Are allergies really associated with moving?

What is an allergy?

To figure out if allergies can be caused by moving we have to go back to the basics and understand just what an allergy is. Basically when you have allergies, it’s your body telling you that you have been around something or put something inside of it that is foreign and the immune system is triggered and goes in to overdrive trying to get rid of it. Typically whatever it is that your body is responding to is not dangerous, but your body doesn’t know that, and exaggerates it’s response which makes that particular substance a problem. Let’s use pollen as an example, everyone has heard of pollen allergies. Some people react to pollen and some don’t, but the people that do react have an exaggerated response and their immune system overreacts. As soon as they have been exposed to pollen, those typical allergy symptoms closely follow.

So what makes allergies associated with a move? Is it the area you move to? For example, in Houston, it is not uncommon for someone to say they did not have allergies prior to moving here. Maybe some regions of the United States are just more prone to allergies, especially when allergies are categorized.

What causes the immune system to overreact?

As you and I explore why allergies are often associated with a move, let us not forget what is at the core of an allergic response. A hypersensitive immune system is the primary cause. If the immune system were not hyperactive, the allergy would not exist. With this in mind, we have to begin to ask, what causes the immune system to overreact.

Histamine

What is the most common substance we associate with allergies? You know the one I am talking about. Every over-the-counter allergy medication boasts about how efficient it is at controlling this chemical. That’s right, its histamine. Once histamine is released in a significant quantity, many of the symptoms that we associate with allergies begin to manifest. This is because histamine increases the inflammatory response. Knowing what we know now, the histamine was triggered by something. Usually it has to do with the gastrointestinal tract.

Stress

As you may have noticed moving is very stressful, but not just mentally, also your body is under a lot of stress. That manifests itself in you immune system by weakening it, and in your gut. Besides the stress you are experiencing mentally, emotionally and physically, you are temporarily changing your lifestyle, your eating habits your sleeping habits. Your entire routine is off. Your body notices that. Now throw in a new environment, maybe from the city fumes to the country flowers or vice versa, and you have a recipe for a hypersensitive immune response. But that’s OK you can manage these symptoms. It’s really all in our intestinal tract. As long as we keep that healthy, we can manage these symptoms. You can do that by following the Paleo Diet. Be careful what you are putting in your body. By eating a Paleo Diet, you are creating a less reactive immune system. When eating a Paleo Diet, you are eliminating all of the other things your body wold have to respond to when it’s stimulated by allergens, like corn, wheat, dairy or soy. You really want to get back to that routine as quickly as you can.