Herbs for Spring Allergies

Did you know that you can use herbs for spring allergies?  As I mentioned the other day, spring is the time for new beginnings.  The plants begin to flower and now we have pollen which for many creates heavy, stuffy heads, watery, itchy eyes and so much more.  

Instead of grabbing for an allergy pill you may want to use herbs and foods to both alleviate the symptoms in addition to helping to eliminate the problem. An important piece of the puzzle in dealing with respiratory allergies is the food portion.  What I have seen is that when people eliminate many of the common food allergens that their allergies tend to be lessened or eliminated.  The most common of these are dairy products, gluten, refined foods, sugar and citrus fruits.  By eliminating many of these from your diet you may see a change.

Adding wild foods to your diet helps to build your immune system.  What do I mean by “wild foods”?  Dandelion greens, violet leaves, garlic mustard and chickweed are some of the many wild foods you can just walk outside your home, pick some leaves and put them in your salad or sautés.  (If you don’t know what they look like, make sure to find a local person who can show you.  If you live in the NY area, I’ll be doing a wild weed walk on May 11th at Hilltop Hanover Farms)

I recommend that if you’ve been challenged with seasonal allergies in the past, try drinking nettles infusions or taking freeze dried nettles for 6 weeks prior to allergy season.  You can start now and even begin to eat fresh nettles that are cooked or made into delicious soups.  Nettles is high in Vitamin A & C and is filled with protein.  During the allergy season many find that drinking 2-3 cups of nettles tea per day gives them great relief. 

Got clogged up sinuses – goldenrod tincture works like a charm. It helps clear out the inflammation and mucus. Got runny eyes also, eyebright is a great option.  You can take it as a tincture or by drinking the tea. 

Now I haven’t used this, but my sister who lives in Seattle and began having awful spring allergies was recommended to use a homeopathic product called Bioallers.   She told me that it worked so fast and really helped remove the allergic symptoms.  If you try it please let me know what you think? If you have other ideas for getting rid of spring allergy symptoms please share them below and let me know what your thought are in the comments section. I'd love to hear from you.