Did you know that there are some foods and drinks that can make your seasonal allergy worse?

If your throats feel too itchy, and you sneeze every now and then, you are not alone. In fact, according to the experts, around 30% of adults and 40% of children suffer from different kinds of seasonal nasal allergies, and these figures continue to grow. For most allergy sufferers, changing seasons mean visiting the doctor’s office or refilling a prescription. However, what your doctor might not tell you is that several of the most common foods you are eating or the beverages you are drinking can make your allergy worse.

How Do Foods and Drinks Affect Your Allergies?

Even if it sounds strange, studies have revealed that specific drinks and foods can affect your allergies. Among the reasons for this is that certain drinks and foods contain histamines that can both worsen or cause allergies.

Most of the items that are pickled, fermented, or aged contain naturally-occurring histamines. These histamines are produced by bacteria or yeast during the process of fermentation. Eating food with histamines can lead to itching, sneezing, headache, and coughing. When you have an allergy, drinking and eating fermented beverages and foods can worsen your symptoms.

In some instances, foods can also trigger oral allergy syndrome. This is a condition which causes sufferers of allergies induced by pollen to experience an itchy throat or mouth after eating specific veggies and fruits.

Seasonal allergies

It happens since some proteins found in these vegetables and fruits are related to the ones found in pollens which can cause an allergy. The vegetables and fruits you should avoid will depend on related pollens. For instance, people who suffer from ragweed allergies must stay away from zucchini, while those who have grass allergies must stay away from celery.

If you are suffering from these allergies, and you like to take some extra steps for managing your symptoms, make sure that you avoid these following foods during the peak of the allergy season.

Blue Cheese

Blue cheese is found to be rich in histamines, and it can lead to various symptoms such as watery and itchy eyes, nasal congestion, and sneezing.

Tomatoes

A known cross-reactor with the grass pollens and rich in histamines, tomatoes are often a bad choice during the season of allergies. When your symptoms get worse, you might want to consider staying away from tomatoes.

Parsley

Your allergist Manassas VA will surely tell you to avoid parsley if you are allergic to tree pollen such as birch or alder. It is a known cross reactor which means it can worsen your seasonal allergies during peak season.

Topics #allergist #histamines #oral allergy syndrome #pollens #seasonal allergy