Hay fever cures?

[rich59]

As a long term sufferer (years and months of the year) I look out for anything that helps. While I do thorougly indulge in the medicines I am always hopeful of anything else that will do as good if not better.

Last year I spent much of the spring with my hands in soil and had my best season yet.

This year on 2 bushcraft weekends I got the impression that picking and eating nettles seemed associated with lesser symptoms. I could be kidding myself of course.

Anyone else noted things that seem to help?

 

[Salix]

Rich,

I too am a prolific sufferer of the demon pollen, and possibly have the worst job for a sufferer. Last year though i did not suffer a single sniffle, i waited and waited but nothing came. I had no medication at all. The only thing that i had done differently is to have a teaspoon of locally produced honey on my weetabix in the morning, and this was a dietry choice. So get some local honey, apparantly it has to be produced within a few miles of where you are though.

Mark

 

[JohnC]

Ive heard of the honey cure, & I believe it has to started well in advance.. Each year I try to remember to do it but forget.

 

[andyn]

The honey suggestion is a very interesting thought.

I've found that chewing on a leaf of a plantain clears up any hayfever symptons, looks like a basil leaf with a tail sticking up.

 

[BorderReiver]

Commercial link

Try to find a local bee keeper and ask about this stuff.

 

[Toadflax]

I'm in the same boat - and the hayfever season seems to keep extending each year - certainly I start taking the tablets much earlier that I used to do.

If you use the 'proper' medication (I use cetirizine) I find that it is worth shopping around. I get packs of 30 Numark cetirizine tablets for cheaper than a prescription, and much cheaper than the more well know branded names (e.g. Zirtek).

I am trying local honey for the first time this year, but can't report any significant improvement yet.

I also bought a couple of packs of 'hayfever tea' from PurpleSage.org.uk (this is a commercial herbal supplier and I have no affiliation with them), though when I got them I see that this is just a mix of four herbs (can't remember what they are but it includes nettle - I can check tonight if anyone wants to know). I haven't tried this yet.


Geoff

 

[Moff8]

I started taking local honey last year and found it made quite a bit of difference to me compared to my work colleagues.

I also read an article about work being carried out in regards to infecting yourself with worms. Apprently their abiity to suppress your immune systems response can really help those with severe allergies.

 

[Fenlander]

I'm not aware of nettles helping, but chewing Greater Plantain leaves certainly does Rich (that was the one that I mentioned last weekend).

 

[rich59]

I'm not aware of nettles helping, but chewing Greater Plantain leaves certainly does Rich (that was the one that I mentioned last weekend).

I will certainly try some.

I did an internet search and.... yes loads of references to nettles being good treatment for hay fever.

 

[Toadflax]

The hayfever tea I bought contains eyebright, elderflower, nettle and peppermint.

As I said earlier, I haven't tried it yet.



Geoff

 

[gregorach]

The local honey approach is widely recommended, and I think it works, but it can be very hard to judge the effectiveness of a hayfever remedy. I find my symptoms vary a lot from year to year and from allergen to allergen, and I'm pretty sure that hayfever is quite suceptible to the placebo effect - the worse you think it is, the more you feel it. All of that added together makes it very hard to judge if somethings working if it doesn't work immediately - the "proper" antihistamines definitely work, because you can take them in the middle of an attack and feel them kicking in. I'm always interested in other remedies though...

 

[Ketchup]

When I suffered, I used to find some relief in a sandwich with lots of raw onion and freshly ground black pepper.

Keep courage. I lost my hay fever 25 years ago when I moved to the tropics. It never came back afterwards. Change country for some time

 

[gregorach]

Now that's an interesting point. I know my hayfever has never been as bad as it used to be since spending a year in Australia...

 

[Pignut]

Honey for me up untill a couple of years ago I needed an inhailer eye drops and tablets to "help" then started on local honey and have never had another symptom since!

 

[xylaria]

I swear by local honey too.
As you are in london ;http://www.organicdelivery.co.uk/shopfront/shoppingaisle.php?aisle=16
or freightliners farm in Islington make and sell there own honey. Tastes like the smell of highbury though.

 

[torjusg]

Infesting yourself with hookworm will supposedly cure any type of autoimmune ailment. This includes allergies and astma.

 

[xylaria]

Infesting yourself with hookworm will supposedly cure any type of autoimmune ailment. This includes allergies and astma.

I prefer to eat honey

 

[Toddy]

Infesting yourself with hookworm will supposedly cure any type of autoimmune ailment. This includes allergies and astma.

Anyone got any more information on this? Right now my rheumatoid arthritis is bad and I can't get it to settle down, if I knew a dose of worms would stop it permanently I'd find some way to deal with any potential problems.
Do we get hookworms in this country? aren't they a tropical fecal thingie having second and third thoughts about this now.

cheers,
Toddy

 

[gregorach]

I think it's still at the early stages of research... And I'm not at all sure that any effect would be permanent.

As for more better info, your choice is between gushing press releases, "altie" medical sites, and proper scientific papers that you can't read without paying for...

Most of the hype I've heard for this is based on one man's anecdotal experiences, which you can read here. Not for the faint-hearted.

 

[dwardo]

Free bump for the thread as im suffering at the min.

It just isnt fair i want be upto my eyeballs in dirt digging for pignuts/Pain in the A** nuts as i like to call them but instead my eyes and my nose running so fast a footie player couldnt keep up with it This coupled with uncontrollable sneezing burning throte and even grass ****** make red marks on my legs .

But you can bet ill do it again tomorrow

Im off to loch awe for a few days soon so does anyone know if we cursed pollen dodgers get less of a hammering the further north ?

Yours hopefuly dwardo