Ah geez, allergies

[Weekend_Sawyer]

I am allergic to some things all the time. Cats, mold, dust, taxes and such allways set me off. Now that fall is coming on I seem to get worse. I woke up this morning all drippy and scratchy, sneezed so much on the way to work that my bike got bad gas mileage!

What I'm lookin for is your home allergy remedies. You know, sleep with a toad under your pillow, perform nasal irrigation with black coffee, drink salted water with a metal spoon held to your temple (supposed to stop hiccups) that sort of thing.

Jon

[DanG]

I don't have any folk remedies for you.  The only thing I've found that really works is to figger out what you're allergic to and stay the heck away from it.

After we moved here, I started having sneezing fits in the Fall, usually right about dusk.  I couldn't figger out what was causing it until I planted some gourds one year.  When they started blooming, I started sneezing and couldn't stop.  Gourd blossoms open in the evening, and spout clouds of pollen as they open.  Needless to say, I haven't planted any more gourds, and my neighbor that always grew them passed away several years ago, so I no longer have the problem on a regular basis.

[StephenRice]

Green tea is used to help relieve allergies and is the most widely used treatment in the Orient.  In order to boost your immune system, use natural honey.  Honey and cinnamon in combination are especially good for the immune system.  Suggested dosage is one spoonful of each a day.  Not only is cinnamon good for the immune system, but it is also good for the pancreas and helps prevent or treat diabetes or sugar problems.

I hope you get feeling better soon. My allergist said that I was one of the most allergic patients that they ever had, so I know how miserable you can feel.

[Patty]

No home remedies, but we discovered Zyrtec this spring. Best stuff i have ever used, and no side effects!  8)

[JohnG28]

Zyrtec is good, helps with my allergies a lot.

[low_48]

The only thing I have heard about is to eat locally produced honey. Some of the allergens from pollen are in the honey, and eating small amounts is supposed to build up a tolerance. What do you have to loose if it doesn't work! It sure tastes good.

[David Freed]

No home remedies, but we discovered Zyrtec this spring. Best stuff i have ever used, and no side effects!  8)

It doesn't make you sleepy? That's why I quit trying allergy medicines; because they made me worse off than all the sneezing when I was trying to work. smiley_dizzy

I got into something Monday. Sneezing and nose running like a water faucet. 

[Patty]

We had zero side effects, no drowsiness or anything. But each individual is different and the drug may have different effects.

[Holmes]

I am allergic to dust. My home remedy is taking probiotics , the 1 I prefer has 8 probiotics in it. It took a few weeks of 2 pills a day for it to kick in then  lot of my problems started declining.It has also helped a LOT with joint pain. One other thing I do when I get a  sinus infection is lower my head below my knees for half a minute and let the sinus drain in the other direction. The expensive pills the Dr. ordered only made me sleep.

[ScottAR]

Zyrtec is very helpful...  I use a nettie (sp?) pot to irrigate with when the sinus headache shows up. 
Thing looks like a coffee cup with a spout out the front.  Warm filtered water with a small amount
of non iodized salt.   Feel like a drowned rat for a couple minutes and then the headache ends shortly
after. 

[SamB]

Jon, I know several folks who use the raw locally produced honey therapy and swear by it's effectiveness. Something like a tablespoon a day everyday, some put it their tea or coffee, some prefer a tonic using apple cider vinegar. A tablespoon of vinegar and a tablespoon of honey in a glass of water. Personally I've found the best preventative measure for me is bandana, the Jesse James train robber look, whenever I'm in a dusty environment. Hope you find something that helps.

[Randy88]

My wife has always had allergies and she keeps switching medications all the time because after a while they become useless, she's tried all the home remedies and depending on what is blooming at any given time depends of its effeciveness.   My uncle had hay fever alergeries so bad for so many years, I"d never seen anyone so bad off in my whole life and the misery he suffered, he finally went north every summer for a almost a month for relief, he's one of the few that loved winter and now all these years later I know why.    People who don't suffer allergies don't know how great they have it to be able to breathe any time of the year.   Hope you find relief from whats setting your allergies off.

[D._Frederick]

I couldn't agree more about how Zyrtec helps hay-fever, I took it for about 3 weeks and the hay-fever synptoms all but were gone, but then started to get dizzy. It got so bad that I couldn't stand up with out hanging on. Got  on the computer and found out that this is one of the side effects of Zyrtec.

[Brucer]

I have severe hay fever in the spring. A few years ago I learned that pantothenic acid (aka Vitamin B5) is a powerful immune system booster. It's available over the counter in BC -- should be available anywhere.

I take it daily throughout the year and double the daily dose beginning a month before hay fever season starts. It doesn't eliminate the symptoms entirely but over the years I've been needing fewer and fewer antihistamines.

[Norm]

That's a good point D, every drug affects folks differently. For me I'd take it for a couple of days and then switch to benadryl for a couple of days. Also keep in mind that these kinds of drugs will interact with any prescription drugs you are taking so a call to your Dr would be a good idea.

[StephenRice]

Do Walmart pharmaceuticals qualify as home remedies nowadays? 

[Weekend_Sawyer]

Benadryl knocks me out. It releives the symptoms but I am useless when I take it. Claritin seems to help a bit.

I have heard about local honey being helpful, that makes sense. I also heard that dairy products will make allergies worse but it doesn't seem to bother me.

I just can't talk myself into going in for the stick test and then taking the shots. I always say I can if it gets too bad.

Jon

[StephenRice]

Benadryl knocks me out. It releives the symptoms but I am useless when I take it. Claritin seems to help a bit.

I have heard about local honey being helpful, that makes sense. I also heard that dairy products will make allergies worse but it doesn't seem to bother me.

I just can't talk myself into going in for the stick test and then taking the shots. I always say I can if it gets too bad.

Jon

Yes, the honey is good for your allergies.  Milk, however, does not affect your allergies unless, of course, you are allergic to milk.  What it does have a tendency to do, though, is to stimulate mucus production, which makes it seem like it is making allergies worse.  It is not affecting allergic reactions by itself, but it may add to symptoms if mucus production is a problem for you.  This is especially said to be a problem before going to bed.  They say not to drink milk soon before bed if you are having a lot of allergy problems because the mucus in your throat make help clog you up and make it harder to breathe.

[Stephen1]

I buy and chew on honey comb for a while when the allergies 1st start up. Then when that doesn't work my Doctor gave me a product called Nasonex..(Mometasone Furoate Monohydrate) is what it consists of, might be a different name south of the border, a nasal spray..probably the best thing I have used ever....no side effects for me..use it twice a day for 3-4 days then  every once in a while till the 1st frost. The bottles usually goes out of date before I finish it the next year.

[ncguy444]

Just started using the generic Zyrtec( Cetirizine). It is much better than the generic Claratine (Loratadine). I have terrible allergies pretty much all year till the cold comes than it is dust and mold. Since I have been taking the Generic Zyrtec I have never felt so good in all my life and I really mean that.  I spent $17.50 for a bottle of 350 tablets at sams club. This is enough to last me about 2 years ( I do not take the allergy medicine in the winter months).

[sawguy21]

I have suffered for as long as I can remember. Doctor talked about doing the tests but said it could be very unpleasant. I said why not just do it and get to the root of the problem? But what if it is snow mold or pollen? Hmm, not much I can do to avoid that.
The best anti histamine I have found is Flonase aqueous. The spray dries my nasal passages too much and I get nose bleeds. The best thing is no side effects and the medication will keep working. A lot of the over the counter meds lose their effectiveness after three months.