Hay Fever
Exclusive Hay Fever Course
Overcome Hay Fever Symptoms
Discover practical strategies and helpful advice to to overcome hay fever symptoms with our exclusive Hay Fever Course.
You gain the tools needed to regain control over allergies while still enjoying outdoor adventures, even during pollen season.
Take your summers back and learn how to control your hay fever symptoms with this course!
Exclusive Hay Fever Course
Overcome Hay Fever Symptoms
Discover practical strategies and helpful advice to to overcome hay fever symptoms with our exclusive Hay Fever Course.
You gain the tools needed to regain control over allergies while still enjoying outdoor adventures, even during pollen season.
Take your summers back and learn how to control your hay fever symptoms with this course!
Exclusive Hay Fever Course
Overcome Hay Fever Symptoms
Discover practical strategies and helpful advice to to overcome hay fever symptoms with our exclusive Hay Fever Course.
You gain the tools needed to regain control over allergies while still enjoying outdoor adventures, even during pollen season.
Take your summers back and learn how to control your hay fever symptoms with this course!
What is Hay Fever?
Hay fever affects around 10-15% of children and 25% of adults.
It occurs when the immune system reacts in an abnormal manner to something which should be harmless eg. Grass pollen.
These produce classic hay fever symptoms when someone is exposed to the pollen in the environment of itchy eyes, watery eyes, eye swelling, sneezing and congestion. Some individuals also experience an itchy throat, palate or ears. For some, when they touch the pollen, it may trigger hives (urticaria) or swelling. Individuals who have asthma, may find that if they have a pollen allergy, their asthma symptoms become worse during the pollen months.
What types of things can you be allergic to?
In the UK we tend to have clear seasons for pollen which can help a person work out what they are allergic to.
Tree pollen tends to occur from around April to June time, with grass pollen then taking over until late July.
In addition to tree and grass pollen, some people can also be allergic to moulds, weeds and shrubs and rapeseed.
These are all allergens (substances that someone is allergic to) that can be identified with an allergy test. If you want to find out what type of hay fever you have, book in with Dr Helen Allergy today.
What age does Hay Fever start at?
Most people do not become sensitised to pollens until around the end of primary school.
Pollen allergy tends to become more pronounced during the teenage years, however, there are some individuals who are affected early, from the age of 3 or 4 years.
Is Hay Fever getting worse?
Unfortunately, the answer to this is yes…
Due to changes in our climate, the pollen count seems to be increasing year on year and therefore more people than ever are being affected with symptoms which may range from mild and occasional, to severe – affecting sleep, quality of life and concentration levels.
Studies have shown that individuals with hay fever tend to achieve lower GCSE and A-level results as their symptoms can have a significant impact on their ability to study and perform in exams, especially when these are held during the Spring and Summer months. Improving hay fever symptoms is vital to prevent asthma exacerbations and to improve someone’s quality of life.
Measures to avoid Hay Fever
Reducing exposure to pollens is important to help an individual manage their symptoms. This is obviously not always possible but there are some simple measures which can be taken.
Avoiding spending long periods of time outside during pollen season would be sensible and if you have been out, having a shower may help remove pollen from your skin and hair.
Drying clothes indoors rather than outside on a washing line will reduce exposure and wearing wrap around glasses can help protect your eyes against pollen.
If you are walking your dog during pollen season, then it would be sensible to wash them with an anti-allergy shampoo to minimise contact with pollens.
Hay Fever Medications
If avoidance measures alone are insufficient to manage someone’s symptoms, there are several medications which may be used such as:
- Saline nasal rinses
- Antihistamine medications
- Nasal steroid sprays
- Eye drops
For patients with hay fever symptoms which have not improved with traditional medications, or those who wish to change the path of their allergy and not have to manage symptoms with medication, immunotherapy is likely to be a good choice.
Immunotherapy is generally known as 'desensitisation'
The body is exposed to a small amount of grass pollen (and/or tree pollen) in order to change the way the immune system reacts to something which is meant to be harmless. It is the only medication which has the potential to ‘cure’ the allergy and is available for pollens, house dust mite and some animals like cat, dog and horse.
Patients wishing to have immunotherapy will need a full assessment by Dr Helen to check that this is appropriate for them.
It is usually started several months outside of pollen season, otherwise it increases the risk of side effects from the medication. It is given as a dissolvable tablet, drop or spray and benefit is usually seen after just 8-14 weeks. The treatment needs to be continued for three years in order for the benefit to be sustained long term.
Grass pollen immunotherapy has been used for many years and offers a real opportunity to change someone’s life.
Pollen Desensitisation
Dr Helen offers oral immunotherapy to grass pollen, tree pollen, weeds and moulds.
Immunotherapy should be started several months outside of pollen season otherwise your symptoms may be unmanageable to begin with.
Many patients with pollen allergies feel so desperate that they end up having yearly injections with a steroid injection. This is an unsafe practice which is no longer approved by NICE.
It has immediate risks of infection and fat necrosis from the injection (causing a dimple to form at site of injection) and longer term risks of growth suppression, immune suppression and avascular necrosis of the hip (this results in painful arthritis of the joints).
Steroid injections are not a long-term solution whereas for the right person, oral immunotherapy offers the opportunity of permanent change and improvement.
Improvement with oral immunotherapy is usually seen within 8-14 weeks. A dissolvable tablet or spray is taken daily and continued for three years otherwise the benefit is not maintained.
Some forms of immunotherapy are licensed from the age of 2 years. Dr Helen will discuss which form is suitable in each case.
Pollen Food Syndrome
What is Pollen Food Syndrome?
Pollen Food Syndrome (previously known as Oral Allergy Syndrome) is a hypersensitivity reaction that occurs to fruits, vegetables and with some nuts (not pistachio nuts, cashew nuts or brazil nuts).
Pollen food syndrome occurs due to a cross reaction of the pollen with these foods.
In their raw forms, the protein of these foods looks like the protein of pollen. The body can not distinguish between the two, and essentially believes you are eating pollen (which someone is allergic to).
It triggers oral symptoms of itching, tingling, lip swelling and sometimes a rash only around the mouth.
Symptoms of Pollen Food Syndrome
For most patients, especially those who were born and raised in the UK, the symptoms will not progress further than this.
Anaphylaxis is extremely rare but any symptoms which are not localised to the mouth, need to be analysed by a specialist.
Individuals with Pollen Food Syndrome find that they are able to eat the food when it is heated, for instance, a person may not be able to tolerate a raw apple but could have apple juice as the apple will have been heated and pasteurised.
The reason this occurs is because this changes the way the protein now looks to the body and therefore it not longer looks like pollen, and doesn’t trigger a reaction.
What causes Pollen Food Syndrome?
These reactions can occur at any age and classically, people will find they always used to eat the food without issue. This is something which usually develops through teenage years or early adulthood.
Pollen food syndrome affects around half of those who have tree pollen allergies. The foods involved will vary from person to person and an individual does not need to remove all fruits and vegetables from their diet, only the ones which are causing issue.
Common foods which cause this are apples, peaches, cherries, kiwis, carrots, potatoes, hazelnuts and peanuts. Remember, genuine food allergies can also occur with these foods so please consult a health professional to be sure of the diagnosis.
For any allergy questions or issues that you know or even think you may have contact us as soon as you can so you can get the correct diagnosis and treatment
For any allergy questions or issues that you may have, contact us as soon as you can so you can get the correct diagnosis and treatment
