Sneezing during pollen season and itchy eyes around pets are just two symptoms of allergies that can hinder people’s lives, yet untreated allergies may lead to chronic inflammation that impacts multiple systems within the body.
Allergies occur when a person’s immune system reacts negatively to substances like pollen, bee venom or medicines that would normally be harmless – they can begin during childhood or puberty and even later. They may recur at any age.
Identifying Your Triggers
Allergies result from a hypersensitive immune response to normally harmless substances, leading to symptoms like itchy or watery eyes, sneezing, coughing and wheezing as well as rashes or skin conditions, swelling airways or blocked nose. Common allergens include pollen, dust mites, pet dander and mold which can be inhaled, touched or in swallowed forms.
The body responds to allergens by secreting chemicals such as histamine that cause allergy symptoms. Histamine causes nasal passages to fill up with mucus and fluid, leading to inflammation. Furthermore, histamine causes the cilia that remove allergens out of the nose and throat to become overexcited and less effective at their job of clearing away allergens from these areas.
Over time, allergies can contribute to chronic fatigue and a feeling of unwellness, leading to decreased productivity, stress and anxiety – and in extreme cases even depression due to their impactful symptoms and their daily impact.
First step to treating allergy symptoms effectively is identifying your personal allergy triggers. Keep a symptom diary to record when symptoms occur and what seems to help or hinder their relief. Also important: knowing the difference between allergy- and virus-induced symptoms such as runny nose or itchy eyes so you can seek appropriate treatments.
Staying Away From Triggers
Allergies can make life challenging and limit what activities are available to us, for instance food allergies can prevent us from dining out regularly or trying new foods; cooking every meal becomes necessary, negatively affecting social interactions and health in general. Allergies also prevent us from enjoying outdoor activities during peak allergy seasons and affect school and work performance negatively.
All allergy symptoms start in your immune system, where antibodies act like tags to tag things it identifies as invaders and trigger mast cells to release chemicals like histamines and leukotrienes which cause inflammation throughout the body, eventually leading to allergic reactions.
Avoid allergens as much as possible by reading labels and asking questions when shopping, eating out, and visiting coffee shops (where cross-contamination may be an issue). When wearing medical alert jewelry to warn others that you have allergies, also make sure that fast-acting medication such as an EpiPen is on hand in case an extreme reaction arises.
Understand the relationship between allergies and overall immune system function. Untreated allergies may result in chronic inflammation and poor immunity which puts you at greater risk of infections and other health complications.
Keeping a Diary
Food allergy diaries are written or digital records that allow users to keep track of all they or their child consumes and any symptoms experienced, in order to better diagnose allergy conditions and create more accurate treatments plans. Furthermore, keeping such records can give a clearer picture of which foods affect symptoms for better meal planning decisions.
Always ensure you keep track of what you eat at each meal, along with snacks and drinks throughout the day. Incorporating allergy symptoms in your diary is also highly recommended, since their appearance can change over time. You could even keep track of allergy medication to see whether or not it is effective.
Once you begin keeping a diary, it is crucial that you remain consistent. Set an interval and a time that works best for you each day to write in it; or tag entries so they are easily findable later – Journey makes this easy with its tag system!
Talking to Your Healthcare Provider
If you suffer from allergies, consulting a doctor should be your primary form of relief. They will help alleviate your symptoms and control allergies so you can live the life you deserve.
Allergies are immune system reactions to normally harmless substances that lead to runny noses, itchy skin, sinus congestion, coughing and wheezing – common symptoms among people of all ages.
Some people are predisposed to developing allergies; for others they appear during childhood or puberty. Allergies may become less severe over time or even disappear entirely with age; nonetheless they remain a potential lifetime condition.
Allergies can put you at greater risk for illness. When pollen or pet dander irritates the respiratory passages and nasal cavities, your chances of contracting colds, flus or other illnesses increase significantly.
People with food allergies are at particular risk for reactions. To be at their best and avoid miscommunication between friends, family members, babysitters or caregivers concerning their allergy is key; food allergic patients in a recent survey reported lack of communication as one reason why staff at food establishments didn’t recognize their allergy. But don’t despair; most can learn to cope with allergies while leading full, productive lives; all it takes is having a plan.
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