Springtime allergies can be intolerable. Runny nose, headache, watery eyes, sneezing, stopped up ears, sore throat, and even a chronic cough can result from seasonal allergy activation.

Medical management of springtime allergies consists mostly of symptomatic control. Most natural remedies have the same focus. Nettie pots, quercitin, bitter orange and other natural remedies for allergies minimize the symptoms caused by histamine released in reaction to exposure to immunogenic allergens.

Symptom control is certainly useful, but the ideal treatment of allergies would prevent this allergic reaction from ever occurring. Is it possible to treat the cause of springtime allergies and avoid the runny nose and watery eyes altogether?

Some individuals are able to prevent seasonal allergies by using allergen immunotherapy, or so called "allergy shots". In fact, a large number of controlled studies have demonstrated that allergen immunotherapy to tree, grass and ragweed pollens are effective in the treatment of seasonal allergies.

However, allergy shots are not an option for many individuals. For example, if you are on beta-blockers (often used in the treatment of high blood pressure and heart problems) you aren't a candidate for allergy shots. Also, individuals who don't have easily demonstrable quantities of allergen-specific IgE (antibodies) by prick testing are not candidates for allergy shots. But for many allergy sufferers, the cost of allergen immunotherapy is the biggest deterrent.

Fortunately, there may be an effective natural option in the prevention of springtime allergies. Homeopathy is an alternative field of healthcare which focuses on restoring the health of the individual rather than suppressing the symptoms of their disease.

In particular, an encouraging study was done on individuals living in the southwest who suffered from seasonal allergic rhinitis. The participants were given a homeopathic regional allergy mix (a medicine prepared from allergens specific to the southwest that in its final form is incredibly dilute). The study showed significant reduction of symptoms and improvement in quality of life over a 4 week period in the homeopathic group compared with the placebo group.

There are homeopathic medicines available that contain the appropriate allergen complex for any area of the U.S. The allergen complex most often contains grass, trees, weeds, pollen and mold that are found in high concentrations in specific regions. These regions include:

Southern U.S.- AR, LA, MS, AL, GA, FL, TN, KY, WV, VA, NC, SC & east TX

Rocky Mountains- CO, ID, MT, UT, WY & NV

Southwestern U.S.- OK & TX

Desert- UT, CO, CA, & NV

Northeastern U.S.- ME, NH, VT, MA, CT, RI, NY, NJ, PA, DE, MD

Plains- ND, SD, NE, & KS

Pacific- WA, OR, & CA Great Lakes- MN, WI, MI, IA, MO, IL, IN, & OH

Don't despair if your allergy symptoms are caused by allergens other than those mentioned above. There are also homeopathic remedies which contain allergen complexes such as animal hair & dander, and dust, mite & roach. These 2 causes of allergic rhinitis have higher remission rates than pollen allergy and may respond even more favorably to a homeopathic attempt at allergy correction.

References: Kemp S. Management of allergic rhinitis (rhinosinusitis). 2007 UpToDate. Kim LS. Treatment of seasonal allergic rhinitis using homeopathic preparation of common allergens in the southwest region of the US: a randomized, controlled clinical trial. Ann Pharmacother. 2005 Apr;39(4):617-24.

Learn more about this author, Nicole Evans.
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