SELF-HELP FOR HAYFEVER

OUTSIDE

• Keep car windows and air intake closed.
  
• Avoid gardens, fields, picnics, barbecues, cut grass, etc.
  
• Avoid city centres and areas of high traffic density as far as possible.
  
• Wear good dark glasses which prevents pollen entering the eyes and protects from UV
  

INSIDE

• Keep flowers outside, cut, potted and dried.
  
• Keep house dust-free (esp bedroom) - dust daily, use a good vacuum cleaner with filter (Medivac) and clean bedding, carpets, curtains and soft furnishings regularly.
  
• Use air-filters, eg Filtaire, to filter particles and chemicals from the air. Change from feather pillows, etc to a washable substance such as kapok or polyester. Cover duvet pillows and mattress with a dust-proof fabric (eg Slumberland, Intervent, Medibed).
  
• Keep windows closed.
  
• Avoid chemicals, including scents, scented cosmetics and cleaning products, paints, solvents, glue, cigarette smoke, (anything that smells is emitting a chemical substance). These can make eyes, nose and throat more sensitive to dust and pollen.
  
• Try to sleep in a cool bedroom, with the head propped up.
  
• Ban pets from bedrooms and avoid stroking and handling animals.
  
• Take a good multimineral/vitamin antioxidant preparation every day, ensuring optimum amounts of vitamin A (care needed during pregnancy), vitamin C, zinc and selenium. Improve Immune function during winter by optimal amounts of Echinacea, Garlic and Co-Enzyme Q10, avoiding excess sugar, coffee, alcohol, meat and dairy products and foods that contain yeast - also chilled foods and ice cubes, which will diminish the immunity of the throat.
• Blow your nose - do not wipe it as this spreads the pollen. Try not to wipe your eyes - you will just rub pollen in.
  
• Certain foods can exacerbate symptoms during the hayfever season. Some people are helped by avoiding mucus-forming wheat in their diet, others find that cutting out, or down, the histamine-containing and histamine-releasing foods is helpful (eg cheese, strawberries, shellfish, tinned fish, pork).
  
• Don't smoke, cigarette smoke is an effective irritant which makes symptoms worse.
  
• Alcohol will usually worsen symptoms.
  
• Avoid decongestant sprays, as they cause a rebound effect - symptoms are made even worse as the drug's effect wears off.
  
• If using a therapy for house dust mites, use a 'Banamite' which is non-toxic.
  
• Some of my patients have reported that drinking a glass of water, in which a raw onion has been soaked for several hours brings relief from their symptoms. Worth a try!

Common Therapy

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