What do you take for seasonal allergies? Any herbs or home

[MJN]

remedies you'd like to share?

Thanks!

[Tutor]

My dh has seasonal allergies. Eating only local honey and using a Neti Pot daily are a huge help.

[yslek]

The local honey & neti pot suggestions are good.

I also take a Nettle supplement during allergy season.

HTH,
Kelsy

[MichelleWI]

We intend to start two of our children on raw local honey soon before allergy season sets in here.

I cannot take allergy or sinus medications. If your allergy sufferer is prone to sinus infections, I highly recommend taking grapefruit seed extract (not grapeseed extract) to quash the infection without antibiotics. It works within 24 hours for me.

[RebeccaC]

This stuff has been a life saver for our family, Fenugreek and Thyme. We have gone from lots of repeat upper respiratory, throat, and middle to inner ear infections to none after using this stuff. We buy it from this company, http://www.greatestherbsonearth.com/nsp/fenugreek_thyme.htm

When I am having a lot of allergy problems I have trouble hearing due to fluid build up in the ears I can take this stuff and half an hour later I can hear better and my head has drained out, yuck that is gross to type. One other benefit is that it lowers my blood sugar which is nice. However it adds to menstrual cramps so I do not take it during that time of the month.

HTH

[Sunny]

Well, as Oprah had Dr. Oz on in Nov. the Mangosteen fruit has been shown in many cases to help or even get rid of allergic reactions of the bronchial/respitory type.

You can see an actual study at www.pubmed.gov. This is the independent National Library of Science journals.
On the search bar, type in Mangosteen/allergy. You'll get one particular study for this type of study. If you type in mangosteen, you'll get more articles, and if you type in "garcinia mangostana" (the scientific name for mangosteen) you'll even get more. Xanthones are the reason for the amazing results they are finding. They are a super high antioxidant. Much more powerful than the more common grade seed extract.

You can go here to read about testimonials of this product: www.insidemangosteen.com/gonow There are testimonies of all kinds of ways the xanthones are healing properties.

If you would like more info on how to get some of this product, please email me or PM.

[Jean in Newcastle]

I've raved a few times on this board about some homeopathic drops put out by a company called Allergena. They are made specifically for your area - (your zone) and specifically cover the weeds, trees and grass pollen in your area. I got some at a discount vitamin/health food store.

[liz08]

We prefer to stick with natural remedies and supplements as much as possible where most things are concerned, so the same is true of allergies. One remedy is to eat a tablespoon or raw, local honey every day during allergy season. This takes a little while, but will help over time to reduce one's sensitivity to the allergen. We haven't tried this yet because our allergies are very mild, but I've heard many people claim it absolutely works wonders for them. Another remedy is Hyland's Seasonal Allergy Relief (http://www.seacoastvitamins.com/supplement/hylands-seasonal-allergy-relief-60-tabs-1945), which is great homeopathic remedy. It works well to relieve symptoms as they occur on an as needed basis. It's very natural and safe, which I like.

[Orthodox6]

If you are allergic to ragweed, don't drink chamomile tea.

[juelle]

We love Boiron's Sabadil. I buy my natural 'weed extracts' from www.vitacost.com, if that helps.
For allergy-related eye problems, we use Boiron's Optique drops. Great stuff!!!

Ds14 has awful allergies, and while I have Claritin available for him, he took it only once last year. He chooses the homeopathics every day.

[mcconnellboys]

I agree with others! A Neti pot is great. Also, seasonal, raw (if possible) honey. Take a spoonful per day. It needs to be honey from the season you're in (i.e., spring).

[JudyJudyJudy]

I'll add to the recommendations for local raw honey. However, I'll warn you that if you're wanting something now, you won't get the results you want. You need to start consuming the honey prior to the season.

The first spring after consuming it, I was surprised that I was a quite a bit better—not perfect, but better. Now, I've been on the regimen for four years, and while in the past, I was always the one who got sicker than anyone else, I haven't had as many problems as others this year. I've had people who know me in real life ask me what I'm doing for my allergies because they realize that I haven't been having the issues I had in the past. In fact, my nephew (not quite 3 years younger than I) called me to check on me because he's been so sick. He just knew that I'd be awful since he was as sick as he was; he was surprised to find out that I'm doing quite well.

I tried taking allergy shots years ago, but they made my arthritis worse. Pharmaceutical drugs made me sick and/or didn't work at all, and I usually had reactions to herbal remedies.

When I first started consuming honey, I had to start out very small. My pollen allergies were so bad when I first started that even a small amount of honey could trigger a reaction. I started with a tiny amount and eventually built up to a tablespoon per day. I then realized that I liked the taste so much that I began to use it as a sweetener, so now I consumer about two tablespoons per day.

My husband got so interested that he started keeping bees after my first successful season. We now have hives in our yard (about as local as you can get!) and on my family's farm where I grew up.

Honey is not only good for allergies, but it also has a lot of antioxidants. Darker honey has more antioxidants than lighter honey does.

[Lisa in Jax]

Homeopathic remedies are my first choice for our family. Read (online) the symptoms each one is known to help, and choose a remedy based on the best match for your symptoms.

In addition to things others have mentioned (Grapefruit seed extract, neti pot, local honey):

Vitamin D in high doses for a short time can help. (Do some research to see what kind of dose is appropriate for you.)

Quercitin helps allergies, as does Vitamin C. (Vitamin C is a natural antihistamine.)

Enzymedica makes enzymes called "Allerase" and "Mucostop" that might help, too.

HIH,

Lisa

[Blueridge]

Hello Molly. How are you feeling these days? I hope you're not having allergies. :tongue_smilie: I will say that a side benefit of my putting a teaspoon of *bee pollen* into my morning fruit smoothies has also that it kept me from having spring allergy symptoms. My poor husband is sneezing his head off, the porch is covered in yellow dust, and the news reports say it's one of the highest pollen-count springs we've had. I'm thankfully doing fine. I started adding just a few grains into my drink last fall. Worked the amount slowly up to a teaspoon. So, you might do some reading about bee pollen, for energy and for allergy relief. Blessings to you~