Tips and Tricks for Seasonal Allergies
Learn what causes allergies, and what can be done about your annoying runny nose?
Today’s article will cover the subject of seasonal allergies. Many different things cause allergies, but today’s article will focus on the less serious seasonal allergies. I’ll explain the more serious allergies, such as latex, bee stings, and peanut allergies in next week’s article.
What Are Allergies?
So what causes allergies in the first place? Allergies occur when the immune system mistakenly identifies benign substances—like pollen—as dangerous.
How Does the Immune System Work?
The primary soldier of the immune system is the white blood cell. White blood cells fight against external threats in two steps: first they identify the threat, and secondly they destroy that threat.
How does the body know what is and is not a threat? It has pre-programmed ideas in its DNA that tells it what is and is not dangerous. A healthy immune system not only knows not to attack the person’s body, it also knows to ignore things that are not harmful, such as the helpful bacteria in the colon, and foreign proteins from foods we eat. But sometimes the immune system gets it wrong as you’ll see below.
How White Blood Cells and Antibodies Work
Once the white blood cells identify something potentially dangerous, they act to neutralize it. The first defense the body has is in the form of antibodies. Antibodies are special proteins that are present in the bloodstream and in the respiratory and digestive tracts which can recognize unwelcome invaders. (known as pathogens). Each antibody is specially made to recognize only one pathogen on a specific part of that pathogen known as the antigen. An antibody is like a key that will only fit into a certain lock–that lock being the antigen. Once an antibody binds to the antigen on the foreign invader, it calls the white blood cells to neutralize it.
After the antibodies do their duty and mark the bad invaders, white blood cells work by either engulfing them or by breaking them apart into harmless substances. The white blood cells also release substances that alert the rest of the body to do what it can to fight off the dangerous invader. These substances have fancy names like interleukin and leukotrienes, but there is one of them with a name that should sound familiar: histamine.
What Causes Allergic Reactions?
Seasonal allergies occur when the body is invaded by that most dangerous of substances: pollen. The pollen can come from trees, grasses, or other plants, but they happen because the pollen is small enough to float in the air. The body works to fight off airborne invaders by putting up defenses in the respiratory tract, specifically the nose. In certain people, their bodies have decided that pollen is a threat, and so put a bunch of antibodies against the pollen in the person’s nose. The pollen is just trying to make baby trees, it’s not trying to hurt us; but for some reason, the body thinks otherwise. The histamine released causes swelling of the tissue in the nose as well as an increase in mucous production. Histamine also makes you itch.
What Are Seasonal Allergies?
The typical seasonal allergy, given the misleading name hay fever, is very common. Up to 40% of children and 10-30% of adults have symptoms from seasonal allergies. For some reason, these numbers have been increasing.
Doctors use the phrase allergic rhinitis, to describe the runny and stuffy nose that is the bane to allergy sufferers. I have another phrase for these symptoms: job security. Itchy, watery eyes, and sneezing are also common symptoms, and the histamine can also cause swelling to the face which results in the dark circles under the eyes known as allergic shiners.
How are Allergies Treated?
The treatment for allergies depends on the severity of the symptoms. If you can put up with a runny and itchy nose every spring, then there is no medical reason to treat it. But often the symptoms are not only a major nuisance, they can also lead to sinus infections, ear infections, and (in certain people) a worsening of asthma. People with bad enough symptoms will want to be treated.
How do Antihistamines Work?
The first line of treatment for seasonal allergies are antihistamines. Antihistamines block the release of histamine from the white blood cells, and so can prevent all of the annoying allergy symptoms. Unfortunately, any medication taken by mouth is distributed all over the body, not just to where it is needed, and so these medications can have significant side effects. Older antihistamines, like Benadryl, are significantly sedating. One study showed that people taking Benadryl were more impaired while driving than were those who had drunk too much. Fortunately, newer antihistamines like Claritin, Allegra, and Zyrtec are less sedating (although some people get side effects even with these medications). All antihistamines are best if taken regularly, as they prevent the release of histamine but don’t help much once it’s been released.
How Do Nasal Sprays Work?
Nasal sprays that contain steroids are gaining in popularity as a treatment for allergies, as they go into the nose (where most of the symptoms are) and reduce inflammation, but don’t get into the bloodstream to cause bad side effects. Many studies have shown that these medications (drugs like Flonase or Nasacort, which can only be gotten with a prescription) are very safe and probably more effective than antihistamines in reducing the nose and eye symptoms of allergies. The downside to nasal sprays is simply that many people hate squirting stuff into their nose.
How Do Allergy Shots Work?
The final treatment choice for allergies is allergy shots. Allergy shots are only given after an allergist tests a person and identifies what they react to. The shots work along the line of the fabled frog in the pot, where the temperature is turned up slowly enough to cook the frog without causing the frog to jump out of the pot. In the same way, allergy shots expose a person to a very small amount of the substance they react to, and gradually increase the amount of the substance given so that the body starts ignoring it. These shots are given over a course of several years, and have the risk of causing a more serious allergic reaction. They don’t work for every allergy, but they do offer quite a bit of relief. When should you consider getting allergy shots? When you are miserable enough.
Click here for my follow-up episode about serious allergies.
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Let me once again remind you that this podcast is for informational purposes only. My goal is to add to your medical knowledge and translate some of the weird medical stuff you hear, so when you do go to your doctor, your visits will be more fruitful. I don’t intend to replace your doctor; he or she is the one you should always consult about your own medical condition.
Catch you next time! Stay Healthy!
Allergies image courtesy of Shutterstock
