Allergies – when the immune system over-reacts

What happens during an allergy?

Increasing numbers of people are suffering from allergies. But what exactly are allergies? And what can be undertaken to have a symptom-free life again – not being reliant on cortisone?

An allergy is an excessive reaction of the immune system to normal and in principle harmless substances like animal hair, bee pollen or food. These substances are called allergen. Though the body classifies them as foreign and dangerous after repeated contact and initiates an immune or defence action, which causes the allergy. Allergens consist of tiny protein structures which trigger in allergic persons the production of antibodies, although the allergens are no threat to the body. These antibodies initiate skin and mucosa to release certain tissue hormones, especially histamine. Histamine is responsible for many allergic reactions in the body: for itchiness, swelling, dilation of the blood vessels and constriction of the respiratory system. In the process, disorders especially of mucous membranes of eyes, nose, lungs, gut, and skin lead to symptoms like watery eyes, running nose, breathlessness, diarrhoea or itching and inflamed skin. Hence hay fever, neurodermatitis, allergic asthma and food allergy are all different characteristics of allergies. These symptoms like hay fever with sneezing, watery and reddened eyes, allergic bronchial asthma with cough and shortage of breath, neurodermatitis with hives and itching rash or digestive disorders with diarrhoea can be treated well with naturopathic methods.

Homeopathy for allergies

An allergy is an externally visible manifestation of an internal disturbance of health. For this reason, it makes sense to treat the internal disturbance or chronic disease and not only the externally visible symptoms. Therefore, external symptoms should be treated reluctantly with ointment or spray containing cortisone or zinc. Because this suppresses the external symptoms which causes the disease to retract to a deeper level into the body. It often can be observed that a neurodermatitis which was treated with cortisone was suppressed and disappeared, but afterwards the disease developed into a bronchial asthma by moving on to a deeper level from skin to bronchi, deeper into the inner body and towards more vital organs. To avoid this and to support the body’s own healing process of the allergic disease, homeopathy is suited very well. A homeopathic treatment targets the root-cause of the disease and at the same time can help to relieve the acute symptoms like itchiness, watery eyes, running nose etc.

What do allergies have in common with the gut?

Besides the homeopathic therapy a restoration of the gut health is recommended. The gut is the organ with the largest mucosal surface in the body, corresponding the size of a tennis court, and relates to all other mucosal parts of the body. Therefore, hay fever, for example, which usually manifests on the nosal and eye mucosa, can at the same time show symptoms on the gut’s mucosa. Through its tremendous size, the gut’s mucosa is the main contact area for allergens. Approximately 80% of the entire immune system is in the gut. This also explains the large involvement of the gut with allergies. In the healthy gut, there are many barriers preventing the allergens to pass over: gastric acid, gut flora, intact intestinal mucosa, and the mucosa’s antibodies as a protective shield. In many allergic people, however, there is a disturbance in one or more of these areas, which is why allergens can increasingly pass over into the blood and trigger an allergy. With the help of specific stool diagnostic and following naturopathic therapy using probiotics and plant-based medicine, the intestinal mucosa can regenerate, and the gut’s barrier function can be restored.

Nutrition has strong influence on allergies

Not only the gut but also nutrition as a strong influence on allergies. Many people get an allergic reaction with an overreaction of their immune system from certain food. For that matter, it is important to distinguish food intolerance (e.g. lactose intolerance) from food allergies. A food intolerance does not come along with an increased production of antibodies and therefore there is no excessive reaction of the immune system. Symptoms of an intolerance are often only noticed after intake of large amounts of the respective food, whereas in case of allergies very small amounts are already enough to show symptoms. Since, especially with allergies, the body reacts very sensitively on foreign protein, it is recommended to ensure a diet free from animal protein, which means no meat, no fish, and no dairy products. Instead a diet based on plant-based wholefoods is beneficial. Moreover, food additives (mainly contained in convenience food) support allergies and should be eliminated as much as possible.

Holistic naturopathic therapy with homeopathy, restoration of gut health and dietary change can bring speedy and long-lasting relief from allergies.