Spring is here. Outside, everything is blooming and fragrant, but your eyes are itchy and your nose is running. This is a problem you share with around 20% of people in Switzerland. The pollen season continues well into summer. But what helps against hay fever? If you do not want to keep taking tablets all the time, why not try a home remedy for hay fever instead? We have collected a few hay fever tips for you.
Alternative Remedies for Hay Fever
Hay fever is truly annoying and makes it hard for many people to really enjoy spring. Conventional hay fever treatment usually involves allergy tablets or nasal drops. However, these only relieve the symptoms; they do not eliminate the immune system's reaction to pollen. Alternative medicine for hay fever can often be a better support instead.
The Best Home Remedy for Hay Fever: Soothe Your Mucous Membranes
When pollen is in the air, your nasal mucosa becomes irritated. Your nose runs or becomes blocked, and your eyes begin to water. This is often accompanied by itching, which in turn leads to sneezing. A steam bath with a saline solution can help here. A steam bath for hay fever soothes your mucous membranes and reduces itching.
You can easily make a saline solution yourself, as all you need is a large pot with 1 litre of water and two teaspoons of salt. Bring everything to the boil and inhale the steam for about 10 minutes. This works best if you place the pot on the table, lean over it and put a large towel over your head.
Hay Fever Treatment: Nasal Rinse
Another excellent home remedy for hay fever: instead of inhaling the saline solution, you can also use it as a nasal rinse. Special nasal rinsing pots are available for this purpose.
Inside the nose there is a thin mucus that normally helps carry pathogens out of the nose. With hay fever, however, the nose is blocked and the mucus cannot loosen properly. Rinsing the nose with a saline solution loosens the thick mucus. The pollen is simply flushed out of the nose.
You can use a saline nasal rinse 2-3 times a day. You take the solution in through one nostril and let it flow out through the other. The result is immediate relief and reduced itching. The nasal rinse moisturises your nasal mucosa, making it harder for pollen to penetrate.
Water as a Hay Fever Treatment
Cool water is a great home remedy for hay fever. It can therefore also help to shower more often during periods of high pollen. Pollen also gets caught in body hair. When you rinse your body with water, the pollen has no chance. By the way, a visit to the sauna can also be a good idea!
If the itching is mainly in the eyes, it can help to wipe them several times a day with a damp cloth or place the cloth over the eyes for a cooling effect. Women should ideally avoid eye make-up during this time.
The herb eyebright can also help with itchy eyes caused by hay fever. Pour boiling water over 2 teaspoons of eyebright and leave it to steep for about fifteen minutes. Then soak a small washcloth in the water and place it on your eyes for fifteen minutes.
Natural Food Supplements and a Balanced Diet for Hay Fever
Natural food supplements can help limit hay fever symptoms. Your diet in general also plays a role.
During pollen season, your body can make especially good use of vitamins C and D. People with many allergic reactions often have a vitamin D deficiency. You get vitamin D by spending plenty of time in the sun, but also through foods such as oily fish, dairy products, shiitake mushrooms and eggs. Vitamin C is found mainly in fruit and vegetables.
Zinc is also often lacking in people with allergies. Make sure that your blood zinc level stays within the normal range. Foods that contain a lot of zinc include oysters, pumpkin seeds and cashew nuts.
Honey from your region often contains the same pollen that you also inhale through the air. If you gradually integrate honey into your diet, your body can develop tolerance. Hay fever symptoms may decrease. Manuka honey also has antibacterial properties. Simply let 1-3 spoonfuls melt in your mouth each day.
Taking nutritional yeast can provide further help with hay fever. The beta-glucans contained in yeast lower your blood sugar level and stimulate your immune system.
When it comes to food supplements, omega-3 fatty acids are a good option. They can help with all kinds of allergies. Organic sulphur is also a good idea, as it has antioxidant effects. It also forms a kind of protective layer on the mucous membranes in the body, so allergens cannot penetrate as quickly. Pollen can no longer dock onto the receptors as easily either. Organic sulphur is therefore a good natural support for hay fever.
More Home Remedies for Hay Fever
Instead of tablets, you can also try water, saline solution and a natural hay fever nasal balm. It is applied at the entrance to the nose and catches pollen before it can penetrate. Nasal balm for hay fever is perfect when you are out and about and can significantly reduce your hay fever symptoms.
Further tips for hay fever include:
- get enough exercise: the mucous membranes receive better blood flow, making them more resistant
- include fasting days to relieve the intestine: food intolerances can additionally have a negative effect on a pollen allergy
- avoid psychological stress: autogenic training or yoga help reduce stress, which can have a positive effect on hay fever
- acupuncture: can help against itching
- change of climate for hay fever: the Baltic and North Sea are ideal for a holiday with hay fever because the high salt content in the air helps prevent mucous membrane irritation
Conclusion: What Helps Against Hay Fever?
Several remedies have proved useful in the natural treatment of hay fever. In addition to hyposensitisation, nasal rinses with saline solution and treatment with acupuncture or medicinal plant products, a lot can improve. Natural food supplements for hay fever can also help. Give it a try and let us know which home remedy for hay fever helped you!
