THE NOT-SO-SILENT SPRING 17 Tips to Beat the Season's Sneezes

by Val H. Tompkins and Beth Witrogen McLeod

"Poor, dear, silly Spring, preparing her annual surprise," wrote poet Wallace Stevens.

He obviously never lived in East Contra Costa County during allergy season.

This is the time of year when the winds start picking up, the sun starts shining a while longer, and spring showers fuel the growth of flowers, trees, weeds, grasses, and wildflowers — lovely things, but they also mean pollen, dust, molds, pesticides, and various other airborne particles that conspire to make life uncomfortable, if not downright miserable at times.

While many East County families are eagerly planning trips to the Delta or Los Vaqueros Reservoir, picnics in the parks or outings for fresh produce at local farms, other residents will be preparing to deal with spring allergy symptoms. They won't be alone: 35 million Americans are in the same boat, according to the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology.

Let's face it, trying to work or play is not the most enjoyable experience when your sinuses are stuffed, your nose won't stop running, your head is pounding, and you want to tear your eyes out from the itching, not to mention the fever you might be running. Choruses of spring frogs are drowned out by the sneezing, wheezing, hacking and coughing of allergy sufferers.

Is there no relief? Yes – but the truth is, the longer you live in East County, the more likely you are at some point to suffer allergies. Every year about 80 percent of my patients deal with allergy symptoms, some more severe than others, including allergy-induced asthma attacks. The national average for people getting allergies to some degree is two out of 10, but here in East County, the average is closer to eight out of 10.

But don't lose hope, even when June is busting out all over.

Why The Allergy Rate Is So High
There are two main reasons for East County's abysmally high allergy stats. First are the environmental/chemical stressors. The region's rapid rate of growth — all the new housing and shopping malls, for starters — causes an enormous amount of dust to enter the air. The factories on the Delta waterways fill the air with toxic particles. The exhaust from our gridlock traffic also adds to the mix, and dust on the ground is constantly being kicked into the air by traffic moving along all day.

As if that weren't enough, we still have quite a bit of farmland and open fields in the area. This means enormous amounts of pollen from all the produce grown — not to mention the pesticides used, which in themselves can cause severe allergic reactions, especially in people with asthma. These chemicals enter our waterways from farmland runoff, which add to the toxins that our bodies have to deal with.

There's more: All of this is made even worse by the fact that spring is typically the windiest time of the year here, stirring everything up even more. Many grasses, trees, and weeds have small, light, and dry pollens that love to fly about in the wind. All of our county's beautiful wildflowers — the blue lupines, the yellow mustards — are no exception. Some of the major outdoor allergens that cause reactions at this time of year include birch, oak, sycamore, maple, and cypress trees; and grasses such as Bermuda and timothy.

But the other and maybe more important reason for East County's higher rate of allergies is the physiological factor: stress. Our bodies are constantly exposed to these allergens every day, but because of the high-stress lifestyle we Californians live – the commute and being constantly on the go, for example – we ask a lot from our immune systems. Our diets are a little to a lot poorer than they should be, and our exercise habits leave little to rave about.

The more stress the body is under, the greater the chances that it will break down. Then allergies are just waiting to happen.

So just when you are leaving the winter blahs behind, you get the springtime blues.

What Allergies Are
Allergies are caused by an overstimulation of the immune system. People who have a hyperalert immune system overreact to a substance in the environment called an allergen, which is normally harmless to those with healthy immune systems. However, when a person with a compromised immune system is exposed to one of these allergens — say, pollen — the immune system goes on hyperalert and reacts as if it is as harmful as a poison.

The body first reacts by creating a specific type of antibody, called immunoglobulin, or IgE, to fight the allergen. IgE is actually present in the body anyway in very low levels, but is found in larger quantities in people with allergies. The antibodies then attach themselves to one of the blood cells, called a mast cell. These mast cells just happen to be very common in the areas where allergens enter the body — the airways and the gastrointestinal tract. The overloaded mast cell explodes and releases histamine, which causes inflammation of the local tissues, and thus symptoms like itchiness or a runny nose become prevalent.

If the allergen is an airborne substance like pollen, the allergic reaction will typically occur in the eyes, the nose, and the lungs. An allergen that is ingested — including food substances — will produce a reaction and symptoms in the mouth, the throat, the stomach, and the intestines. Reactions in any of these areas can be mild, moderate, or severe (anaphylactic).

Mild reactions are the most common, and give people local rashes, hives, itchy or watery eyes, runny nose, and some congestion that can lead to sinus headaches. Mild reactions tend to be more localized and don't spread throughout the rest of the body. Moderate reactions do tend to spread, with symptoms such as itchiness and difficulty breathing. Since allergies can lead to other chronic conditions, such as asthma, they are not to be lightly dismissed.

Severe reactions, called anaphylaxis, are actually rare, thankfully. They are a life-threatening emergency in which the body's response to the allergen is sudden, and affects the whole body. Severe reactions tend to start with lighter symptoms like itching, but they quickly progress into more serious symptoms such as swelling, which can make breathing difficult; abdominal pain, cramps, vomiting, diarrhea, mental confusion, and dizziness. A severe reaction can also cause a swift drop in blood pressure, which requires immediate attention to save a life.

Indoor Allergens
Unfortunately for allergy sufferers, it may not help to stay indoors if the home or office environment isn't clean of triggers. For example, kitchens can harbor molds, and houseplants can also promote mold growth. Carpeting and furniture can be dust magnets; and dusty rooms mean dust mites, a common allergen. Cut flowers are pretty, but they can put you in close touch with their pollen. As well, filters and standing water are allergen magnets, and fireplace smoke is an irritant that can worsen allergies.

It is also possible to have allergies and/or sensitivities to certain foods — the most common ones are dairy and wheat products, eggs, yeast, chocolate, fish, and nuts. I have one child patient who is so allergic to peanuts that he gets very ill and begins to have a bad reaction if he even touches a countertop where peanut butter has been. I love crab and shellfish, but as I've gotten older, I can't eat it because I have stronger reactions. My eyes swell shut and I get a rash all down my face and neck.

But there are many things you can do [see sidebar] to lessen the worst of the symptoms, or even prevent them altogether. So take heart: Even if in the spring a young man — or woman's — fancy can't turn to romancing in the outdoors, there is always hope. As another poet, T.S. Eliot said, “April is the cruellest month.” And we're past that now.

© 2004 Wellness for Life. Dr. Val H. Tompkins, D.C., F.I.C.P.A., specializes in pediatric and family wellness. He can be reached at Actus Chiropractic, 1300 Central Blvd., Suite A, Brentwood; (925) 516-2363. Antioch resident Beth Witrogen McLeod is a Pulitzer-nominated journalist and speaker specializing in health issues. You may reach her at witrogen@earthlink.net or www.witrogen.com. Both give talks and workshops on wellness for life.