Spring has sprung, so have allergies

By Annie Wei (Beijing Today)
Updated: 2008-02-29 17:13

In traditional Chinese medical theory, spring is the time when everything wakes up; the plants green and the body starts feeling more energetic and ready to travel outdoors. It also means minor ailments begin to rear their ugly, little heads. We're talking about dreaded allergies.

**How to put the squeeze on the sneeze

Some minor allergic situations seem to get better or disappear without treatment. A friend of mine used to be allergic to red wine or seafood. Now she can drink it and enjoy a BBQ feast with friends. She claimed it had a lot to do with her own immune system adjusting.

Why do people develop allergies? When certain substances enter one’s body they are considered a germ by the immune system, which cases in an allergic reaction. It is really the body responding to a false alarm.

Allergic reactions normally involve the following symptoms: a runny nose, sneezing, itching, rashes, swelling or asthma.

According to a report by a Hong Kong institute, doctors said there were many factors that triggered food allergies, such as work and life pressure, infection, poor diet, over-use of medicines or chemical products and environmental pollution.

Apart from avoiding eating foods that affect you negatively, it is wise to balance life and work, lessen pressure and improve one’s immune system with exercise and good diet. According to a New York Times?article in January, a mother of four began her journey regarding children’s allergies when her youngest child developed a food allergy. Her theory that “the food supply is being manipulated with additives, genetic modification, hormones and herbicides and causig increases in allergies, autism and other disorders in children ?is not supported by leading researchers or the largest allergy advocacy groups.”The mother encouraged others to do what she did, throw out as much non-organic, processed food as you can afford to. Avoid anything genetically modified, artificially created or raised with hormones. Do not eat food with ingredients you cannot pronounce.

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