Managing allergies

I went through a number of years of having severe allergies. However, I was eventually able to largely cure myself; today I’m 90% better than I used to be.  A few things I learned along the way that might be helpful:

• Allergies are, of course, an immune system issue; immune system support is therefore essential. In addition to avoiding allergens, it's also critical to reduce your exposure to toxins.  Even micro amounts that wouldn't bother a healthy person can be very damaging to the immune system.  This includes things like pesticides, formaldehyde, perfumes, cleaning compounds, etc.

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• Long-term allergies are almost always associated with poor nutrient status.  Magnesium, in particular, is extremely important, but so are all micronutrients. "Natural Calm" is a good source of magnesium. A good broad-spectrum multivitamin can be extremely helpful, even though they can take a very long time to have a full effect (on the order of several years). "Beyond Any Multiple" (BAM) is a good one.


• The combination of the above two items means that supplement and food selection is very important: organic, pesticide-free food is crucial.  The issue with supplements is one of purity and freedom from microcontaminants.  Brands such as Thorne, Jarrow, Carlson, Now and Country Life are good.  I’ve had terrible luck with Twin Labs and Allergy Research Group.


• Myself and many of my highly-allergic friends (but not everyone) have found certain "neutralizers" to be extremely valuable.  These are temporary quick-fix things you can do to turn off an acute allergic reaction.  The one that works best for me is Alka Seltzer Gold.  It works is by rapidly alkalinizing the body, which has a normalizing effect on the immune system. I can be feeling absolutely terrible, exhausted, brain fogged, ready to collapse, and 5 minutes after consuming the Alka Gold, I feel completely normal.


• You might consider having yourself checked for heavy metals.  High levels can have a very damaging effect on the immune system.


• Yeast overgrowth can be another issue.  The yeast can cause the gut wall to become leaky, so that small particles of food enter the blood, which then provokes allergies.  A very low carb or even zero carb diet (Paleo or Paleo-like) can be a big help there, although you may also need to take an anti-yeast medicine such as Nystatin for a while to completely clear yourself out.


• Hormone levels are another thing that often seems to get tweaked when allergies flare up.  In my experience, they often seem to be a precursor to more severe health issues.  Thyroid issues, in particular, are very common—probably in part as a result of not getting enough iodine, which is already low in most people’s diet.  There’s a negative feedback loop here, because you also need adequate levels of thyroid hormone in order to be able to absorb nutrients from your food.  Testing and diagnosis of thyroid levels is (surprisingly) a bit controversial.  One easy at-home test is to measure your basal body temperature, before you get out of bed in the morning.  If it’s more than a degree low, that is almost certainly indicative of a thyroid problem.


• Active detox programs can help to significantly speed up recovery time.  They aren’t fun, though.