How to treat hay fever symptoms

How to treat hay fever symptoms

Hay fever falls under the umbrella of allergic rhinitis (seasonal allergic rhinitis) and will affect people at different times of the year depending on which type of plant they are allergic to. I suffer from hay fever which I developed when I turned forty years of age. When hay fever becomes full blow, it can affect your day-to-day activity and your ability to get a good night’s sleep depending on how you manage your symptoms. Poor sleep will impact on next day’s activity in which you may feel tired, drained from continuous sneezing, headaches, and fatigued.

For someone going to school or work, hay fever can have a negative impact on their performance and ability to concentrate. Fortunately for me, I can treat the symptoms myself with self-acupressure however I generally wait until they get really bad before I do anything about it which is not recommended. Ideally, for the best effect of self-acupressure and natural medication, it is best to start several weeks before hay fever season starts (usually during spring and summer).

What is hay fever (allergic rhinitis)?

Allergic rhinitis is a chronic respiratory disease associated with a substantial health and psychological burden in patients due to its etiologically complex, prolonged disease course and high incidence (1). The prevalence of allergic rhinitis is greatest in developed countries (2). It is estimated to affect up to 23% of the population in Western Europe (3-5), 14% of adults and 13% of children in the United States and 20% in Canada (6-8), 20-30% worldwide9 which account to 1.4 billion people globally and continues to be on the rise (10).

Our immune system protects us from dangerous pathogens that may attempt to invade our bodies, however, on occasion, our bodies will react to substances that are not an actual threat (allergic reaction). Simply an allergen can be referred to as a harmless substance that can trigger an immune response that results in an allergic reaction. An allergic reaction is a result of your body producing large quantities of immunoglobulin E (IgE), which is an antibody that generally protects us from parasites.

The antibodies cause the release of a number of chemicals such as histamine and leukotriene which in turn causes inflammation. Dust, pollen, and pet dander are all common allergens, but it is possible to be allergic to anything from chlorine to perfume and several food products. The most common allergic reaction is hay fever which is triggered by tree and grass pollen. Allergies can develop at any age; however, it is suggested to be genetic.

What are the symptoms of hay fever?

Symptoms of hay fever result from the inflammatory response of the mucus membrane that lines the inside of your nose after allergens (pollen, animal dander, or dust mites) are breathed in. Other areas associated with the nasal cavity such as ears, sinuses, and the back of the throat may also be affected. If you have hay fever you will find your symptoms get worse on hot, dry days when wind carries the pollen. The pollen count is generally lower on rainy days because the pollen is washed to the ground, which means you are less likely to breathe it in. The chemicals that are released in your body once an inflammatory response has been initiated will lead to:

• Red itchy eyes and nose
• Sneezing which can on occasion be severe
• Sinus congestion leading to a blocked nose
• Hearing difficulty
• Reduced sense of smell
• Facial pain
• Runny nose
• Scratchy throat
• Persistent coughing
• Fatigue
• Headaches

You’ll usually feel one or more of these symptoms immediately after coming into contact with an allergen. Other symptoms that may arise are difficulty getting to sleep or staying asleep which will in turn affect the next day’s productivity, and cause tiredness, lack of energy, fatigue, and lethargy.

What makes hay fever symptoms worse?

• Cigarette smoke
• Perfume
• Hot humid environments
• Cold windy environments
• Air conditioning
• Air pollution

How to treat hay fever symptoms

Treatment for hay fever symptoms includes avoiding exposure to pollen, taking a range of symptomatic medication, and immunotherapy, and educating patients and carers on the best way to relieve hay fever symptoms. One of the best ways to treat hay fever symptoms is to start treatment before the hay fever season begins. For example.

Start your treatment in early spring (late March) before your symptoms start if you are allergic to tree pollen. It is important to note that alder, hazel, and yew tree pollens can sometimes be released in January therefore if these trees are near your home or work then you may need to start your treatment as early as January. If you are allergic to flower pollen your treatment may start in late spring (early May) and if you are allergic to grass, weed, and ragweed pollen your treatment may start in early July.

Use a fan or an air-conditioning unit fitted with an allergy filter in your bedroom to save opening windows in the bedroom during the hot summer months. Don’t hang your bedding and clothes outside to dry as they will pick up pollen. Don’t cut the lawn during high pollen.

I enjoy cycling or running off-road during the spring and summer therefore I will run or cycle with glasses to protect my eyes and as soon as I return from my run or cycle, I will have a shower and wash my nasal cavity to remove as much pollen as possible to reduce sneezing, runny nose, and itchy eyes.

If you spend any time outside as soon as you return inside have a shower and gently wash your face and eyes and your nasal cavity to remove any pollen from your hair or skin. Change the clothing that you were wearing outside. Don’t leave the bedroom window open as this will allow pollen to come in and settle on your bedclothes. Keep all windows closed during high pollen and try and keep indoors. Keep your mouth and nose covered while working outside and try not to rake leaves or mow the lawn. In the summer I would normally run or cycle early morning to miss the high temperature however unlike me, you should avoid exercising early morning outdoors.

What are the medications to relieve hay fever symptoms?

Medication for treating hay fever symptoms generally includes antihistamines, leukotriene antagonists, glucocorticosteroids, anticholinergics, decongestants, and immunotherapy.

Antihistamine

One of the most common treatments for hay fever symptoms are antihistamine which will help to reduce sneezing, itchy eyes, and runny nose. However, this can present with drowsiness and on rare occasions cause urinary and circulatory problems.

Decongestants

Decongestants come as nose sprays or drops and should not be used for more than 3 days at a time otherwise you may become dependent on them. Furthermore, they can raise your blood pressure.

Eye drops, and nasal spray

Eye drops and nasal sprays have a short-term effect on hay fever symptoms and should not be used long-term. Each of these may stop hay fever symptoms however once you stop using them hay fever symptoms may get worse than previously.

Because of the high incidence and adverse events associated with conventional treatment patients have turned to alternative and complementary medicine to overcome adverse side effects. Acupuncture and self-acupressure to get rid of hay fever symptoms are popular complementary medicines that are used to treat a range of immunological and allergic disorders.

How to relieve hay fever symptoms with acupuncture

Since 2010, there have been an increasing number of studies that have assessed the efficacy of acupuncture in the treatment of allergic rhinitis symptoms (1,11-15) In 2015 Feng and colleagues (16) evaluated 13 randomized controlled trials to determine the clinical efficacy of acupuncture in the treatment of patients with allergic rhinitis.

They found that Compared with the control group, the acupuncture treatment group exerted a significant (p<0.0005) reduction in nasal symptom scores and serum IgE (p<0.00001).
Liu et al (17) reviewed the clinical efficacy of manual and electroacupuncture alone in the treatment of patients with allergic rhinitis and compared it with the efficacy of antihistamines and Chinese medicine.

20 studies met the inclusion criteria and following a meta-analysis comparing the effect of acupuncture to the use of antihistamine, it was found that acupuncture was significantly (p<0.00001) more effective in decreasing total nasal symptom score in allergic rhinitis patients. However, there was no significant difference between antihistamines and acupuncture in reducing immunoglobin E (IgE). Acupuncture was also found to be significantly (p<0.00001) more effective than Chinese medicine (Bi Yan tablets) in the management of allergic rhinitis patients. Acupuncture is now listed on the allergic rhinitis Clinical Guidelines in the United States (18).

How to get rid of hay fever symptoms with self-acupressure

Acupressure is a sub-type of acupuncture and can be applied at home by patients. Generally, when I am working from home, and I get itchy eyes or nasal congestion from hay fever I will apply self-acupressure to potent acupuncture points on my face and body once or twice a day.

Each point would be stimulated with finger pressure for a minute. This would help to significantly reduce the itchy eyes and clear my nasal congestion. I also teach self-acupressure to help with hay fever symptoms to my patients who come to my clinic for acupuncture.

Acupressure is a non-invasive therapeutic method applying physical pressure to certain acupuncture points by finger, elbow, hand, or with various devices to treat disease (19). A systematic review of randomized controlled trials in acupressure for respiratory allergic diseases indicated that acupressure is safe for symptomatic relief of hay fever and asthma (20).

With regards to allergic rhinitis, the findings demonstrated that acupressure exerted significantly greater effects on the relief of nasal symptoms of allergic rhinitis compared with 1% ephedrine nasal drop plus thermal therapy. If you want to learn how to use self-acupressure to relieve symptoms of hay fever for yourself or a family member please follow the link below.

https://stevebaileyacupuncture.thinkific.com/courses/how-to-treat-hay-fever-symptoms

References

  1. Mi J, Chen X, Lin X, Guo J, Chen H, et al. Treatment of persistent allergic rhinitis via acupuncture at the sphenopalatine acupoint: a randomised controlled trial. Trials, 2018;19:28.
  2. Roberts J, Hussoon A, Dretzke J, Wang D, Hyde C. A systematic review of the clinical effectiveness of acupuncture for allergic rhinitis. BMC complementary and alternative medicine, 2008;8:13.
  3. Gupta R, Sheikh A, Strachan DP, Anderson HR: Time trends in allergic disorders in the UK. Thorax 2007;62:91-96.
  4. Bauchau V, Durham SR. Prevalence and rate of diagnosis of allergic rhinitis in Europe. Eur Respir J 2004, 24:758-764.
  5. Bauchau V, Durham SR. Epidemiological characterization of the intermittent and persistent types of allergic rhinitis. Allergy 2005;60:350-353.
  6. Meltzer EO, Blaiss MS, Naclerio RM, Stoloff SW, Derebery MJ, Nelson HS, et al. Burden of allergic rhinitis: allergies in America, Latin America, and Asia-Pacific adult surveys. Allergy Asthma Proc 2012;33(1):S113-41.
  7. Blaiss MS, Meltzer EO, Derebery MJ, Boyle JM. Patient and healthcare-provider perspectives on the burden of allergic rhinitis. Allergy Asthma Proc 2007;28(1):S4-10.
  8. Keith PK, Desrosiers M, Laister T, Schellenberg RR, Waserman S. The burden of allergic rhinitis (AR) in Canada: perspectives of physicians and patients. Allergy Asthma Clin Immunol 2012;8:7.
  9. Mösges R, Klimek L. Today‘s allergic rhinitis patients are different: new factors that may play a role. Allergy 2007;62: 969–75.
  10. Schwindt CD and Settipane R. Allergic rhinitis (AR) is now estimated to affect some 1.4 billion people globally and continues to be on the rise. Editorial, American Journal of Rhinology and Allergy, 2012;26:S1
  11. Brinkhaus B, Witt CM, Ortiz M, Roll S, Reinhold T, Linde K, et al. Acupuncture in seasonal allergic rhinitis (ACUSAR)—design and protocol of a randomised controlled multi-centre trial. Forsch Komplementmed. 2010;17:95-102.
  12. Brinkhaus B, Ortiz M, Witt CM, Roll S, Linde K, Pfab F, Niggemann B, Hummelsberger J, Treszl A, Ring J, Zuberbi- er T, Wegscheider K, Willich SN. Acupuncture in patients with seasonal allergic rhinitis: a randomized trial. Ann Intern Med 2013;158:225-34.
  13. Xue CC, Zhang AL, Zhang CS, DaCosta C, Story DF, Thien FC. Acupuncture for seasonal allergic rhinitis: a randomized controlled trial, Annals of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology, 2015;115:317–324.
  14. Taw MB, Reddy WD, Omole FS, Seidman MD. Acupuncture and allergic rhinitis, Current Opinion in Oto- laryngology & Head and Neck Surgery, 2015;23(3):216–220.
  15. Ortiz M, Witt CM, Binting S et al. A randomised multi- centre trial of acupuncture in patients with seasonal allergic rhinitis – trial intervention including physician and treatment characteristics, BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine, 2014;14:128.
  16. Feng S, Han M, Fan Y. Acupuncture for the treatment of allergic rhinitis: a systematic review and metanalysis. American Journal of Rhinology and Allergy, 2015;1
  17. Liu J, Hong J, Zhang C, Wu L, Huang Q, Ma X, Zhang D. Acupuncture for allergic rhinitis: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Journal of Acupuncture and Tuina Science, 2016;14:426-437.
  18. Seidman MD, Gurgel RK, Lin SY et al. Clinical practice guideline: allergic rhinitis, Otolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery, 2015;152:41–43.
  19. Shen XY, Wang H, editors. Acupuncture and moxibustion. 2nd ed. China: People’s Medical Publishing House, 2007.
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