Seasonal Allergies Are Getting Worse Every Year

April 9, 2013

Little girl blows her noseHere are some natural ways to stop your body’s reaction and relieve your suffering!

According to the Harvard Health Letter, seasonal allergies are starting earlier every year, and pollen counts are rising. At least 36 million people are affected by seasonal allergies each year in the US.

Seasonal allergic rhinitis occurs when one’s immune system overreacts to foreign materials and produces an inflammatory response. Grass, weeds, and trees release tiny pollens into the air, and inhaling them triggers a reaction of your immune system. Floating pollutants such as mold spores and dust mite droppings also contribute (though in warmer climates, this can happen year round).

Uncovering what makes the immune system respond the way it does is important. One theory is that an excessive antigenic stimulus overwhelms the immune system, and this is what leads to an inflammatory response. In other words, a small amount of allergen may not be enough to cause symptoms, but continued exposure—or the exposure of number of different antigens—can lead to an overload of the system. This is magnified when one’s immune system is weak (which happens easily when one is tired or stressed or has recently been ill).

There are natural approaches to seasonal allergies that work well:

  • Calm the allergic response. According to a study in the Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine, subjects who took 2600 mg of MSM (methylsulfonylmethane) found their upper and total respiratory symptoms significantly reduced within seven days, and improvement continued for all thirty days of the study. Also, as Dr. Mercola notes, MSM is 34% sulfur, which can help maintain optimal health. Sulfur helps the body detoxify itself, and helps produce glutathione, an important antioxidant. MSM is extremely safe and can be taken at high doses, even if one’s diet is full of raw vegetables and MSM-rich foods. Some of our staff have found complete relief from allergies with this product, but required higher daily doses than 2600 mg.
  • Another substance that helps calm down the immune system under a pollen attack is the Alpine herb butterbur. In Scotland, researchers found that butterbur is effective. It can also be used in conjunction with MSM—the sulfur to condition the body, and the herb for acute attacks. Petadolex, a butterbur extract supplement, reduces inflammation so well that it can be used for migraines and other headaches too—it was endorsed as an OTC remedy for migraines by the Academy of Neurology and the American Headache Society after their review of 284 scholarly articles on the subject. Butterbur in the wild contains a potentially toxic substance, but Petadolex has removed it.
  • Freeze-dried nettles and quercetin are also used to reduce allergic response. They both work—the former sooner, and the latter over time—but they typically reduce rather than eliminate symptoms. Antihistamine drugs were initially developed from quercetin. As is often the case, the drugs had serious side effects (such as drowsiness) while the natural product from which it is derived did not. Another natural product that shows promise is Carnivora, derived from the plant of the same name, although more research needs to be done.
  • Remove food allergens (which lightens the antigenic load). As the Townsend Letter points out, allergic/inflammatory processes may first become active in the gut. Then transportation of food proteins across the intestinal wall becomes altered, resulting in increased permeability and motility of the intestine—Leaky Gut Syndrome. Coupled with other conditions, such as intestinal infections, flora imbalance, and decreased immunoglobulin A antibodies, this may lead to further intestinal compromise and increased antigen-immune interaction.
  • Get acupuncture. Researchers had 442 people with seasonal allergies receive acupuncture treatments. After eight weeks of acupuncture, a 71% patients reported an improvement in their symptoms (according to a scale used to measure allergy symptoms, the severity of these patients’ symptoms decreased by an impressive 37%).

  • Reduce general inflammation in the body. Eating lots of veggies with deep-water fish will decrease inflammation levels. Omega-3s from all sources can reduce inflammation as well. In Traditional Chinese Medicine, licorice, skullcap, cordyceps, and perilla have been shown to have anti-inflammatory properties (though consult a TCM practitioner for guidance).

  • Strengthen the immune system. At the head of our list is vitamin D3, which reduces the incidence of respiratory infections. Also get plenty of vitamin E and magnesium, and knock off the sugar, which greatly weakens the immune system. And don’t forget vitamin C: studies indicate it’s a natural antihistamine.
  • Relieve congestion gently. Don’t forget neti pots—saline nasal irrigation—which may provide sinus pain relief for allergy sufferers. But you probably won’t need them if you have enough sulfur in your system.

18 responses to “Seasonal Allergies Are Getting Worse Every Year”

  1. Galphimia Glauca is a homeopathic Hay Fever tablet. I use it and can’t get through an allergy season without it. Also, generic Loratadine.

  2. My question is :
    Will the sulfur in MSM cause the same reaction as prescription sulfur drugs? My son had a bad reaction to sulfur drugs when he was little and we were told to never give him sulfur drugs again.

    • farmist says:

      @DonnaK, what your son reacted to was a SULFA antibiotic. Sulfur is a natural element and CANNOT cause an allergic reaction. MSM would likely be beneficial.

    • Joanne says:

      I think the allergy to the pharmaceutical type is sulfa – not the same as sulfur.

  3. True Patriot says:

    It’s not allergies, it the poisons from Chemtrails being sprayed all over the planet. The Chemtrails genocide must be stopped.
    I see the planes now at least 4 times a week , and somedays can’t even see the sun its gotten so
    My horses, dogs and cats are all having respiratory problems, and my entire household is sick.
    Until we stop the Criminal spraying of Chemtrails this will get worse. You cant constantly breath in Barium, Aluminum, Silver Dioxide, and many other dangerous biowarfare bacteria they are dumping on us without it manifesting into diseases or death. Much of the poisons from Chemtrails has “flu like” symptoms, or eventually Chronic Fatigue, or permanent Respiratory damage. Go to for updates. Knowledge is power , use it and help us.

  4. I just want to thank you for all the information you are proviteing . I have learned so much and have not only helped heal my own body, but others that are suffering as well. Keep up the good work.

  5. Jan V. says:

    Thank you.

  6. Trace Farley says:

    Another supplement I’ve found imperative for allergies (of any type) is taking a
    Vit B Complex 50mg 1-3 x’s day. Different B Vitamins have been shown to lower
    histamine and it works like magic.
    Anything that increases methylation will also lower histamine.
    Folic Acid
    The amino acid methione or SAMe (methione converts to SAMe)
    Magnesium will also lower histamine.
    All of these are extremely effective for allergies due to enhancing methylation and lowering histamine.

  7. Erica Tafoya says:

    Q: What are transfer factors?
    Q: When were transfer factors discovered?
    Q: What research has been done on transfer factors?
    Q: How does 4Life Transfer Factor support my immune system?
    Q: Why does my immune system need support?

  8. Michael Murray says:

    Excellent research and information. I have experienced the benefits of natural healing and acupuncture first hand. I strongly recommend everyone give this great consideration.

  9. Helen Bogart says:

    My favorite allergy relief “medicine” is my local raw honey. I find a source of stock to buy as close as possible to my home. I use two tablespoons in my coffee in the morning, and I get relief fairly quickly. Two teaspoons daily is the recommended dosage, but I love honey.
    I tried this out last year when my allergies were so bad, I was having sinus pressure migraines and my eyes were stuck shut. I was completely clear within one week. This year, my eyes were just starting to get sticky and I had one migraine. I found a local source of honey near my church.
    Try to find honey that has the pollen in it that you are allergic to and take two teaspoons or more each day. In California, it was the orange blossoms and sagebrush. Here in Virginia, it is the tree pollen. Trees right now are in full bloom, and they really smell bad. Wildflower honey here has tree pollen and brush pollen in it, so it works to alleviate my allergy symptoms.

  10. ACurtis says:

    Acupuncture does a tremendously wonderful job on treating and even eliminating allergies. I’ve been seeing a Kinesiology Acupuncturist and so far have had most of my allergies eliminated.

  11. Andrew Culver says:

    Whoops! You forgot the most important remedy: honey. I have some food allergies; as well as dust and mold, that I know of. I dealt with allergy headaches on a daily basis. Usually they were just “nagging” headaches, so I lived with it. Once every month or two, when my histimine levels were up or I got dehydrated, and the pain was more severe, I would take an Ibuprofen and/or an anti-hystimine. My first teaspoon, or two, of honey worked to some degree almost immediately. The very next day, and since, 13 plus years later, those symptoms almost completely disappeared. On occasion, when I have intense or direct exposure, then, of course, I need something else. It is one of the “miracle” cures. It reminds me of when I go to the health food store, and see Saw Palmetto, or “this and that” for prostate issues. They ignore the absolute best remedy: African Buchu Leaf. I wonder how many middle-agers, like myself, use these weak remedies, wasting money, when a small bottle of Buchu extract, will do more repair with maybe 4 bottles a year.
    A big thank you to your organization! You do great work!

  12. Robert Cruder says:

    Please do consider the hygiene hypothesis.
    We are now so clean, so isolated from the whole range of antigens to which our ancestors were exposed that our immune systems no longer know how to handle them.
    Like Howard Hughes who locked himself into a penthouse and used gloves or kleenex to handle anything that was delivered to him, the children of today have bodies primed to go apoplectic when exposed to much more than their own proteins.
    If you refuse to walk for long enough you will find yourself unable to walk. If you avoid a wide enough range of allergens you will find yourself somewhat allergic to virtually everything.
    I personally lived through allergies to mold spores and cats (as well as cats who got covered with mold spores from exploring the crawl space). Both went away on their own. (Not the cats of which I have many)
    Expose yourself and your children to as many antigens as possible. Don’t be afraid of eating a little dirt.
    To paraphrase John Belushi (who was describing his liver) “The immune system is like a muscle!”

  13. Lou says:

    Seasonal Allergies Are Getting Worse Every Year
    Here is one simple reason why.
    When you get “vaccinated” among the other grievous damage to your body.the “vaccination” often creates tiny holes in your intestines. These holes allow any pollen that may be resident in your intestines at the time to enter your blood stream. Once in your blood stream your body puts up a STRONG immune response to eliminate the pollen from your INTERNAL body. Remember as far as your body is concerned as long as a substance is contained ONLY in your intestines and does not enter your body, your body does not pay it much mind. IOW you are not “allergic” to it.
    However once your body is forced to pay intense attention to eliminating anything your body will start its attack MUCH sooner. At some point your body will say “I want NOTHING to do with this stuff.” IOW you are “allergic” to it.
    Yes you may say but there are many other reasons for these holes in our guts; this “leaky gut syndrome”; such as xxx. Yes but we have some important clues as to why “vaccination” is a special case IMPORTANT allergy producer.
    o Remember how the “peanut allergy” came out of nowhere to become such a stealthy if rare killer? Peanut substances are contained in some “vaccines”.
    o Remember how the “latex allergy” came out of nowhere to become such a strange allergy? Latex is used in some “vaccine” delivery systems.
    o As our kids become more and more “vaccinated” their allergy problems grow and grow.
    o Unvaccinated kids have very few allergy problems somewhere around one or two orders of magnitude less than their “vaccinated” peers..

    • Anonymous says:

      the person saying vaccines makes your allergies worse is a severe or a liar. The part where the “vaccines leave small holes in the intestines for allergens to fall into” (paraphrased) is so ridiculous that I am laughing uncontrollably. It is also sad that someone will believe this.
      Vaccines are not proven to hurt you. The “doctor” who did the “studies” faked them and has lost his medical license due to the ordeal.
      In conclusion,.

  14. Ruth Hall says:

    Back in 2005 I had to have 2/3rds of my colon removed due to scar tissue completely blocking my colon and causing gangrene, ( The scar tissue possibly due to a total hysterectomy in 2001?) At the time, I was taking large amounts of MSM to try to grow back some hair I had lost due to discoid lupus. The hair was growing but I have always suspected that maybe the MSM might have contributed to the growth of the scar tissue also. I think I was taking about 2000 mg of MSM daily. Have you ever heard of any connection like this? I have been afraid to use it since.

  15. robbie says:

    Second the honey but find that a combination of lemon, lavender and peppermunt essential oil works as well.

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