5 New Year’s Environmental Allergy Resolutions

New Year’s resolutions are a great way to refocus on something you’ve been slacking on, usually health related. Knowing that only five percent of people with allergy actually get disease modifying treatment, focusing on allergy in 2019 is something many people could benefit from. Managing allergy can seem daunting, but choosing one (or all!) of these five resolutions for environmental allergy can help you live healthfully not only this New Year, but throughout your life!

1. Treat the cause

Airborne allergies in 2018 were worse than ever — trust us, there’s a study! If you’re fed up with nearly unending symptoms, treating the cause simply with sublingual immunotherapy may prevent symptoms for the years to come.

It’s easy. Start by finding a provider offering custom sublingual immunotherapy at their medical practice. We advocate the La Crosse Method Protocol, which Allergychoices can help them offer, because studies show its safety, that it works, it’s matched to patient’s allergies and level of sensitivity so there’s less risk of reactions or unnecessary treatment for irrelevant allergens, and it’s affordable.

Your provider will perform allergy testing to find what you’re allergic to and at what level, and they’ll develop a custom prescription uniquely matched to you. Allergychoices pharmacy can create the prescription and send it directly to you, and you take the drops from wherever you are, three doses daily. You’ll have follow up appointments as needed with your provider — typically in two to three times a year. It’s an easy resolution to tackle as there’s hardly a time commitment, and the results can be long-term!

2. Track your symptoms

If you’re feeling miserable and can’t get to the bottom of “why,” allergy could be to blame. There are a many chronic conditions that can have an underlying allergy element. A few are:

• Sinus infections
• Asthma
• Eczema or Atopic Dermatitis
• EoE, or Eosinophilic Esophagitis
• Migraines
• IBS and other digestive issues

Your resolution could be to go see a provider to treat your allergy, but first, you’ll want to track your symptoms. Let’s say you’re experiencing chronic migraines. There are certain elements you’ll want to track in order for your provider to know which tests to run. You may want to track:

• What time of day did the symptoms occur?
• Where were you when the migraine occurred?
• Were you around any strong substances such as cleaning products or fragrances?
• What did you eat and drink before the migraine occurred?
• How quickly did the symptoms arise?

Track your symptoms in a notebook or on your phone and then bring that to your provider! It will not only impress your provider, but may decrease the amount of tests you need, too!

3. Incorporate vitamin D into your daily routine

Not only does vitamin D seem to boost people’s moods, it can help fight disease too! It has been shown to be helpful in the treatment of allergy, especially when used along with immunotherapy.

Dr. Mary Morris, Allergychoices Medical Advisor, partner at Allergy Associates of La Crosse and a lead author of the La Crosse Method™ Protocol says, “The role vitamin D plays is complex, but in general, it aids in the proper functioning of the immune system, and fighting disease. Studies in immunotherapy have shown positive correlation of quicker immunological response when vitamin D is given along with immunotherapy.”

How do you make increased vitamin D part of you New Year’s Resolutions? You can get it naturally from sunlight and certain foods, as well as through a supplement. You can read more about increasing your Vitamin D on a previous blog.

4. Be proactive

There are so many ways you can be proactive in order to minimize your reactions.

For those with seasonal allergies, Mike Kachel, RPh, Allergychoices Pharmacy Director, suggests treating your symptoms before they even show up. He says, “Don’t wait until it’s in full bloom to start treatment. Whether it’s immunotherapy or an antihistamine or nose spray, do it early.” Watch for pollen counts in your area, and be proactive!

Allergychoices also offers preseasonal allergy treatment for seasonal allergies, including trees, grass, ragweed and dust mites. It’s a rush-type allergy treatment that’s given eight weeks before peak allergy season to help reduce symptoms once the season hits. Special high potency drops are also an option for those with pet allergies to help build tolerance and make it easier to keep a pet in your life.

Indoor allergens like dust and pet dander can seem unending. Stay ahead of cleaning to avoid symptoms. Vacuum often, keep pets clean, and use HEPA filters.

5. Share your allergy story

If you’ve already taken control of your allergy with the help of Allergychoices or the La Crosse Method, talking about your experience can encourage others to try sublingual immunotherapy, too.

Here’s to a happy and healthy 2019! Now go tackle those resolutions.