Seasonal Allergic Rhinitis

Question: I have non-allergic rhinitis. Isn't there something I can use? I too have acute non-allergic rhinitis. I have had it for 4 years now. It just started up. At first I thought it was my seasonal allergies; but it wasn't that as I continued to have the need to cough up mucus etc. My doctor says there is no cure. I have tried antihistomines. I find that when I am very busy doing something I don't have the same intensity of "fits" as it were. I am afraid of going to the library, the store and even church because I have to almost continuely use my hanky to cover my mouth as I try to cough up something.When I sleep I sleep with an elevated pillow. Nothing seems to lesson my problem. And, it adds to my depression. I am a disabled veteran, living alone. I'd love to resume going to church; but I do not want the stares or looks of people even when I try to suppress my need to cough up anything. And yes, I have tried suppressants. I am 56 years old. I take ritalin, effexor, vicodin and use an inhaler for my asthma. Can anyone help? I live only on social s

Answer: I had the same problem for years. And as I found out it has to do with diet, and not with lack of drugs. There's a couple of things that will help you get rid of. First avoid all dairy. No milk, cheese, cream, yogurt, ice cream. Increase the amount of raw vegetables you eat, and drink fresh green vegetable juice (avoid carrot and beat), I recommend 1 litre per day. If you drink alcohol try to drink less, cut down on smoking if you do smoke, and avoid sodas. If you do this for a month you'll feel way better.

Question: Allergy question? I have been seeing an allergist since 3/06. I have allergies to some dust and a few tree pollens causing seasonal allergic rhinitis. I am taking singulair, allegra, and astelin. I was getting injections twice a week but have stopped those on my own. Paying $50/week in copays is a bit excessive. I have done fine for the past month with meds alone. Have I built up an immunity or is it just because the meds are working and allergy season is over? The allergist still seems to insist I try to get the injections. Why do I need them if I'm taking allergy meds? Has anyone else done these injections? Do they work or is it a scam to get money? I live in CT by the way. This is supposedly the worst year ever here for allergies. Thanks for your help with this.

Answer: The injections, the theory that in order to build immunity you must be repeatedly exposed to the allergen, is a favorite of the medical community. My daughter and my mother have had the shots. I suppose it helped to a degree with their allergies but both kept taking allergy meds so as you say, which was it, the shots or the meds, that helped? I have never taken the shots even though I am violently allergic to mold. I just try to stay out of mold as much as possible and take a daily OTC 24 hour allergy med every day. My theory (and I am an RN) is to strengthen your own immune system to be able to handle allergens better. Do this by eating a good diet of mostly fresh vegetables, fruits, whole grains and beans-soy products. Exercise regularly 5 days a week for 1 hour, brisk walking is good. Get enough sleep. And I take a few herbs such as Neem and Eleuthero to boost my immunity. It works pretty well for me. I live on The Mississippi Gulf Coast and we have an outbreak of black mold from Katrina. I have handled it better than I expected I would. Good luck and I hope you find your own way to deal with your allergies.

Question: Is it abnormal for my WBC count to not be elevated when I am fighting a cold and seasonal allergies? I know that when the body is fighting an infection, the white blood cell count should increase. I caught a cold and became symptomatic on Monday, had my blood drawn on Thursday (still having symptoms of the cold as well as some allergic rhinitis/conjunctivitis symptoms) but my WBC count was only 5.5k. Within the normal range for sure, but it seemed to me that my count should be higher due to the infection. Is it okay that it did not elevate? I should add that I'm currently undergoing a lot of tests because I get frequent infections so they're analyzing my immune system. I am wondering if the fact that my WBC count did not spike could be a clue?

Answer: As a health care provider and person with PIDD, I concur with the earlier answer, that viruses and allergies do not trigger an increase in WBC's. I would encourage you, if you're not already, to go to an IMMUNOLOGIST. Unfortunately, people with frequent infections often get sent to infectious disease specialists and, unless they are also immunologists, they may not be the best at getting to the bottom of the problem.

Question: I have severe seasonal allergies......? I have painful sinus infections all year around, chronic rhinitis, im allergic to pollen, mold, household dust, all grasses, smells like gasoline, pesticides, even strong cleaning products like clorox, I use to take shots for 2-3 years and then stopped for a while, if I start again, would it be from the beginning or where I left off? Do I have to take the skin test again, the first time I had a bad reaction to the skin test and started throwing up some kind of foam. Im kinda scared of going thru it again, but Im 42 and tired of these allergies getting the best of me 1 or 2 a month im in bed for 3 days in pain.

Answer: You will most likely have to start from square one but only your allergist can confirm what their policy is. In the mean time be sure are taking a good multivitamin that is well absorbed by your body and a good antioxidant supplement to help prevent future sinus infections for good. Take a good grape seed extract for your allergies. Get rid of ALL of your toxic household cleaning and laundry products as these are most likely making you sick too. Many are registered pesticides. Replace them all with all natural cleaners. You must take the old products to your toxic waste disposal place to get rid of them as it is illegal to put them out in your regular trash as they are considered toxic waste. Once you get rid of them all have someone come in and clean your entire home with the new products including scrubbing the carpets and furniture and do all the laundry in the new products. Be sure you run a good air purifier either in each room or a one on your central heating/cooling system.

Question: Does anyone suffer as much as I do from allergies/sinus pain? Every day, regardless of season, place, weather, etc., I suffer hopelessly (having a partner who smokes like a chimney is no help, either!) I have a severe case of allergic rhinitis, and unless I take an Allegra or sth similar, I sneeze all day long, with a runny/itchy nose. If by any chance my nose is not running, then inevitably I suffer from sinus pain on my head/neck/shoulders, which necessitates taking painkillers. So unless I take a drug of one sort or another, I continue to live in misery. Does anyone have similar problems? I am sure there are people suffering from headaches and allergies, but I mean on a continual (non-seasonal) basis like mine. Different doctors gave me different (and sometimes conflicting!) advice ranging from correction of the deviation of the septum to removal of nasal polyps to allergy shots (which I had had for about 3 years to no avail!) to post nasal drip regulation, etc. Did anyone go thru any of these procedures, and more importantly, did it help? Thx

Answer: Yes, I too suffer from the same kind of allergies. I have had 2 surgeries to "fix" this problem. But nothing has helped. I take allergy meds, pills and nasal sprays everyday. But that also does not help. One of the surgeries I had they went in and scrapped my sinus and removed my uvula, and also removed part of my soft palate. But nothing has helped. But if you find something that does help Please let me, know what it is. Thx

Question: Has anyone had a false-negative on a skin allergy test? I have had allergies all my life. I have horrible seasonal allergies that I can barely make it through without large doses of Benadryl and Nasonex, and I can no longer touch cats because every time I do I start sneezing and breaking out in a red, itchy rash. Today I went to see an allergist for the first time and had two skin allergy tests done, one was a scratch test on my back and the other was a subdermal allergy test where they stick the needle under your skin and inject a little pocket of allergen under the skin. The scratch test showed absolutely no allergies whatsoever, and the subdermal test showed only one very mild allergy to mold. So, what gives?? I KNOW for a fact that I am allergic to cats, and I have had seasonal allergies since I was very young. My allergist says it's "non-allergic rhinitis" but I don't buy that for a second. How would that explain the sneezing and itching around cats, or the need for antihistamines during allergy season? Wouldn't antihistamines NOT work for me if I didn't have allergies? Is it possible that these skin tests were false negatives? Does that happen with skin tests? I have always heard they were very accurate, but now I'm having serious doubts about the validity of this test. Any answers or suggestions would be appreciated. Thanks!

Answer: Skin prick tests are often quite unreliable. It depends on the professional administering the test as to how sensitive they are with it (I recently had one and every single allergen swelled up into hives, because of this the nurse only took the biggest hives to be an allergic reaction...) Maybe get a RAST blood test done? I had that done and it can tell you exactly how allergic you are to certain things. Although I only had that done for food so I don't know if they can do it for other allergies... Talk to a doctor :)

Question: How/Why do allergies develop with age? I am 30, didn't have any allergies as a child, and come from a relatively large family (I'm have 3 younger biological siblings and 3 adopted siblings). About 11 years ago I started developing seasonal allergies when I moved to a new state. About 6 years ago I developed allergies to cats, some breeds of dogs. My pit bull doesn't bother me, but a lab will have my head stuffed up in minutes. I've had cats, dogs, rabbits (and many other kinds of animals) since I was born. About 4-5 years ago my sensitivity to insect bites got worse. Mosquito bites, for example, will leave welts about the size of a half dollar on me. I take claritin in the morning, benedryl and zyrtec at night and have started using flonase daily because my allergic rhinitis has been triggering migraines. I also have become allergic to sulfa drugs this past year, which I've taken many times over the years for UTI's (started getting them when I was 2). I've been trying to figure out what causes allergies to develop as we age, but can't find anything that makes much sense to me. Most things I've found suggest that allergies increase with age if you have allergies as a child, or are from a small family. Any suggestions? My iron levels are fine, and I take a multivitamin daily with additional vitamin C and zinc. My hormone levels are pretty much where they should be too, I had those checked last year. Thanks for the suggestions though!!

Answer: Chronic infections and environmental factors can weaken your immune system which can make allergies worse. You can test your immune system by getting blood tests for IgM. IgG and IgA. My immune system weakened after I had repeated dental problems and worked in a foundry. My IgM is well below normal and has been that way for years. It's also the same time I started getting allergies. They also started when my iron levels were low. I corrected the iron, but I still get swelling when I eat wheat/yeast. The swelling is worse when I have a cold. I would get your iron levels checked so that they are at the top of the normal range. I would also take vitamin C to strengthen your immune system. You also may want to start eating honey from a local bee keeper. This could help with your seasonal allergies and insect bite allergy. One more thing to look into is your hormone levels. I've read that low testosterone can cause hives. Woman also need a balance of hormones so that you don't have estrogen dominance. I don't understand this subject, but I would try to research it. Search "estrogen dominance"

Question: i have Seasonal Allergic Rhinitis is there is any probleme if i buy a dog? plz hlp me ......................thank for all your answers HOW CAN I know if i have allergic from dogs??????? plzzzzzzzzzzz helppppp meeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee ???????????????????!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!…

Answer: Seasonal allergic rhinitis is just that - it's not a dog allergy. However, if you have a history of allergies (or even just a family history), get tested before you buy a dog. They also say that some breeds are less allergic than others. Make sure you do your homework. Good luck!