Combating allergies the Ayurvedic way

Combating allergies the Ayurvedic way

We can suffer an uncomfortable reaction from three types of allergies: food allergies, airborne allergies, and contact allergies. For so many of us, it’s that dreaded time of year for the airborne allergy - Hay fever (seasonal allergic rhinitis)! 

In the UK we are about to get a surge of pollen in our atmosphere over the spring and summer. Do you suffer from symptoms such as runny nose, sneezing, itchy eyes and throat, nasal blockages, difficulty breathing, a heavy head, weakness and fatigue? Then you may suffer from hay fever and it can start anytime. Hay fever, like any allergic reaction is due to a hypersensitivity where the body recognises something that is not normally harmful as harmful and our immune system goes into overdrive to fight this.

From around mid March to mid May we get exposed largely to tree pollen, grass pollen from mid May to mid July and weed pollen from end of June to September. Many of the symptoms first appear in the spring as nature awakens. Regardless of your constitution you could suffer from hay fever so we need to prepare for allergy season long before the symptoms arise but one size does not fit and it certainly isn’t a case of a simply popping an antihistamine when the symptoms show up, we want to consider genetics, your constitution, imbalances, stresses, digestive strength and more.

In Ayurveda, hay fever is mostly a kapha-pitta condition and the treatment of hay fever would differ based on the type of symptoms you display, the root causes based and your dosha imbalance so we can treat using the most suitable herbs, treatments, cleansing methods, dietary and lifestyle changes for lasting results. If you are keen to get on top of your allergies from the roots then join me for a virtual Ayurvedic spring cleanse retreat.

Treating hay fever and most conditions through Ayurveda revolves around strengthening our digestive power, clearing out toxins and balancing the doshas and this is the epicentre of any good ayurvedic seasonal cleanse. We aim to clear what no longer serves the body, mind and emotions but also bring strength, enhance energy and improve the immunity of the body.  Kapha dominates the chest and lung area hence the display of symptoms and the spring season is also dominated by kapha, so the focus of a cleanse at this time centres around the kapha dosha. 

Kapha accumulates in the body over the winter and starts to liquefy in the warmth of spring (often in the form of excess mucous and toxins), which circulates and localises in weak areas of the body.

Kapha dosha has qualities such as heavy, sticky, cold, moist, stable, static, dense and oily. Based on the principle that, like increasing like and opposite balance, we can use foods, treatments and regimes that have the opposite qualities to maintain balance of doshas.

During spring therefore it is best to avoid day sleep, dairy, sour, oily, sweet, heavy and cold foods especially when the weather is changing. Some food examples would be ice-cream, cheese, yoghurt, heavy meats, oats, lots of sweet fruits, excess processed wheat that can be difficult to digest.

This really is our optimal cleansing period and I personalise your cleanse plan and you could benefit from fasting to eliminate toxins by taking a liquid diet with pungent and bitter spices for a set number of days over this season. Spices and herbs useful in hay fever include turmeric, ginger, trikatu, triphala, lemon, cumin, cardamom, cinnamon, honey, black pepper, long pepper, clove, liquorice, camphor, tulsi (holy basil), guduchi, neem and agnimantha. Herbal teas are your seasonal allies as well as a  diet with hot vegetable or lentil soups with spices.

Treatments such as nasya (medicated nasal oil administration) and swedana (steam inhalations) cleanse the nasal passages of accumulated mucous. Regular pranayama practice (breathing exercises) such as nadi shodhana and bhastrika are really useful, as is stimulating the body with surya namaskar (sun salutation). I highly recommend the daily use of a neti pot to cleanse the nasal passages with a warm saline water. You can also stimulate digestion by giving yourself an abdominal massage. These are just a few preventative measures to give you a head start on your seasonal allergies but a good guided seasonal cleanse could just be the ticket to get you set for the spring and summer. 

Overall the aim is to boost immunity and resistance to allergens by focusing on strengthening the digestion. For longer-term hay fever sufferers, pancha karma treatment can help detoxify and expel imbalanced doshas at a deeper level.

Join one of my virtual cleanse retreats to help navigate your your health and wellness the Ayurvedic.