Can Allergies Occur Unexpectedly
Yes. Its important to know that some allergies are linked to others.
For example, if youre allergic to latex, its possible that youll also react to avocados, kiwifruit and other tropical fruit. And if youre allergic to birch pollen, its possible that youll react to apples or peaches as well.
Its important to note that what seems like a food allergy can sometimes be food intolerance instead, notes Dr. Faltay.
Ten Ways To Alleviate Seasonal Allergies Without Medication
When your immune system overreacts to an airborne substance that doesnt bother everyone around you, you have allergies. Pollen, dust mites, pet dander, mold spores and insect stings are the biggest culprits of seasonal allergies.
Increased pollen counts and higher temperatures across the globe are contributing to longer and more severe allergy seasons. This means many people whove never had an issue before are experiencing seasonal allergy symptoms for the first time. However, because these symptoms are so similar to the common cold, many just assume theyve caught a bug. If this sounds familiar, the best way to tell the difference between allergies and a cold is whether you have a fever. If youve been feeling unwell for 7 days or longer without a fever, you are probably suffering from seasonal allergies.
When you seek medical treatment for allergy symptoms, your doctor will typically prescribe medications or injections to help you feel better. But the good news is that there are a lot of things you can do at home to alleviate seasonal allergies without medication.
Tips To Reduce Allergies At Night
To reduce allergies at night, keep your surrounding allergen-free.
- Wash bedsheets on a weekly basis. Deep clean the entire bedroom and carpets and wipe down hidden surfaces every month to get rid of mold, dust mites, and pet dander.
- Use dust mite covers on the bed to keep dust mites away.
- Invest in anti-allergy bedding that uses specifically manufactured fibers to keep allergies at bay.
- Use high-efficiency particulate absorbing filters. Air purifiers are recommended as a way to remove allergens. Take over-the-counter medicines that contain histamines.
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You’ve Got All The Typical Symptoms
If you think of sneezing, wheezing and watery eyes when you think of seasonal allergies, you’d be on the right track. There’s a good chance you have seasonal allergies if you experience any of the following symptoms:
- Frequent sneezing
- Itchy throat
- Puffy eyelids
Most seasonal allergies are caused by pollen from trees, grasses and weeds. If you have winter allergies, you’re probably allergic to an indoor allergen like dust mites.
Runny Nose From Allergies: Symptoms And Treatment
Allergies occur when your body overreacts to a harmless substance called an allergen. A runny nose, along with other nasal symptoms such as stuffiness or sneezing, is typically caused by allergic rhinitiscommonly called hay fever. Allergies often worsen during certain seasons or with changes in the weather. Learn more about how allergies cause a runny nose and how to treat it in this article.
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Allergies That Last A Lifetime
Some childhood allergies can grow less severe over time. This is particularly true for egg allergy. However, most allergies last throughout life.
You can also develop allergies as a result of repeated exposure to a toxin, such as bee stings or poison oak. With enough cumulative exposures over a lifetime, your immune system can become hypersensitive to the toxin, giving you a severe allergy.
Nasal Irrigation With A Neti Pot
Allergies are treated with nasal irrigation using a salty solution. Buy a Neti Pot from your local pharmacy or superstore this is a simple pot with a spout that is available online as well.
Make sure you are using non-iodized, not regular salt. You can find out more about the difference between these two types of salt here.
Fill it with saline water in and inhale it from one nostril. The solution will help wash away mucus from the nasal passages. Warm water can work great, keeping the nasal passages moist, and you free of allergy symptoms.
Required Ingredients:
- One teaspoon of non-iodized salt
- Two cups of distilled or boiled warm water.
Process:
Fill the Neti pot with warm water, add the salt and pour the mix through one nostril. The water will flow out the other. The water irrigates the nasal cavities and reduces allergic symptoms. It also helps in clearing snot. Do this several days once or twice a day and you will notice remarkable improvement.
Do not use tap water as it can bring harmful bacteria into your body.
Note: As an alternative, you can try saline spray. Some people who have allergies find the prepackaged saline solutions easier to use. I wouldnt hesitate to recommend this or alternate between Neti pots and sprays because with sprays, the solution will reach your nasal passageways more gently and evenly, whereas you could spill some of the solution using a Neti pot, or it may not go where intended.
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Unbelievable Home Remedies For Allergies That Actually Work
Your eyes are red and itchy. It seems like your nose has been running for centuries. Youre trying your hardest to sneeze, but you just cant because your entire respiratory system has gone haywire. There are massive amounts of pollen in the area as it slowly, but surely gets warmer. You guessed it its allergy season! Read on about some amazing home remedies for allergies that really work!
Allergies can pop up without you even knowing what might be the potential cause behind them. Your body may react to any substance in the surrounding and trigger an allergy the common causes include animal dander medications, insects, food, etc.
Once you do develop an allergy, you must take the necessary steps of preventing exposure to the allergen. For instance, if the cause is bird dander, you should take the essential steps of keeping the birdcage or the large bird aviary clean, by using absorbent paper towels or liners at the bottom of the cage or by purchasing a filter.
How You Can Treat Your Allergy Symptoms
When you feel ravaged by allergies, dont lose all hope. There are a lot of things you can do to minimize the detrimental effects of mild to severe allergies. Whether that involves being armed with an Epinephrine pen, heading to your nearest Urgency Room, or treating your allergies at home with over-the-counter medications, knowing what to do when allergies strike could save you from discomfort or even life-threatening scenarios.
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Symptoms Of Eye Allergies
Q: I believe I have really bad allergies. I get very itchy eyes where I can’t even touch them, because this makes the symptoms 10 times worse. I also have a runny nose and watering eyes. Do you think I should go see an eye doctor? Or is there something I can take for it? B.J.
A: Based on these symptoms, it is definitely a good idea to see an eye doctor. While your symptoms suggest an allergic reaction from some environmental irritant, it is important that an eye doctor rule out less common causes such as parasitic infestation of the eyelids. Proper diagnosis will provide you with the best, most cost-effective treatment, which may range from over-the-counter allergy drops to prescriptive medicine. Dr. Chou
Q: I started using a new mascara about a week ago. Four days ago, I started to get itchy, red eyes, along with dry eyes and irritation. I also have been using gentamicin eye drops given to me as an antibiotic. Am I having an allergic reaction? Could it be an infection of some kind? Is it just a coincidence that this happened when I started using a new product? My eyes are very itchy, and the vessels are slightly enlarged S.B.
A: You are correct that you may have an allergic reaction to the mascara and/or the gentamicin drops. Gentamicin is an antibiotic prescribed for treating bacterial eye infections. Some patients are allergic to gentamicin. You should definitely consult your doctor who prescribed the gentamicin.
Symptoms Of Allergic Rhinitis
Your symptoms can vary, depending on the severity of your allergies. Symptoms can include:
- Sneezing.
- Itching .
- Runny nose.
- Pressure in the nose and cheeks.
- Ear fullness and popping.
- Watery, red, or swollen eyes.
- Dark circles under your eyes.
- Trouble smelling.
- Hives.
Allergic rhinitis can last several weeks, longer than a cold or the flu. It does not cause fever. The nasal discharge from hay fever is thin, watery, and clear. Nasal discharge from a cold or the flu tends to be thicker. Itching is common with hay fever but not with a cold or the flu. Sneezing occurs more with hay fever. You may even have severe sneeze attacks.
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What An Immunologist Wants You To Know About Spring Allergies
If youve spent the last few weeks sneezing, rubbing your eyes and going through boxes of tissues at your desk, youre not alone.
According to the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America, more than 50 million Americans experience various types of allergies each year, and those that are prevalent during the spring make up a significant chunk of that. Seasonal allergic rhinitis an allergic reaction to pollen from trees, grasses and weeds affects 6.1 million children and 20 million adults nationwide.
And if your symptoms seem worse than previous years, its not all in your head.
It is a bad pollen season, and part of the reason is progressively, year to year the pollen season has been getting worse due to climate change, says Dr. Purvi Parikh, an adult and pediatric allergist and immunologist with Allergy and Asthma Associates of Murray Hill in New York City, and spokesperson for the Allergy & Asthma Network. We are having rising carbon dioxide levels in our atmosphere and plants feed off of that, so were producing these super-high pollen plants the pollen is more potent and its in the air for much longer. The season is much longer, too.
Fifty million Americans experience various types of allergies each year.
If you are suffering from spring allergies, when can you expect some relief?
No : Allergic Shiners
Dark circles are another sign of allergies. You get them when you’re always rubbing itchy eyes. Take antihistamines to put a stop to symptoms like itchy, teary eyes, sneezing, and a runny nose. If you already take them but they donât work really well, talk to your doctor about changing your treatment plan.
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Tips For Surviving A Horrible Allergy Season
Experts say this spring’s allergy season may be one of the worst ones yet. Here’s how to deal with it.
This year, April really was the cruelest month for people with allergies and the rest of spring is looking pretty mean too.
Blame a perfect storm of weather conditions for the season’s awful allergies, including a snowy, rainy winter in some parts of the country that led to an abundance of tree and grass pollen a sudden shift from wintry to warm weather that encouraged the pollen’s release and windy conditions that sent particles airborne, where they enter our noses, throats, and eyes and trigger symptoms that range from congestion, sneezing, and itchy eyes to headaches, diarrhea, and even depression.
Indeed, pollen and mold spore counts hit all-time highs in certain parts of the country, making people prone to seasonal allergies even more miserable than usual, and even setting off allergies in people who usually don’t get them. “It’s been a difficult and intense spring for people with allergies,” says Mitchell R. Lester, MD, president of the New England Society of Allergy.
The five worst cities for allergies this spring are Knoxville, Tenn Louisville, Ky Charlotte, N.C. Jackson, Miss., and Chattanooga, Tenn., according to the Asthma and Allergy Foundation, which uses an algorithm that includes airborne pollen and mold counts, and the number of allergy medications taken and allergy specialists available in each city.
Seasonal Allergies on the Rise
How To Treat Seasonal Allergies
In most cases, an over-the-counter antihistamine and decongestant will do the trick. If you have severe allergies, however, your doctor may prescribe nasal steroid spray or allergy shots to dampen symptoms.
It’s always a good idea to try your best to avoid your triggers, but that doesn’t mean you have to hole up inside with a box of tissues. To get less exposure to your allergens:
- Keep your windows shut when your allergies are active
- Use an air purifier if you’re sensitive to indoor allergens
- Wear a dust mask while doing yard work
- Check your local weather network for pollen forecasts
- Take a shower and wash your hair at the end of each day to get rid of pollen that attached to your clothes, hair and skin
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Managing Your Hay Fever
Identifying the allergen/s causing the symptoms is an important part of managing hay fever. In some cases the cause may be obvious but in others your doctor will need to consider your medical history together with the results of allergy tests , which may require referral to a specialist.
Some medications may help relieve the symptoms of hay fever. Ask your GP or pharmacist for advice. You may be advised to try:
Why Do My Allergies Get Worse At Night
Allergy triggers and symptoms are unique to each individual. Allergies can depend on your body, environment, and even geographic location. Various factors can cause allergy symptoms to worsen in the evening for many people. You may spend the day with few or no allergy symptoms, only to experience sniffles and itchy eyes when you go to bed. Allergy symptoms can get worse at night because one of the places where dust and pet dander build up are your mattress. If you have seasonal or environmental allergies, your symptoms may come and go at different times of the day. You may experience worse nighttime allergies, morning allergies, or even both.
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Are Allergies In Kids Different Than In Adults
It can be especially difficult to control allergies in kids, Dr. Leeds says, adding that kids tend to spend more time outdoors and, thus, are exposed to more pollen. A high pollen count day is not going to deter them from going to the playground, says Dr. Leeds. Thats unlike an adult who might say, ‘Im going to drive my car to work, keep the windows rolled up, and not take that walk during lunch.’
Another difference is that allergies in adults are usually well-established, while in kids there is the hope that they will outgrow them, Dr. Leeds says.
With kids, we talk about the concept of atopy, which is an allergic predisposition, she says. For a child with a strong family history of any allergiesand especially for those who develop symptoms early in lifedoctors look out for the four main allergic diseases: eczema, food allergies, nasal allergies, and asthma. These allergic diseases, in general, are increasing in prevalence, she says.
Feeling Tired All The Time
Its not just all the congestion that makes you feel out of it. Seasonal allergies themselves can drag your energy down, says Eugene Hurwitz, M.D., medical director of the Center for Allergy and Asthma of Georgia. When your body encounters an allergen, it releases histamine, and histamine in your body can make you feel fatigued, he says. In addition, the inflammation that happens in your sinuses when you are allergic to something can cause sinus infections, which will also leave you feeling slow.
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How Is Allergic Rhinitis Diagnosed
If your symptoms interfere with your daily life, see your family doctor. Your doctor will ask you questions about your symptoms and medical history and perform a physical exam. Keeping a record of your symptoms over a period of time can help your doctor determine what triggers your allergies.
Your doctor may want to do an allergy skin test to determine what you are allergic to. During an allergy skin test, tiny amounts of allergens are applied to your skin. You will feel tiny pricks to your skin. It is not painful. Your doctor will observe and record the way your skin reacts to each allergen.
Your doctor may also decide to do a blood test, such as the radioallergosorbent test . This test identifies antibodies in your blood that determine what youre allergic to. Once your allergens are identified, you and your doctor can decide the best treatment.
What Is Allergic Rhinitis
Allergic rhinitis is the medical term for hay fever or allergies. You have an allergy when your body overreacts to things that dont cause problems for most people. These things are called allergens. Your bodys overreaction to the allergens is what causes symptoms.
There are 2 forms of allergic rhinitis:
- Seasonal : Caused by an allergy to pollen and/or mold spores in the air. Pollen is the fine powder that comes from flowering plants. It can be carried through the air and is easily inhaled. Symptoms are seasonal and usually occur in spring, late summer, and fall.
- Perennial: Caused by other allergens such as dust mites, pet hair or dander, or mold. Symptoms occur year-round.
Hay fever is the most common form of allergy. Symptoms of hay fever are seasonal. You will feel worse when the pollens that affect you are at their highest levels.
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