By Lauren Gresham / Special to The Herald
After a dark winter with too much social isolation, these progressively warmer days are a soothing balm for many of us. The spring-blooming plants, on the other hand, can create absolute misery for folks with seasonal allergies.
The hallmark signs of seasonal allergies include a runny nose, itchy eyes, mouth and throat, sneezing, nasal obstruction, cough and irritability. In more extreme cases, you may have difficulty sleeping due to these symptoms and associated fatigue from a lack of sleep.
For many, experiencing any respiratory sign or symptom also triggers anxiety these days because of COVID-19 concerns. Seasonal allergies do not cause a fever, a loss of taste or smell, or any digestive symptoms (nausea, vomiting or diarrhea), all of which are considered common COVID symptoms.
Seasonal allergies are aptly named because the signs and symptoms tend to occur seasonally. During the early spring in Washington, allergies are most often triggered by blooming trees like birch. In the late spring and early summer, blooming grasses are the primary menace. By late summer, ragweed tends to be the culprit. And fall allergies are most often related to molds.
If you suffer from allergies year-round, you may want to consider domestic allergens, such as pet dander and dust mites.
One naturopathic model for thinking about allergies is the following metaphor: Imagine a bucket of water that has several streams of water into and out of the bucket. When the streams flowing into the bucket are going too fast or the outflow is too slow, the bucket will overflow.
This overflow is experienced in the patient as symptoms. We can modify the system by supporting the removal of water or by preventing water from getting into the bucket in the first place.
Naturopathic therapies include removing allergens from the home and performing regular nasal saline rinses. To remove allergens from the home, consider using a HEPA filter, wash bed sheets and pillow cases often in hot water, use mite-resistant mattress covers and vacuum often.
Nasal saline rinses have the ability to mechanically flush allergens out of the nasal cavity. Kits can be found in any pharmacy, and this is ideally performed each day during peak allergy season. Both home allergen removal and nasal rinses help to reduce the burden on the system and hopefully create more immune reserve for the allergens that cannot be avoided, such as those encountered when playing outside. These simple tricks can help empty the metaphorical overflowing bucket in your body.
Other naturopathic interventions for seasonal allergies include probiotics and the herb Petasites hybridus (common name is butterbur). Research shows that different strains of probiotics may reduce the severity of seasonal allergies. In studies, the herb Petasites hybridus has been compared to many pharmaceuticals, including antihistamines, nasal sprays and allergy eye drops. Petasites hybridus has fairly consistent results in performing well against these medications.
Please note there are some safety issues with Petasites hybridus, specifically a compound that must be removed from the herb before it is safe to use.
If natural routes do not work, or if the symptoms are sufficiently debilitating, a compassionate physician will help you navigate pharmaceutical interventions.
Intranasal steroids are the most effective pharmaceutical medication used to control symptoms of seasonal allergies. Patients are less symptomatic when they take the intranasal steroids regularly during their sensitive season. Intranasal steroids do not easily pass throughout the entire body, which is great because systemic steroids carry many concerns and side effects.
If patients have severe symptoms, a combination of intranasal steroids and intranasal anti-histamines are a terrific second option and is preferred over oral antihistamine medications.
Please note that while I get into some treatment specifics here, this is strictly intended for your information and not as medical advice. Each of these treatments — and the many treatments not covered in this column — has pros and cons. There are side effects and potential interactions that make it ideal to work with a trained and licensed provider to develop your best treatment plan.
My hope is to help empower you with the knowledge that 1) there are some natural interventions that have research supporting their use and 2) there is help for seasonal allergies. You do not have to suffer inside all spring long.
Dr. Lauren Gresham is a naturopathic physician and a community health education specialist. Learn more about her by visiting www.totallylovablenaturopathic.com.
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
