According to an article in the Huffington Post, if your spring allergies are making you suffer try eating a container or two of probiotic yogurt a day.
Probiotics, or “good bacteria,” may be helpful to people with seasonal allergies, a new review suggests.
Researchers believe that in our sterile modern world, probiotics can encourage the production of antibodies in babies and children that can protect them from allergies later in life.
Researchers analyzed the results from more than 20 previous studies and found that hay fever sufferers may get some benefits from using probiotics, improving their symptoms and quality of life.
The review shows promise, but one of the reasons the researchers can’t yet recommend probiotics to treat seasonal allergies is because the studies used different probiotic strains and different study groups.
Milk allergies are some of the most common food allergies, striking thousands of children every year. Unlike lactose intolerance, there are specific allergy symptoms involved that usually manifest themselves within minutes to hours after drinking milk. While these symptoms are generally not severe, they can be quite uncomfortable and unpleasant.
While cow’s milk is the most common allergy trigger, some children can also develop an allergy to goats, sheep’s or buffalo milk. This makes substitution with another type of milk impractical. Even soy milk, which is often used as an alternative for allergic individuals, may not work as some children can also develop an allergy to soy.
There is a distinct difference between milk allergies and lactose intolerance. An allergy to milk most often affects children whose digestive systems are not fully developed. Lactose intolerance is a negative reaction of the digestive system to a protein found in milk. Intolerance can develop at any age and usually results in digestive issues such as gas, bloating, and diarrhea after drinking milk or eating dairy products.
According to the Mayo Clinic milk allergy symptoms, which can differ from person to personand occur anywhere from a few minutes to a few hours after drinking milk or eating milk products.
Immediate signs and symptoms of milk allergy might include:
Hives
Wheezing
Itching or tingling feeling around the lips or mouth
Swelling of the lips, tongue or throat
Coughing or shortness of breath
Vomiting
Signs and symptoms that may take more time to develop include:
Loose stools or diarrhea, which may contain blood
Abdominal cramps
Runny nose
Watery eyes
Colic, in babies
In some rare cases, an allergy to milk may cause anaphylaxis, a severe reaction that can cause the individual to stop breathing.
Unfortunately, there is no way to prevent milk allergies short of avoiding all milk and milk products. This can be particularly difficult as milk is a common ingredient in many processed foods and recipes.
You may need to be extra vigilant, paying close attention to product labels and asking about food content when you are eating in a restaurant. A little extra caution now can prevent a lot of heartache for you and your child.
While there are some risk factors for developing food allergies, including a genetic predisposition and the tendency to have other allergies, it may be impossible to know for sure that your child is allergic until he ingests milk. Some experts believe that breastfeeding rather than using a cow’s milk formula for the first four months of life can help to reduce a child’s risk of developing an allergy to milk.
The good news on milk allergies is that they are often reduced or even eliminated entirely as the child grows. As they are exposed to more types of food, their digestive system can develop more tolerance and symptoms will naturally abate.
In the meantime, there are medications such as antihistamines that can be used to treat symptoms of an allergic attack. If your child has a tendency to experience anaphylaxis, you should equip him with an epinephrine pen for emergency use.
Food allergies, such as those involving milk and dairy products, can be an uncomfortable fact of life for many children and adults, but they don’t have to take over your life. With the proper precautions, the allergy sufferer can live a full and productive life, free of symptoms.
In an earlier post, we looked at bed bugs (the real vampires) and discovered that I wasn’t the only person that is afraid of dust mites. Continuing our creepy crawly theme, this post is going to look at dust mites, dust mite allergy, and dust mite allergy control.
Dust Mites are the Unseen Enemy
If you are afraid of bed bugs, then you can face a fear you can actually see. Bed bugs are visible. Dust mites are so incredibly small that you can’t see them without a microscope. But photos of the buggers are enough to give anyone the heebie-jeebies.
There isn’t a medical term for fear of dust mites. Doctors lump the fear of dust mites into amathophobia, which is a fear of dust.
Some people get so creeped out by the thought of millions of these microscopic creatures crawling in the bed and pillow they actually imagine the feeling of insects crawling on their bodies. Just the thought makes my skin crawl. But I know that you can’t see dust mites and you can’t feel them. That’s only slightly reassuring.
Dust Mites Aren’t Vampires
At least dust mites don’t suck your blood like bed bugs. Of course, that is little comfort when you can’t sleep because of sneezing, wheezing, coughing, or a stuffy or runny nose.
Dust mites and their feces (now how gross is that) contain proteins that cause an allergic reaction in people that are sensitive. That dust that you may fear is loaded with tiny particles of dead dust mites and their poop. When you breathe these particles in, your immune system gets grossed out right along with you. Not really.
What really happens is that your immune system doesn’t identify the proteins found in those dust mite particles properly. It sees them as germs and initiates full-scale germ warfare. That is why the symptoms of allergies and colds are similar. Your body thinks it is sick, but it is not. It is just having an attack of dust mite allergy.
Never Fear – Dust Mite Allergy Control is Near
You can try hypnotism, meditation, and therapy to get over your fear of dust. Controlling dust mite allergy is much easier. It’s all about controlling your environment. You may find that when your environment is under control and your allergy symptoms are manageable your fear of dust mites just naturally goes away. Here’s what you can do to get started:
Dust Mite Covers. The number one thing you can do to control dust mite allergies is to cover your mattress, box spring, and pillows with dust mite covers. Just like bed bug covers; dust mite-proof covers are zippered and made of special fabrics. These cover all sides, zip up, and but an effective barrier between you and those nasty dust mites in your bed.
Vacuum. It’s best to have hard surface floors. Carpets and rugs collect more than dirt; they collect dust mites as well. Frequently vacuum with a sealed HEPA vacuum and damp mop hard surface floors.
Wash Frequently. Even though you zip everything up in dust mite covers, allergens will collect on your sheets, pillowcases, and blankets. An effective part of your dust mite allergy control program is stripping sheets, pillowcases, and blankets off the bed every 7 days and washing them in 140°F water. If you can’t get your water this hot at home (and most people can’t) just add some De-Mite Laundry Additive to your detergent and wash in cold water. Those creepy dust mites will be washed away.
courtesy Stuart Miles@freedigital photos
Let the Sun Shine. I know your mother told you to make your bed as soon as you arise, but leaving the bed unmade for a few hours may actually help your allergies. By exposing sheets and blankets to air and sunshine, moisture will evaporate. Dust mites don’t like dry environments and leaving your bed sheets exposed will help keep things dry. Just remember to make the bed before your Mom comes over.
Are you afraid of dust mites, bed bugs, or other insects (like spiders?). Leave a comment, we’d love to know what creeps you out.
