Are Allergies and Allergy Symptoms a Sign of a Bigger Problem?

Yes they are.

We all know that when allergy season comes around a lot of people around us, including ourselves sometimes, all of the sudden are sick or have colds presenting signs of allergies. Symptons like but not limited to, sneezing, coufhing, runny nose, itchy eyes, pressure on your face or head. What makes it worse is that whatever triggers allergy symtoms is rarely obvious. Most people automatically say they are reacting to pollen. And for some this may be true. But there are other things taht trigger allergy attacks, and they are less obvious. This may be your body crying out for attention.
Allergies are often what happens to you when your system is not functioning properly.These symptoms often are associated with poor intestinal health, disfuctioning immune system, and most common, food sensitivities. Quite often these symptoms are found together and in relation to each other.Everytime you have a sinus headache or a runny nose, it’s your body begging for attention.
In order to start to tackle your problem with allergies, you have to know what triggers it. And I am referring you what is triggering it inside your body not the outdoors trigger. When you think of allergies, you have to think of the immune system. It is obvious that your immune system is being over stimulated. An outdoor allergen may be causing your initial reaction, but it is likely there are other allergens you are responding to.

Food allergies

Common food allergies are often a prime suspect when it comes to immune system dysfunction. The main culprits are often grains. For example, you could have a corn allergy, wheat allergy or even a dairy allergy. The reactions against these foods are often confused for traditional allergy symptoms. Symptoms such as itchy skin, congestion and post-nasal drip are known to be food allergy related. Thus, the common food allergies should not be ignored. What makes consumption of these foods even trickier is that your reaction may not be allergic. Rather, it may be intolerance or the more common sensitivity. Therefore, you have to start with eliminating your problem food. Testing for your problem food can be a real asset when it comes to trying to eliminate your triggers.

Histamine

Identifying your food triggers is only part of the consideration you should make. Don’t make the mistake of thinking that once you have done this that you are in the clear. I have seen patients initially get better after eliminating foods, only to relapse because they didn’t take care of the secondary effects of the problem foods. This often means supporting the gastrointestinal tract. From a functional medicine view point, everything begins and ends in the gastrointestinal tract. When it comes to allergies, much of the conversation can be steered to histamine. Histamine, the chemical mostly responsible for allergy symptoms, is produced in excess when there is gastrointestinal dysfunction. As more histamine is circulated in the system, your symptoms have a tendency to become worse. While histamine can be controlled symptomatically with natural products, sometimes even better than the prescriptions, the core of the problems remains. Taking care of the gut means giving it the support it needs. The best support comes in the form of the right nutrients and a diet that eliminates allergenic foods while supplying high levels of nourishment.

Missing key nutrients

Finally, when allergy symptoms are presented it means your immune system is missing the nutrients it need to keep a proper balance. There is a vast amount of evidence showing that certain nutrients are needed to regulate the immune system. This is very important when trying to prevent the hypersensitivity that is known to be associated with allergies. Nutrients like Vitamin D, antioxidants and omega 3’s. The cooperation of these nutrients is critical when guiding the immune system’s functions. A better functioning immune system is better equipped to respond against certain stimulations.

Everyone agrees allergies are annoying.However, I hope now it is clearer that allergies aren’t just something that is present when seasons change.If you have allergy problems it may be time to take a closer look at your body’s functions. It’s an indication that your systems are in need of support and they they are missing nutrients like the ones mentioned previously.Your immune system depends on it.It is possible to eliminate or reduce your allergy symptoms when you have a plan.

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