Hay Fever Blog

A Chinese Medicine look at hay fever and how manage it when Spring arrives

If you suffer from seasonal hay fever, I just know you absolutely despise it! Hay fever is annoying and for some people, can be debilitating and even worse, our bodies can get used to the antihistamine tablets and relief is no where to be found!
Well, let me tell you what can help with hay fever - that’s right, Chinese Medicine. Looking at hay fever and your body in a more holistic way, I use acupuncture and Chinese herbs to help you manage hay fever - so keep on ready if you become an itchy and sneezy person when the weather starts to warm up!

What is hay fever?

Hay fever is an immune response to an external factor. Most seasonal hay fever is caused due to pollens such as grass or tree pollens, but some can also be caused by dust mites and animal dander. These little external factors enter the body and stimulate an allergic reaction in the upper respiratory tract. When these pollens reach the mucous membrane, the body releases histamine, which is a normal immune response, but in the case for many hay fever sufferers, their body releases too much histamine, causing a much larger immune response.

So what causes hay fever according the Chinese Medicine?

There are a few different moving parts happening with hay fever according to Chinese Med. There are external factors and internal factors and the immune system has a big role to play. Your immunity in Chinese Med is governed by the Lung organ system. Your protective Qi is called Wei Qi and this sits just above your skin, like a little protective layer. Your Wei Qi is stronger throughout the day and withdraws and becomes weaker at night time.

Your Wei Qi is produced from the Spleen and Kidney organ system. Without getting into the nitty gritty of Chinese digestive theory, your Spleen is the Yin organ of the digestive system which is like a big bowl of soup. This soup sits on top your Ming Men, your life fire which is governed by the Kidneys. When you eat food, it goes into the soup, is cooked by the fire, and then the pure substance turns into Qi and Blood energy to be transported around the body and the impure parts go to the Large Intestine to be removed from the body. The pure steam which comes off the top of the soup as it cooks, rises up and goes to the Lungs to create your Wei Qi.

So according to Chinese Med, the food you consume and the strength of your digestive system can play a huge role in your immune system, but so can your general overall health, as the Kidney system is responsible for something called Jing. Jing is your life essence. You are only born with so much so you need to protect it to live a long and healthy life. Preserving your Jing is done through healthy diet choices, getting plenty of sleep, having a balanced exercise routine, resting we needing to, managing stress, and not burning the candle at both ends. If your Jing is being used up too much by over doing it, then you don’t create enough life fire (Ming Men) to heat up and the soup and support the digestive system.

From my point of view, I am working on strengthening the Qi of your Lung, Spleen, and Kidney organ systems to build up your defensive Wei Qi. This is all done through regular acupuncture sessions and the use of Chinese herbal formulas specifically designed to work on the underlying root causes and to help with the current signs and symptoms of the hay fever.

What are the most common signs and symptoms of hay fever?

Sneezing
Nasal discharge
Itchy and watery eyes
Runny or blocked nose
Itchy ears, nose, and/or throat
Headaches

Western medication such as anti-histamines and steroid therapy can help bring some relief, however, this isn’t working on the underlying reason to why your body’s immune response is a little over the top.

At home care for hay fever sufferers

There are some things that can be done between sessions of acupuncture to help you lessen the severity of your hay fever. You must remember however, that all these tips need to be started early and continued throughout the time you suffer the most. This is also a natural way of helping yourself, it isn’t Western medicine where you take a tablet and that’s it, this is working on the root issue to your hay fever, it can take a little while.

Diet
To support the Spleen it is recommend to eat foods that are warm and easy to digest. Cold and raw foods slows the digestive system down. Foods that causes too much heat as well as dampness also contribute to the itchiness and snot production.

Foods to avoid:
Alcohol: beer, wine, spirits - causes too much heat
Dairy: milk, cheeses, butter, ice-cream, milk chocolate, yoghurt - causes dampness
Nuts: excessive nuts are damp in nature
Raw food: salads, fruit - slightly steamed and poached is great
Sweet foods: excessive fruit, dried fruits, lollies, cakes, fruit juice, soft drinks
Wheat: bread, pasta, baked goods

These foods are generally apart of an anti-inflammatory diet in Western standards.

Foods to incorporate:
Lung boosting foods - tofu, tempeh and soy milk, pear, apple, barley, turnips, daikon, radishes, cabbage (think sauerkraut)
Spleen boosting foods - lentils, quinoa, oats, root vegetables including sweet potato and taro, pumpkin and other squash, miso soup
Kidney boosting foods - oats, eggs, black beans, aduki beans, black soybeans, black sesame seeds, bone broth, bone marrow, sardines, oysters, seaweed, squash, sweet potatoes, beets, mushrooms, apples, blueberries, blackberries, mulberries, mango, coconut flesh, oil, and cream, almond oil, olive or flaxseed oil

Make your meals warm and easy to digest. Congee is a great breakfast, soups and stews are also perfect. I know the weather gets warmer, but if you are suffering from hay fever, your digestive system isn’t strong and needs to be supported.

Herbal tea
Chrysanthemum flower or ju hua is a commonly used herb in a lot of Chinese herbal formulas for hay fever. Having dried chrysanthemum is handy as it can be drank as a tea but also be used as facial wash as well as an eye compress to help with an itching face and scratchy eyes.

For a cuppa
Take 1 teaspoon of dried chrysanthemum and add to a mug of hot water
Steep for a minute then drink.

For a wash or compress
Take 2 tablespoons of dried chrysanthemum and add hot water
Allow to steep for 10 minutes
Throw out the flowers and keep the tea
Pop it in the fridge and use as a soothing wash once you get home

Nasal washes
If those little aggravating pollens remain in the nasal passages then the immune response will continue to respond. Getting a nasal wash or a neti pot to wash out your nasal passages with saline water once or twice a day will hopefully stop your body from needed to create more histamine. These can be found at your chemist or health food store.

Don’t over do it
Getting a good amount of sleep and lowering your stress can help with lowering inflammation in your body as well as protecting your Jing.
Stress can be managed through rest, gentle exercise, and meditation.
Taking time for yourself and creating a good work/life balance is important of overall health.

How Acupuncture and Chinese herbs help?

Oh the herbs that I have to help with hay fever. They are so good, I have texting, asking me to order more in and put them aside for them. Then, like all acupuncture, I work out the root cause of why you might be suffering from hay fever and work on those organ systems, strengthening and tonifying them to help your Qi to be stronger. Working on your immune system is my number one priority.

Here’s the thing though YOU MUST START TREATMENT FOR YOUR HAY FEVER IN WINTER TIME! Diet and lifestyle changes that happen pre Spring will also help with that sneezy time of the year!

So if you are an itchy and scratchy person get yourself booked in for some acupuncture and let me help your defensive Qi!

x Stay warm
Dr Alice

Written by a human
AI is great, but I treat from the heart so I may as well communicate from the heart - expect spelling and gramma mistakes, human, not perfect x