Relief for allergies???

[Laiste]

On and off for the last six weeks I have been suffering with allergies...Post nasal drip, sneezing, coughing ect... I went to the Doc and he just wanted to give me a script for antihistamines, which, I am allergic to:eek: They give me heart palpatations and wire me up beyond belief. I am taking cayenne pepper and using eucyliptus oil. They don't seem to be working very well anymore. I enjoy drinking tea so if I could put anything in there that would be great. Any suggestions please??

[Lavender]

I have a recipe for tea that might be able to help. I'll post it tonight. I know, off hand, that eyebright is a good herb for hayfever.

[Laiste]

Thanks Wildchild...although I think I'm allergic to mold spores oh who knows...I'll try anything at this point. I'm trying to find a good holistic doctor in my area.

[Faery-Wings]

For my hubby. He has been having a rough time with allergies the last fews days too. He can't take antihistmines or psuedoephidrine either- heart palpitations. I looked in a bunch of my herbal books and saw nettle (300 mg's) was good for allergies. Bee pollen also, but he can't take that, as a diabetic, so the book said.

Wildchild, have you ever taken nettle? I was planning on asking here to see what kind of luck people had with it, or if there are any side effects.

Thanks.

Laiste, I hope you feel better. It is looking to be a bad allergy season with everything dying at once. :(

BB

Chris

[Lavender]

Yes, nettle is one of the ingredients in my tea. I love using nettle. I use that as a base for many of my tea blends. It's very good for you & I haven't come across any negative effects of it yet. It's also excellent as a rinse for your hair.

[Lavender]

Allergy Tea

1 tsp each of the following herbs

Nettles - freeze dried is the best
Goldenseal
Plantain
Licorice Root
Eyebright
Gingko leaves
Chamomile

and 8-10 rosehips, grounded up. Mix together & use 1 tsp per 1 cup of boiling water. Steep for 15 mins, strain & drink. Add honey if you like. Drink 2-3 times a day.

It's really odd that the usual culprit for hayfever are chamomile & goldenseal but they work for allergy relief. Chamomile contains flavonoids and other chemicals called azulene & chamazulene that are histamine blockers. In very few cases, hayfever sufferers can react to these herbs so the first time you use these herbs, keep a watch on that.

There are other things you can try also. Rinsing your nose with a neti pot and saline solution can help soothe the nasal tissues as well as clean out the toxins that gather there. It's very gentle on your tissues. As well what you eat can help too. Apple peels & red onions contain something called bioflavonoid quercitin that's similar to a drug used to treat hayfever. Foods that are high in antioxidants are great also. They're usually very rich in colour. Apples, broccolli, red onions, blueberries, cranberries. Also foods that are high in omega-3's such as flax seed oil, salmon, cod, haddock, evening primrose oil.

[Laiste]

Wildchild,

Thanks for the tea recipie! I have one question though, what is neti pot?

[Lavender]

Here's a link for a picture of a neti pot and a description of hows & whys

http://www.bausinger.de/hygien-e.htm

http://www.detox.org/neti.html

I've tried it but haven't got that graceful part down yet! :p

[Faery-Wings]

Wildchild- you are a doll.:) Will I be able to get these herbs at a health food store? i know of one nearby that sells bulk herbs, but I am not sure how much and what kind they carry.
Oh, and does it take a while for the herbs to start working or will my hubby see some relief as he drinks each cup of tea?

BB!!

Chris

[Laiste]

Wildchild,

thanks for those links...great!!

[Lavender]

You're welcome! :D It could be anything from a day to a week before you'll really notice anything. That's the thing with herbal teas, they're not all that fast but the effects are more gentle & longer lasting. You should be able to pick up these herbs at a bulk herb store. Also, if you get a chance, you might want to look into tinctures of some of these herbs - such as nettles - for a quicker relief. Feel free to play around with the recipes. I find that people are all different and what works for one may not work for another. These herbs are known for their allergy relief properties so you may have to do it by trial & error.