Hay fever: how your diet can support you

Spring is here again and we are all enjoying the longer days, the stronger sun and the blossoming flowers and trees! But this beautiful season also marks the start of pollen season.

Did you know that around 25% of people living in Austria suffer from hay fever or develop a pollen allergy during their lifetime?

Many people suffer, especially in spring, from the typical symptoms, such as sneezing fits, an itchy and runny nose, a scratchy throat and sensitive, watery eyes. But complaints such as headaches, dizziness, fatigue and skin irritation can also indicate an allergic reaction to pollen.

Can we do something good for our body during this time to improve our wellbeing and really enjoy spring?

First of all, we should prepare our body for this season. The best way to do this is with a detox! An inner cleanse in which we rid ourselves of the waste built up over winter and get our immune system going again. The immune system is largely located in our gut, which is why nutrition plays an important role here.

During pollen season, our immune system is constantly working at full speed. An allergic reaction is, in a sense, an overreaction of our immune system. Histamine plays a decisive role here. Histamine is a protein-derived substance that performs many important tasks in our metabolism. During an allergic reaction, the body releases excessive amounts of histamine, which then accumulates and causes the respective symptoms.

But histamine is not only produced in our body; it is also found in many foods. So what else can we do to prepare for allergy season? Exactly – reduce histamine-rich foods! If our body is already producing huge amounts of histamine and we add even more through our diet, the symptoms increase.

Which foods contain a lot of histamine?

Histamine is a kind of spoilage product in food that forms during the ripening and fermentation of foods. Aged and fermented foods therefore contain particularly high amounts of histamine. These include, for example, cheese, alcohol and fermented vegetables. Mushrooms, raspberries, strawberries, citrus fruits, soy products, coffee and black tea also contain a lot of histamine or inhibit histamine breakdown in our body.

Instead, we should make a point of choosing fresh, organic, locally grown fruit and vegetables. Eating local food in particular has a significant influence! Local honey is especially helpful, as it contains, among other things, various pollens from the season, which we consume throughout the year, creating a natural desensitisation effect. We should also eat plenty of cooked food, as it contains less histamine.

Hay fever from an Ayurvedic perspective

Looking at hay fever from an Ayurvedic perspective, the cause lies in weak immunity resulting from weak digestive strength. In Ayurveda, allergy is not seen as a disease we have to live with for the rest of our lives. Rather, it shows us an imbalance in our body that we want to bring back into balance. A heavy, high-fat diet in winter in particular weakens our immune system and makes allergic reactions more likely.

This is exactly why a detox in spring is recommended! After the detox, it is important to rebuild a healthy gut and thereby strengthen our immune system.

One Ayurvedic home remedy, for example, is turmeric. A daily tea made from turmeric with ginger and regional honey, or alternatively a turmeric-ginger shot, is ideal during pollen season. Staying with nature's pharmacy, green, bitter vegetables are especially suitable in spring to relieve symptoms. Everything green that grows at this time has a positive influence on our immune system. The stinging nettle plant is particularly helpful. Nettle inhibits the body's own histamine release, yet itself contains small amounts of histamine. How does that fit together? If we drink nettle tea every day, for example, we can make use of these amounts of histamine and, in a sense, get used to certain amounts of histamine. Since the body's own histamine production is inhibited at the same time, we usually do not notice any symptoms.

As you can see, you can prepare your body for pollen season and relieve symptoms during pollen season with small changes to your diet.

We wish you a sunny, symptom-free spring!