As the season changes, giving way to beautiful fall colors and crisp balmy nights, the external environment around us changes. The air becomes saturated with tiny allergen particles released from ragweed, triggering allergic symptoms in thousands of allergy sufferers such as runny nose, sneezing and itchy eyes among other symptoms amongst seasonal allergy sufferers.

Majority of the allergy sufferers turn to anti- histamines to feel better and get some reprieve of allergy symptoms for a few hours until the effects of the medicines wear off. In order to rid yourself of allergies, it is important to realize why the symptoms occur in the first place. An allergic reaction is caused by a dysfunctional immune system over reacting to the proteins of various food or environmental particles. Stress, diet, lifestyle and the amount of sleep will influence how your immune system functions. Here are a few tips to improve your immune function naturally:

1. Try to get a minimum of 7 hours of uninterrupted sleep daily. Sleep is crucial to allow the body to replenish and rejuvenate itself. A continuous lack of sleep will eventually lead to immune suppression and dysfunction, leaving you prone to getting sick more often. As well, allergies are caused by an immune system dysfunction, and a lack of sleep will definitely indirectly affect how badly your body reacts to allergens.

2. Increase the amount of good fats – essential fatty acids in your diet with nuts, seeds, oils and fish (as long as you are not allergic to them). They help to decrease the inflammatory response and also decrease the histamine release in your blood stream, which usually causes the itchy hives and the rashes in the allergic reactions, among other symptoms.

3. Decrease your intake of foods that cause inflammation in your body – test your blood for food allergens, and once testing is done, eliminate problem foods from your diet. This will help not only improve your health, but also tone down the severity and frequency of the allergic reactions.

4. Keep your body hydrated! Drink lots of water to thin the secretions and ease phlegm expectoration.

5. Avoid mucus – producing foods such as dairy, bananas and oranges, which can thicken mucus and increase congestion.

6. Reduce your stress levels and improve your adrenal function, with a combination of B vitamins. These help not only with stress but also improve immune function as well as adrenal function and mood.

7. Vitamin C has anti – inflammatory properties. Increase your intake of Vitamin C during acute flare up to up to 1000mg four to five times a day for a few days. Its is important to make sure you take the right type of vitamin C. Please talk to our naturopath at our Toronto naturopathic clinic before ingesting of any supplements.

8. Allergies are often related to the digestion and assimilation of nutrients from foods in the digestive system. Hence, optimizing digestive function as well as alkalinizing your diet will enhance the assimilation and utilization of nutrients, which in turn will help your immune function.  You can test your digestive capabilities with stool testing that we offer at our naturopathic clinic.

9. Avoiding foods that are known allergens such as wheat, eggs, milk, chocolates, nuts, seafood and citrus foods may improve respiratory allergy symptoms significantly. Try eliminating them for about two weeks and watch for an improvement.

By: Sushma Shah, Toronto Naturopathic Doctor, at the Nature’s Intentions Naturopathic Clinic.