As we are heading into the holiday season, the biggest worry with people suffering from food allergy is how they are going to survive the season. If you suffer from the condition you don’t have to worry as there are many strategies, you can use to ensure that you enjoy the season. Some of these strategies include:

Contact your host early enough

The main aim of any host is to organize a party that everyone will enjoy. To help the host do it while keeping yourself safe, you should contact him/her early enough. You should let the party organizer know about your condition and tell them the foods that you are comfortable taking. When you do this, you will help the host prepare food that will be appealing to everyone.

Carry your food

Another option that you can go with is to prepare your food at home and carry it to the party. You should do this if you don’t want to bother the host to cook different meals or you don’t have enough time to notify him/her about your condition.

After you have prepared your food, you should pack it safely and go with it to the party. It’s common for people to ask you why you are taking food that is different from yours. You shouldn’t shy away from explaining it to them.

You should note that it’s easy to develop the allergy at the party even if you are taking safe food. This often comes about when you take food in a plate that has the allergen. To avoid the condition, you should put the food in safe dishes. This calls for you to ask the host to give you plates that haven’t been used by other people.

Eat in advance

If you are attending a small party and you aren’t sure if there will be safe food there, you should arm yourself by eating in advance. Just like when eating different foods, people will ask questions. For example, they will want to know why you aren’t eating. Again, don’t shy away from explaining it to them.

Conclusion

These are some of the strategies that you can use to survive the holiday season safely even if you are suffering from food allergies. As mentioned above, it’s common for you to develop the allergies even if you are observing all the caution.

In addition to using the above strategies, also consider visiting an allergy clinic and take the necessary medications that will help you in the event you consume an allergen.

From their name, seasonal allergies come about at different times of the year. If you are prone to them it’s paramount that you know how to deal with them. To help you out here is how to go about it:

Stay indoors when the allergens are high

Spring allergies come about due to the presence of pollen in the air. To avoid the allergy you need to avoid contact with the allergens. One of the most effective ways of doing so is staying indoors. If you can work indoors you should go ahead and work from home. To avoid the allergens from getting in the house close the windows and doors. Also, ensure that the air conditioner is working perfectly.

Protect yourself from the allergens when outdoors

If you can’t avoid being outdoors, take measures to protect yourself. One of the ways of doing it is wearing a mask when you are going outdoors. You can get a good quality mask from your local hardware store or from a home improvement center. All you need to do is ensure that the mask is of high quality. As rule of thumb, it should have a good quality filter.

You can also minimize exposure by going outdoors when there is less pollen in the air. This can be during the evening or after it has rained.

Get treatment for your seasonal allergies

If already you show symptoms of the condition there are plenty of treatment options that you can go with. The medications range from over-the-counter to prescription medications. To ensure that you are taking the right ones, first, visit an allergist to analyze your condition and recommend the best medication. If you suffer from severe allergies, consider taking allergy shots.

When taking the medications be cautious as you can easily harm yourself. For example, taking decongestants for more than 3 days can result in a “rebound” effect. This is where you have more severe symptoms than you had before taking the medications.

Take an allergy vacation

If you have tried everything and failed, you should consider taking an allergy vacation. This is where you move to an area that is less affected by pollen. In most cases, this is at the beach or at the seashore. Even when you are on vacation it’s wise that you have your spring allergy treatment with you. This is to ensure that you don’t develop complication in the event the symptoms get severe.

Asthma is kind of an allergy, it causes breathing problem because of allergens. The most common form of asthma allergy treatment involves inhalers. The basic function of the inhaler is to break the medicine in the tube and then push the medication directly in the wind pipe so it reaches the lungs. In this article, we will discuss the effects of asthma treatment. Like all other allergy treatments, there are some medicines that are administered for instant relief, whereas others are administered to increase tolerance of the allergen.

Short term Relief

An asthma attack would be characterized by shortness of breath and coughing. This could be directly related to the swelling in the wind pipe and the irregular breathing. So in the short term, the medicines are most commonly administered through inhalers. These inhalers help in directly injecting the dose in the windpipe. Medicines are mostly aimed at reducing the swelling and relaxing windpipes. Relaxation of the windpipe provides more air to reach the lungs inducing normal breathing. That is one of the reasons why allergist always recommends asthma patients to carry inhalers with them all the time. Asthma attacks could be life threatening and medication should be taken as per prescription.

Long term relief

Long term treatments would include taking medication as per prescription irrespective of asthma attacks. These medications increase body’s tolerance towards the allergen. Over the period of time, the aim of the medication is to reduce the severity of the asthma attack. The dosage depends on the allergen and the severity of the allergy. A major side effect of long term medication could be weakening of bones. This is not a common problem and has been documented in some cases. Doctors do recommend taking vitamins and eating healthy to avoid such problems. Some patients, over the period of time, have complained of infection in the mouth. This could be result of a salt that reacts with the body. In this instance, a different medicine would be administered that does not include that particular salt.

Like any allergy treatment, the medicine used for asthma treatment is usually dependent on the allergen. So it is very necessary to know what triggers the reaction. This is mostly while prescribing long term medication. For short term, usually the medication is standard that would perform the same function irrespective of the allergen. Asthma patients should not take any medications over the counter without first consulting an allergist or asthma doctor.

For people who love eating food, it is very hard to believe if about food allergies. Most of the time, we don’t even realize that there could be allergic reactions because of food substances. Even in the movie Hitch, Will Smith didn’t realize that he was allergic to a vegetable. At times you might not even realize it for long period because you might not have consumed that food substance. So how do you find out that you are allergic to certain food substances?

Allergist

The first and foremost thing to do is to contact an allergist. An allergist could help you take proper precautions and do the test. There is no magical way to diagnose allergies. There are certain tests that are done to find out what reacts with your body. It is not necessary that there will be skin allergy. Reaction could be anything, and from any substance. It could be from the food substance itself or from its seeds.

Skin Test

Skin test is the most effective test, though it may sound a little barbaric. But this is the most effective way to test any kind of allergy. The allergist injects the allergen or tests different known allergens to check for reactions. They do it in a controlled environment so the situation doesn’t go from bad to worse.

Blood Test

There are certain tests that can define if the body is allergic. A certain metric value or range of lgE would determine the reaction value. The allergist would measure the amount of lgE antibody in the blood. This test if done by a certified pathologist could give accurate results, but then it is not the accurate measure of the allergy.

Allergies could vary from person to person. And the reaction too can be very different from person to person. It is not necessary that if one person get scales on skin by touching bitter gourd then someone else would also have the same reaction. There could be different reactions and from different parts of the same food substance. So it is very necessary that an allergist is consulted and then remedies followed. For allergies, though, precaution is the best cure, and after consulting with allergy doctor, you can also go for medications that can work as a safeguard.

Allergies can be miserable and can turn your life into misery. If you are too fed up with your allergies, you should probably consult a concerned professional and know their cause, symptoms and ways to get rid over them. Through proper allergy testing by doctors, make sure you receive the right treatment so that it does not have an ill effect over your health.

Importance of trained allergists

Trained doctors or the professionals such as the allergists and immunologists know how to deal with such circumstances and are skilled in dealing with serious and mild allergy cases like asthma and others. As these allergists are meant to deal with these diseases, they are certified by specific examinations and therefore it is safe to trust them with your problems. You need to help them out for understanding your case so that they can reciprocate in return well.

How doctor’s supervision helps?

The tests that are required to be performed are done either through skin or blood. They do so either by applying some solution to your skin with the help of a pad for 72 hours or by pricking through your skin. The blood test is carried out to get access to the allergens present in your blood that are responsible for your allergies.

Once the doctor finds out the beast, he further works on handling it getting removed from your body fluids. With the known symptoms he will be able to understand your situation well and will work towards improving it. Allergies can be with the pet’s hair, pollen seeds, latex and prove to be dangerous beyond your imagination.

Periodically, the supervision would be under observation of your doctor and may carry forward to primary doctor to get the situation under control.

If your allergies are beating you enough to make your life miserable, find a good allergist in your area right soon and set the appointment before the condition becomes out of control. Don’t be a sufferer or avoid your problems and tolerate them silently, consult a good doctor to identify the allergen and you can lead a normal life without dealing with them.

People are suffering from nasal allergies like never before, thanks to the increasing pollution and temperature variations. The allergy may be seasonal or year round. Nasal allergies are considered the most common chronic respiratory disease. No wonder you see so many allergy clinics these days. The itching and sensitive nose could cause uncomfortable situations in day to day life. The materials that cause itching and sensitive nose are called allergens. They are usually pollen, dust mites, mold, certain foods, animal dander, latex etc. These allergens sensitize the nasal mucosal membrane through a sensitization process, which typically involves macrophages, lymphocytes and mast cells.

How can you avoid nasal allergy?

Nasal allergy is basically caused by allergens. Hence try to keep your surroundings, house and room very clean. People who are allergic to road or field dust should wear a mask while venturing out of the house. House dust mites are a major allergic component. Mites live in mattresses containing cotton fillers or kapok hence; replace it with foam rubber encased with durable impermeable material. Nasal allergy doctors suggest keeping your blankets and pillows dust and mites free. Make sure to vacuum clean your house frequently. Allergy is also caused by animal dander. If you have any pets you will have to get rid of them. If it still does not better your condition after a period of time, you can take up immunotherapy.

What do do in case of nasal allergy?

Pollen released from the tree or grass can cause nasal infections too. It travels in air and is unavoidable. People with hay fever should not live with windows and doors closed. They can take a short period of systemic steroid treatment, which will keep them normal during the pollen season. To avoid pollen outdoors wear filtration mask or make sure you have taken antihistamine medicine before going out. You can reduce pollens inside the house by installing electrostatic air cleaner, HEPA Filters, air conditioning, dehumidifier, humidifier and ionizer. People with asthma or nasal allergy can find relief by breathing moist air to avoid drying up of nose and bronchial passages. These tips can relieve you from nasal allergy symptoms only temporarily. Visit to the allergy doctor nearby should be planned if the symptoms are high.