May 31 2009

How NOT To Have Allergy Attacks Outdoors

Category: Allergieshealthbuff @ 1:42 pm

It is uncomfortable, not to mention very embarrassing, to experience allergy attacks while outside your place where relief is nowhere near. It is in your best interest then to stay away as much as possible from things that could trigger allergy attacks. Below are some tips that you can follow to prevent public display of allergy symptoms.

Avoid outdoors
First thing on our list is to avoid outdoors especially on occasions and places where your allergy symptoms are noticeably more severe. Allergens are of course more abundant outdoors than indoors which makes it more likely that you experience uncomfortable allergy symptoms outdoors than indoors. It makes sense then that it is okay to stay indoors for several days at a time especially in seasons when allergens prolific.

Use bug and insect repellant
If you are regularly exposed to bugs and if there are higher numbers of bugs in your region, see to it that you are always protected from them and from the things they normally carry. Always wear bug and insect repellants to prevent your self from getting allergic reactions. Also, always go out fully protected with long sleeves, long pants and closed shoes.

Clean Up Your Car
Driving in an unclean car is uncomfortable enough, but that does not end there. Unclean cars can also cause allergy attacks. The interiors of the cars especially the carpets, nooks and other hard-to-reach spaces are not only repositories of dirt but can also serve as breeding places for insects. Clean the interiors of your car regularly, especially if you love driving with the windows down.

Use protective tools
Face masks, gloves and other tools that can help keep allergens from your face and surface of the skin are very helpful in preventing allergy attacks. You can use these whenever you anticipate your exposure to allergens. Otherwise, you might get sick.

Know the seasons for allergies
There are several types of allergies but when it comes to classifications according to season, there are just two types: the perennial allergy and the seasonal allergy. The latter is often a product of seasonal changes. If you have been diagnosed of seasonal allergies, here are the months of the year when you must be more careful while outdoors.

May- May is the high time for grass pollen. If you are allergic with these pollens, try to know your options for allergy attacks prevention.

August to September- These months are most likely to cause you allergic reactions due to the high number of ragweed pollens floating in the atmosphere. Again, secure to it that you have yourself protected from the attacks of allergens.

During late fall- There may not be a lot going on outside but indoors, you must be on guard for dust, ash, hot temperature and humid internal environment. These are conditions conducive for breeding of some insects and bugs and for the development of molds.

If you are allergic to foods, insist not on eating them. If you are allergic to pollens, stay away from gardens, flower shops and flowers. If you are allergic to pets, keep them out of your house. Prevention from allergens and allergic attacks need not be complicated.

Just try to stay away from the causes and risks and you might be able to keep the attacks at bay.

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May 30 2009

Vital Insights On Allergies

Category: Allergieshealthbuff @ 1:42 pm

What are allergies? How do they come around and why?

If you find yourself suffering from itchiness in your eyes, running nose, sneezing, or that your skin is terribly covered in hives, then you may be right in assuming that you are in for the allergy attack. There is no point in doubting that the attacks of allergy can give you all sorts of misery. Can you sleep through the night? Can you take in the food that you want? Sure enough, you want to be very careful.

There is always something and someone who can provide you with the relief that you so crave for. By going to the doctor, you are likely to be given the cure. Well, the medications are by and large going to address the symptoms but not really to dissolve the kind of allergic response that your immune system has.

Again, it is helpful to get to know the basics. The allergic reaction is brought about by the abnormal reaction of your immune system to those things or substances which are normally considered to be harmless. In fact, not all people can be affected by the same response. When you are labeled to be allergic to one thing, it means that your immune system considers the substance to be offensive.

Some of the known allergens are the pollens, animal dander, medicine, dust, fur, and food. The immune system takes on the role of the body’s protector so it releases the IgE antibodies which then lead to the cell release of the chemical like histamine and the likes to combat the foreign substance as it gets through the bloodstream.

The histamine, when released, acts on the individual’s lungs, throat, nose, eyes, gastrointestinal tract, and skin which then prompt the symptoms of the allergic response to come out. Any future exposure to the same kind of allergy can provoke the same response over and over again.

Again, you might wonder as to why some people are prone to allergies. There is an underlying fact that it can be due to the lineage. Meaning, it can be hereditary. If you have both or only one parent who has any allergic reaction then it may be passed on to you through your genetic makeup.

Common Things that Cause Allergies

As mentioned above, there are various types of allergens. Below are some of the very common ones which you might want to focus on.

Food. Allergy to food is frequent among infants and some of them are able to get away with it as they grow. However, some may be serious and may be carried on through adulthood. Some of the symptoms include diarrhea, stuffy nose, itchy rashes, abdominal discomfort, and a lot more. Several people drive allergic reactions to soy, milk, wheat, eggs, seafood, peanuts, tree nuts, and many other dairy products.

Insect stings and bites. The venom as found in the insect stings and bites often trigger an allergic reaction. The effect may either be mild or serious depending on how the person’s immune system may take it.

Airborne particles. They are known as the environmental allergens and are the most common types. Among them are mold spores, pollens from the trees, ragweed, or grass, dust mites, and animal dander.

Drugs. Antibiotics are the common medicines that trigger the allergy.

Chemicals. There are laundry detergents as well as cosmetics which cause allergy because of the components of these chemicals. The household cleaners, pesticides, and dyes may also promote the allergic response.

Take note that your parents’ allergies may not be exactly identical with the kind of allergic reaction that you may bear. The symptoms vary as well so you should be able to identify with the type that you suffer from.

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May 29 2009

Partial Truths About Allergies

Category: Allergieshealthbuff @ 1:28 pm

From time to time, a persisting belief about allergies crop out and people somehow buy it. They buy it some more until it becomes an established partial truth. Here are some common beliefs about allergies that you should be on guard.

It’s not allergy, its hypersensitivity
Hypersensitivity or irritation may not be the same as allergy. But then again, it is a symptom. If hypersensitivity to a certain allergen occurs more than once it probably is an allergy, so get checked.

Children tend to outgrow their allergies
A small portion of children with allergies actually outgrow their bodies’ exaggerated reactions to allergens. However, this is not true for all children. Most of them do not grow out of their allergies, in fact for most cases, allergies do not only persist they worsen.

Milk allergy is an adult thing…and so is wheat allergy
Wrong. Both allergies are present among children but like what we have mentioned earlier, some of them outgrow these. What are left are the adults who are bothered by their intolerance with wheat and milk.

A person always has multiple food allergies
Not all the time. A person can have as much as 4 food sensitivities but not everyone have this. Oftentimes, it is a 1 to 1 ratio.

Allergies are psychosomatic
Psychosomatic diseases and disorders involve a host of sickness that is manufactured in the mind. Whether they were products of psychologically unhealthy thinking or not, when there are symptoms, something is certainly wrong about the body. Again, go see a professional, whether it’s a psychologist or immunologist. Either way, you will know what’s upsetting your health, and that’s a good thing.

Strawberries and tomatoes are the banes of food allergic people
Not really. There are of course a small number of people who cannot stand the effects of these reddish plumps on their bodies but not all allergic people are also allergic to strawberries and tomatoes. In fact, these two are not included in the 8 most common foods that people are allergic to. They are placed way behind the top 8.

If you are allergic to cow’s milk, try goat’s milk
Sure you can but you will have to do it at your own risk. The thing is, milk, regardless of the animal source, have the same basic protein components that make other people sick. If you do not trust us, try goat’s milk instead and see the effects. The good thing is, 40% of children who are allergic to cow’s milk can tolerate goat’s milk. So maybe you have a good reason to turn yourself into guinea pig.

Indoor house plants are the culprits of allergy rhinitis
It depends on the plant. If you have an entire house full of high-pollen plants, you should probably remove some of your daisies and whatnots. But the fact is, dull plants, and not the brightly colored ones, are more dangerous for pollen allergics.

Allergic response gets worse with repeated exposure
Not for everyone. They do tend to get worse at each exposure but there’s no telling whether allergic response consistently gets worse for every time you are exposed to allergens.

If you are allergic to iodine, skip the fish and seashells
You could probably try that but that would upset your so-called balanced nutrition. The good news is, you don’t really have good reasons to do this since people with iodine allergy are not necessarily reactive to fish and seashells.

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