Allergies don’t have to ruin spring

Finally! Spring! Welcoming spring in Clearview is a joy.
Trees and flowers, forest and fields come alive as every shade of green stretches out across our rolling landscapes. But not everyone is celebrating.
Spring also brings a wave of pollen that makes this a challenging time of year for lots of people.
For some, seasonal allergies have been a lifetime battle. But what about those of you who have suddenly ‘grown into’ allergy symptoms, or who’s once-minor symptoms get more severe each year?
If you’re suddenly reaching for the Kleenex and anti-histamines wondering where things went wrong, this article is for you.
To begin, imagine your body as a cup of water. The water inside the cup represents the day-to-day things that enter your body (food, air, particulates, etc).
Ideally, the cup would stay about half full and there would be a nice balance between the cup filling and the cup emptying. Now let’s add in exposures like air pollution, dust mites, cleaning chemicals, pesticides, medications, stress, and junk food… and that cup will start to fill up faster than it can empty. Once that cup begins to overflow the immune system can no longer keep everything in check.  Suddenly, exposures that you were able to fend off in the past are setting off alarm bells in the form of seasonal allergies, hives, asthma, or any other way the body decides to speak to up.
It is time to empty that cup and bring your immune system closer to the balance that it once knew. Essentially, it’s time to reduce exposure and unclog the out-spout.
For seasonal allergies, decreasing the input of pollen is a great place to start. Pollen counts tend to be low in the morning, peak mid-day, and then gradually drop off in the afternoon and evening. Plan your outdoor time according to the daily ebb and flows.  You can also check local pollen counts on the weather network, keeping outdoor activity to a minimum on high pollen days.
Other easy pollen hygiene tricks are to never wear your outdoor shoes indoors, shower at the end of the day instead of the beginning, and hold off on drying your clothes on an outdoor line until allergy season is over.  Using a netty pot as a part of your bedtime routine is another great tool.  It flushes out the sinuses helping to clear excess mucus and pollen from the nasal and sinus cavity.
To unclog the cup and get your body back to balance, a powerful action to take is targeting your gut health.  A simple elimination diet—where you refrain from foods commonly known to cause sensitivities—can immediately impact overall immune function and decrease symptoms of seasonal allergies.  Dairy, gluten, eggs, corn, and soy top that list, so consider experimenting by removing these foods one-by-one to see if any impact your system.
What will you do with all that empty room on your plate?  Fill it up with leafy greens, cruciferous vegetables, berries, apples, onions, and garlic—foods that are known to support balanced immune function while acting as natural anti-histamines. Aim to always have a rotation of probiotic foods in your diet like unpasteurized sauerkraut, kimchi, yogurt (non-dairy or dairy), or supplement with a probiotic and consume 1/2 tsp of Clearview honey on a daily basis (not safe for infants!).
Finally, to get that cup back to balance, give your immune system time to recover and recoup. You guessed it—get more sleep! Sleep and good stress management are crucial for effective immune function.
Ask yourself, am I getting the amount of sleep my body truly needs to feel good? What else can I be doing to feel less stressed?
If you start small and focus on a few simple changes at first, you may just be surprised at how good you feel this spring.

Maggie Pattillo, ND, is a naturopathic doctor who lives in the Creemore area and practices at StoneTree Clinic in Collingwood.