It is estimated that a whopping thirty six million American’s suffer from seasonal allergies . That means a country full of people walking around with itchy, watery eyes, stuffy noses and sneezing everywhere. Let’s face it: allergies are no fun. And, as there’s no cure for allergies, we simply have to bear with them.

Allergy Treatment

Traditionally, there are three methods to treat allergies : symptom relief, allergen avoidance and allergen desensitization. These methods are as they sound.

• Antihistamines in the form of pills and sprays are used to relieve the itching and sneezing caused by allergies. A common side effect of antihistamines is drowsiness and a lack of clarity, making these medications a minor nuisance for some, and can be much more debilitating for others.
• Allergen avoidance is a great idea in theory, but if you are one of the many who are allergic to numerous outdoor allergens , avoidance can be difficult.
• Allergen desensitization can be helpful, but usually takes a couple of years to be effective. Your doctor will inject small amounts of known allergens into your skin periodically, which provokes an immune system response. In time, you will build up immunity to the allergens.

Current Treatment Is Not Enough

These three methods work well enough for those who suffer from serious seasonal allergies, but are by no means ideal. Every person with allergies will still suffer during allergy season; there is no way to completely avoid the hassle of allergies.

New Research

There are two new seasonal allergy treatment methods in the works right now. These are outlined below.

Vitamin B-12

Vitamin B-12 has been used for decades to help athletes boost energy, mental focus and clarity. Now, research has shown it may also reduce allergy symptoms by 50 percent. The best part is, it’s virtually impossible to overdose on this vitamin; participants in the study took 2,500 times the dose recommended daily and showed a dramatic improvement with no side effects. After six weeks of treatments, the effects lasted for months. Researchers feel this is because vitamin B-12 is an immune system booster.

Pollinex Quattro Vaccine

The Pollinex Quattro vaccine is currently available in Europe, but it still undergoing testing in the U.S. for FDA approval. It is derived from salmonella bacteria which, when administered in small doses, boosts the immune system. The vaccine would be given in four doses over a four week period.

In current studies, only half the participants had mild to moderate reactions, usually just at the injection site. The other half of the participants experienced no reaction. The study reported 70 percent allergen desensitization, and 87 percent or participants had a reduction in allergy symptoms.

http://www.webmd.com/allergies/news/20071114/seasonal-allergy-vaccine-horizon
http://www.mensjournal.com/healthFitness/0604/allergies_b12.html
http://www.webmd.com/allergies/default.htm

Written by Gloria Price for MicroNutra Health™

This entry was posted on Sunday, February 24th, 2008 at 10:30 am and is filed under Allergies, Seasonal Allergies. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.