Pollen Allergy is basically hay fever during that time of the year when we experience itchy watery eyes, nasal congestion, runny nose, swollen glands in the neck and other assorted symptoms. The majority of pollen allergies stem from weed pollen or ragweed to be exact. In addition other weeds like nettle, sagebrush and others affect us in the US from may to September in the Northeast. Pollen grains are dispersed from grasses, trees, and weeds and travel via the air to fertilize other plants. inhaling this pollen is what triggers allergic reactions in some people as the body attempts to rid itself of the the allergens.

Unfortunately there is no sure way of avoiding pollen apart from staying indoors and even then pollen can still get inside your living space. many people would rather not resort to prescription drugs like claritin and even stronger medications and would prefer to use some natural home remedy. Popular home remedies include taking local honey made from the flowering plants that put out the pollen in the first place. The logic is that the honey will then already contain some minute amount of the allergens and so as it is in the case of vacccines the effect here is similar in that it would be like administering immunotherapy.

On the diagram to the right you can see the process of how pollen causes allergic reactions in the human body. It shows the process that leads up to the bodies release of histamines in the body that cause the mucous formation and inflammation symptoms that are common in most allergic reactions.

Antihistamine and Corticosteroid Medications

Most allergy sufferers resort to some form of medication, usually and antihistamine, corticosteroids, and Cromolyn sodium. The anti histamine of course tries to reverse the effects of the histamine which is secreted by the mast cells that are in the mucous membrane. This dilated blood vessel causing runny noses and eyes and causes a buildup of mucous in the nasal and throat passages. There is also severe itching caused by the histamine.

Corticosteroids help prevent inflammation and are usually in the form of prescription nasal sprays like Flonase and Nasonex. They also come in pill form as well as eyedrops and creams to relieve red watery itchy eyes and scaling and itching in the nose area. Antihistamines have a "drying" effect. Benadryl, Zyrtec and Claritin are examples of over the counter antihistamines. There are nasal sprays that perform the same function. they help to relieve sinus congestion and runny nose and include drugs like Neo Synephrine and Afrin. Visine is a popular antihistamine for reducing itching and swelling of the eyes.

Other types of spores that may cause hay fever include fungi and molds and may be responsible for rhinitis rather than hay fever that is usually caused by weed pollen. there is some indication that the presence of pollution, especially from cars and trucks aggravate the allergic reation of people that suffer from pollen allergies. Sulphur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide and diesel particulates can irritate the nose and passageways and make people more susceptible to allergic reactions. the relationship between pollution, pollen, and allergies is not clear cut although there is some evidence that indicated that city dwelling people suffer more during pollen season than people in the country who experience much higher pollen counts in the countryside.

Cat dander, dog dander and dust mites also cause allergic reations in people. Although we can typically avoid the dander from pets by simply not having pets. People who are allergic to dust mites will have a much harder time trying to avoid these tiny critters that feed on our dead skin cells. For one, dust mites and their excrement both cause allergic reactions so even if you could kill all the dust mites their excrement which is like microscopic dust would be hard to get rid of. Unlike pet dander which stays aloft in the air and can be filtered to some degree with ionic air cleaners with hepa filters, dust mites and their excrement settle quickly onto beds, furniture, carpets. It is not so easy to just vacuum them off of these types of furniture and the moment we try to dust these the dust mites become airborne again and will take approximately two hours to settle.