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Managing Pollen Reactions

We are so fortunate to live in such a beautiful place. Unfortunately, for many people, spring is a time of suffering due to reactions to the pollen in the air. And, it seems as if the past few years have been particularly difficult.

Patterns for the Pollens

Every spring has its own unique pollen profile. This is due to a number of factors related to rainfall amounts, normal cycles of flowering plants and trees, and even winds. Individual reaction to the pollen in the air is also unique. A person’s immune system, amount of exposure over the years to a particular kind of pollen, exposure to pesticides and other toxins and even the food the person eats are all factors in how any particular person responds to our springtime pollen.

For many people, drinking more water and eliminating dairy products is one way to decrease reactions to pollen. In our office we use several additional approaches to help our patients eliminate pollen discomfort.

Pollen changes from week to week. One of the first things we do is to find out exactly what pollen the patient is reacting to. We also have the patient put a bowl of water outside for at least 4 days and bring the sample to our office. The sample will have the exact kind of pollen that is in their environment for that week. We use the water sample to test if they are reacting to that particular group of pollen. If they are sensitive, we use a gentle technique to balance your system to help decrease the reactive to that group of pollen.

This past January, I used this technique on myself. I found myself reacting to some new pollens in the air and after collecting the pollen for four days I cleared myself and my symptoms resolved.

Because of the increase in our exposure to pesticides and other toxins, especially in foods, many patients need to be detoxed from the chemicals that have accumulated in their bodies in order to additionally help decrease in their allergy symptoms (and food reactions). We detox with nutritional supplements and we usually see the majority of the toxins eliminated in the first three to four weeks.

Case Study for Managing Allergy & Asthma Symptoms

A boy came into the office with seasonal asthma and allergy symptoms. He was a baseball player and had to use an inhaler to manage his breathing difficulties. After several sessions of working with the pollen reactions, he was able to stop using the inhaler and his sinus issues cleared up. He was able to play baseball outside with little or no symptoms. And he did not need his inhaler or any allergy medications.

If you have pollen symptoms or know a friend or family member who is suffering from reactions to pollen, please do call the office. Our clinic offers a 15 minute free screening where we check for reactions to foods, pollen and other substances. The clinic also does functional testing where we can determine functional issues in the organs—the sinuses, liver, or thymus. We would be happy to talk with you about your symptoms and to help you become symptom-free.

Dr. Cindy Zafis, DC, DACACD is a Doctor of Chiropractic and not a Medical Doctor. Dr. Zafis, DC, DACACD does not claim to diagnose or cure any illness or disease.

What the clinic offers are several Chiropractic therapies that balance the body through gentle spinal care, very targeted nutritional therapy, and correcting structural issues. Many patients that have not been able to resolve issues themselves have been very satisfied with the results of these therapies.

Dr. Zafis, DC, DACACD has taken several classes to help patients including NAET, BioSet, gentle spinal care, and Applied Kinesiology.  She has helped many patients in Sonoma County since 1995.

You may call the office to schedule your free 15-minute health screening today. 

Call the office for a 15-minute free consultation. To make an appointment, call (707) 527-7710 or click here to make an appointment on-line.