Spring has certainly arrived with a burst and the warmer weather is just beautiful. I'm revelling in the renewed energy that this season brings and I'm finding it easier and easier to get up with the sun. My meditation practice also has renewed life after the darkness of the Winter, and am loving meditating in the early morning as the world and I begin to wake up together.

Natural Remedies for Easing the Allergy Season

Alongside the beauty of Spring, for some this is the season of sniffles, itchy noses, runny, sore eyes and scratchy throats. Allergy season is here and as the pollen count clicks up, so do the allergy symptoms. At this time of the year, I like to use herbal medicines, nutrients and foods that bring the immune system into balance and soothe those irritating allergy symptoms.

Eyebright

This gorgeous herbal medicine can be used for all things snuffly and is especially good for those noses that run like a tap, with clear, thin but copious secretions. Eyebright helps to dry those secretions, reduce redness and is also antiseptic making it a wonderful medicine for seasonal allergic rhinitis or hayfever, sinusitis, head colds and any ear congestion.

Echinacea

Good ol' Echinacea is most commonly used to stimulate the immune system, but what is less understood is that it can also be used to balance or moderate different aspects of the immune system as well. It is for that reason that this herb can be used for all kinds of allergies as well as the usual colds, coughs, sinusitis, tonsilitis, otitis, cystitis and any other infection that the body may need support in fighting.

Vitamin C

Vitamin C is a natural anti-histamine so taking doses of between 500 - 1000mg between 1 - 3 times a day for adults is a great way to keep allergy symptoms at bay. Try to make sure that you take a dose before leaving the house in the morning, and keep a small bottle of chewable tablets with you, so that you can take another dose if symptoms come up again during the day.

Local Honey

Eating moderate, daily amounts of local honey has been shown to reduce the symptoms of seasonal allergic rhinitis. A randomized placebo-controlled study done in 2013 found that local honey provides long lasting allergy relief of up to a month after 8 weeks of daily consumption. The researchers propose that the effect may due to anti-histamines naturally found in bee pollen.

If you would like to delve deeper or talk about other ways to manage your allergies, please feel free to contact me.

Many blessings to you all xx

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