Foods that contribute to your hay fever symptoms are highly processed foods, wheat, soy, sugary munchies, peanuts, alcohol, caffeine, and, I’m so sorry to say this, chocolate is on the list too, so minimize the intake of these items or ditch them completely for the best effect. I could never get rid of my morning coffee, but skipping a glass of wine for dinner was a breeze.

Instead, start your mornings with a spoonful of local honey, which has local pollen, one of your main spring allergens, and getting a small dosage every day will slowly help your immunity increase resilience and reduce the immune response to seasonal allergies. Adding more probiotics to your diet with yogurt and kefir can also help because they help strengthen your immune system. Spicy foods will clear your airways and thin your mucus (a lovely image, I know), so add a pinch of ginger to your lemonade, some cinnamon to your tea, hot pepper to your breakfast and you’re good to go! 

Back up with Supplements for Seasonal Allergies

Just before March kicks in, I start taking spirulina supplements to boost my immunity and prevent severe allergy symptoms. It’s highly effective for lowering the levels of histamine, the hormone that is the main culprit for allergic reactions. A single teaspoon per day will be enough to help, although you can include even more in your smoothies if you feel like it.

While we’re discussing histamine (can’t get around the pesky thing, we’re talking allergies here!), you can also take an antihistamine from your local pharmacy. There are many types, all it takes is for you to find the one that doesn’t make your drowsy and sleepy, and one pill a day will likely reduce your symptoms significantly.

You might want to consider zinc supplements as well, because this mineral has a calming effect, it’s ideal for fighting colds, which have similar symptoms to allergies, and it has many other stress-reducing benefits that will help you cope with your seasonal allergies. 

Purify your Indoor Air for Seasonal Allergies

While there’s no way you could walk around with a built-in air purifier (patent pending), keeping your home clean and minimizing the amount of dust, mold, pet hair and other allergens will help your body not go into overdrive when you go outside, because you won’t be under prolonged stress of inflammation.

I remember when I didn’t have an air purifier in my home, and the amount of time I spent rinsing my nose with a saline solution – not the greatest feeling in the world, as many of you know all too well. Getting the best air purifier for allergies was almost as big of a revelation as discovering coconut oil for my skin and hair. What can I say, I’m a sucker for healthy stuff.

My point is, having a top-notch air purifier to filter the allergens out of my home made the biggest difference in my war on allergies. I’ve had noticeably less trouble ever since, because combined with my adjusted nutrition and supplements, cleansed air in my home keeps my sneezing and irritation outside down to a minimum. 

Spring is no longer my nemesis, and I rarely get the glorious allergic reactions from a few years back, so I believe it’s safe to say that this strategy works well for me, and many other busy bees out there, because it’s simple to apply, it doesn’t affect your daily routine and it will reduce stress. Breathe freely and enjoy your warm, sunny days to the fullest!