning sensation of the palate and throat. It is usually caused by
allergies to airborne substances such as dust, moulds, pollens, animal
fur and feathers. It is often aggravated by a food allergy, the most
common being an allergy to milk.

Hay fever is most common in people with a family history of similar
complaints or a personal history of eczema, hives (urticaria), and/or
asthma.

The best treatment is avoidance of the allergen. However, since this
is not always possible, a variety of antihistamines, decongestants, and
intranasal steroids may be prescribed. Various essential oils help with
the symptoms, but the specifics vary from person to person. Oils that
have been recommended by aromatherapists include Blue Camomile, Lemon Balm, Lavender, and an increase of Vitamin C and Beta carotene should promote healing of the mucus membranes.

Each spring, summer, and fall, tiny particles are released from
trees, weeds, and grasses. These particles, known as pollen, hitch
rides on currents of air. Although their mission is to fertilize parts
of other plants, many never reach their targets. Instead, they enter
human noses and throats, triggering a type of seasonal allergic
rhinitis called pollen allergy, which many people know as hay fever or
rose fever (depending on the season in which the symptoms occur). Of
all the things that can cause an allergy, pollen is one of the most
widespread. Many of the foods, drugs, or animals that cause allergies
can be avoided to a great extent; even insects and household dust are
escapable. Short of staying indoors when the pollen count is high--and
even that may not help--there is no easy way to evade windborne pollen.

The types of pollen that most commonly cause allergic reactions are
produced by the plain-looking plants (trees, grasses, and weeds) that
do not have showy flowers. These plants manufacture small, light, dry
pollen granules that are custom-made for wind transport. Samples of
ragweed pollen have been collected 400 miles out at sea and 2 miles
high in the air. Because airborne pollen is carried for long distances,
it does little good to rid an area of an offending plant--the pollen
can drift in from many miles away. In addition, most allergenic pollen
comes from plants that produce it in huge quantities. A single ragweed
plant can generate a million grains of pollen a day.

The chemical makeup of pollen is the basic factor that determines
whether it is likely to cause hay fever. For example, pine tree pollen
is produced in large amounts by a common tree, which would make it a
good candidate for causing allergy. The chemical composition of pine
pollen, however, appears to make it less allergenic than other types.
Because pine pollen is heavy, it tends to fall straight down and does
not scatter. Therefore, it rarely reaches human noses.

Among North American plants, weeds are the most prolific producers
of allergenic pollen. Ragweed is the major culprit, but others of
importance are sagebrush, redroot pigweed, lamb's quarters, Russian
thistle (tumbleweed), and English plantain. Although more than 1,000
species of grass grow in North America, only a few produce highly
allergenic pollen. These include timothy grass, Kentucky bluegrass,
Johnson grass, Bermuda grass, redtop grass, orchard grass, and sweet
vernal grass. Trees that produce allergenic pollen include oak, ash,
elm, hickory, pecan, box elder, and mountain cedar.

It is common to hear people say that they are allergic to colorful
or scented flowers like roses. In fact, only florists, gardeners, and
others who have prolonged, close contact with flowers are likely to
become sensitized to pollen from these plants. Most people have little
contact with the large, heavy, waxy pollen grains of many flowering
plants because this type of pollen is not carried by wind but by
insects such as butterflies and bees.

One of the most obvious features of pollen allergy is its seasonal
nature--people experience it symptoms only when the pollen grains to
which they are allergic are in the air. Each plant has a pollinating
period that is more or less the same from year to year. Exactly when a
plant starts to pollinate seems to depend on the relative length of
night and day--and therefore on geographical location--rather than on
the weather.

A pollen count, which is familiar to many people from local weather
reports, is a measure of how much pollen is in the air. This count
represents the concentration of all the pollen (or of one particular
type, like ragweed) in the air in a certain area at a specific time. It
is expressed in grains of pollen per square meter of air collected over
24 hours. Pollen counts tend to be highest early in the morning on
warm, dry, breezy days and lowest during chilly, wet periods. Although
a pollen count is an approximate and fluctuating measure, it is useful
as a general guide for when it is advisable to stay indoors and avoid
contact with the pollen.

Along with pollens from trees, grasses, and weeds, molds are an
important cause of seasonal allergic rhinitis. People allergic to molds
may have symptoms from spring to late fall. The mold season often peaks
from July to late summer. Unlike pollens, molds may persist after the
first killing frost. Some can grow at subfreezing temperatures, but
most become dormant. Snow cover lowers the outdoor mold count
dramatically but does not kill molds. After the spring thaw, molds
thrive on the vegetation that has been killed by the winter cold.

In the warmest areas of the United States, however, molds thrive all
year and can cause year-round (perennial) allergic problems. In
addition, molds growing indoors can cause perennial allergic rhinitis
even in the coldest climates.

There are thousands of types of molds and yeast, the two groups of
plants in the fungus family. Yeasts are single cells that divide to
form clusters. Molds consist of many cells that grow as branching
threads called hyphae. Although both groups can probably cause allergic
reactions, only a small number of molds are widely recognized offenders.

When inhaled, microscopic fungal spores or, sometimes, fragments of
fungi may cause allergic rhinitis. Because they are so small, mold
spores may evade the protective mechanisms of the nose and upper
respiratory tract to reach the lungs.

In a small number of people, symptoms of mold allergy may be brought
on or worsened by eating certain foods, such as cheeses, processed with
fungi. Occasionally, mushrooms, dried fruits, and foods containing
yeast, soy sauce, or vinegar will produce allergic symptoms. There is
no known relationship, however, between a respiratory allergy to the
mold Penicillium and an allergy to the drug penicillin, made from the
mold.

In general, Alternaria and Cladosporium (Hormodendrum) are the molds
most commonly found both indoors and outdoors throughout the United
States. Aspergillus, Penicillium, Helminthosporium, Epicoccum,
Fusarium, Mucor, Rhizopus, and Aureobasidium (Pullularia) are also
common.

Fungi or microorganisms related to them may cause other health
problems similar to allergic diseases. Some kinds of Aspergillus may
cause several different illnesses, including both infections and
allergy. These fungi may lodge in the airways or a distant part of the
lung and grow until they form a compact sphere known as a "fungus
ball." In people with lung damage or serious underlying illnesses,
Aspergillus may grasp the opportunity to invade the lungs or the whole
body.

In some individuals, exposure to these fungi also can lead to asthma
or to a lung disease resembling severe inflammatory asthma called
allergic bronchopulmonary aspergillosis. This latter condition, which
occurs only in a minority of people with asthma, is characterized by
wheezing, low-grade fever, and coughing up of brown-flecked masses or
mucus plugs. Skin testing, blood tests, X-rays, and examination of the
sputum for fungi can help establish the diagnosis. Corticosteroid drugs
are usually effective in treating this reaction; immunotherapy (allergy
shots) is not helpful.

The
nutrients mentioned above reflect the major nutritional supplements
that may help the condition. Please do remember however that
nutritional supplementation is an adjunct to medical treatment and in
no way replaces medical treatment.