Got allergies? Help inside
Take steps now to stem the misery of allergy symptoms + Get best pricing on my favorite air filters
Spring allergies can be a real drag—but if you’re looking for natural ways to support your body through allergy season, you’re in the right place!
Allergies Aren’t Random—They Have Root Causes
Allergies aren’t just bad luck or genetics. Admittedly, there is a genetic predisposition - but in my opinion, allergies are our body’s way of saying, “Something’s off here, pay attention!”
When my kids’ allergist brushed off their food allergies as mere “bad luck” or “genetic” (despite neither my husband nor I having food allergies), I just couldn’t accept that answer. That dismissal sent me straight down the rabbit hole of allergy research. In fact, it’s the very reason I started my Instagram account 8 years ago! (OG followers—does anyone remember my first handle, @AllergyFamily? 🤣)
I started blogging because I felt strongly that people deserved to understand the deeper factors behind allergies. While we can’t reverse all of them, there are things we can control to help.
And as I kept digging, I realized many of these root causes overlap with other chronic health issues. That’s when I broadened my focus and changed my handle — because the same insights I was sharing for allergy sufferers apply to overall health.
Why Are Allergies Skyrocketing? 📈
In my view, the rising rates of allergies aren’t surprising, and it’s down to the same factors driving the skyrocketing rates of other chronic diseases - cancer, diabetes, autoimmune conditions, and more.
Environmental toxins: Research links allergies, eczema, and asthma to pollutants like phthalates, heavy metals, and fine particulate matter (PM2.5).1 Prenatal exposure (i.e., a pregnant mother’s exposure to these toxins) has even been tied to a higher risk of allergic diseases in children. Unfortunately, these toxins are almost unavoidable these days (but you can find lots of resources with actionable steps on my Substack to help you with this):
Phthalates found in everyday products like air fresheners, perfume, food packaging, and personal care products have been linked to allergic diseases.2
Increasing PM2.5 from industrial and traffic pollution has been linked to airway inflammation, which could worsen allergy symptoms.
Micro- and nanoplastics One of the main ways micro- and nanoplastics enter our bodies is through our airways. Synthetic fibers from your laundry and dust get breathed in as they hang out in our indoor air. Studies have found that people with allergic rhinitis (inflammation in the nose from allergies) have a higher concentration of microplastics.3
Decimated gut health: About 70% of our immune system resides in the gut, where it learns to recognize friends from foes. A disrupted gut microbiome increases the likelihood of allergies.4
Poor diet and lifestyle choices: Inflammation is like gasoline on the allergy fire. If allergies are a bonfire, chronic inflammation is what keeps it raging.
Our changing environment: More ragweed, longer pollen seasons, and overgrown vegetation—all linked to climate shifts—mean more misery for allergy sufferers.
My Two-Pronged Strategy for Tackling Allergies
Think of allergies like a bonfire 🔥.
Once it’s burning out of control, it’s tough for natural remedies to put it out. So, I approach allergies with two goals for the best outcomes:
Short-term symptom relief: This includes antihistamines or, if symptoms aren’t severe yet, natural antihistamine-like foods and remedies (see below 👇).
Addressing root causes: This takes time. Ideally, this is done in the background to prevent the bonfire from igniting in the first place. But if it’s already allergy season and you have symptoms, don’t worry—any work you do now can still make a small difference for this year and a bigger one for next year.
A Lesson from My Husband 🤭
My husband used to suffer from brutal spring allergies. After making key diet and lifestyle changes—and consistently consuming foods I outline below, like matcha and nettle tea—his symptoms almost disappeared.
But, of course, as men do, he decided he was cured and had ‘outgrown’ his allergies 🤦🏻♀️. Last year, he ditched my protocol, indulged in all the gluten (which he’s intolerant to but still in denial about), ate loads of refined sugar and dairy while traveling, and... bam! Allergies came back hard and required full-on antihistamines to control.
Moral of the story?
Prevention is key. Start early, don’t let that bonfire build. Small, consistent changes may produce small benefits, but they make a difference.
Natural remedies aren’t an overnight fix, but they can work if started early and combined with diet & lifestyle changes.
And if symptoms are already raging, there’s no shame in taking an antihistamine to cool the inflammation down—it’s often better than letting things spiral out of control while trying to “tough it out” with natural remedies alone. You do not have to suffer to be healthy 😇.
(And of course, this isn’t medical advice—check with your doctor before making any major lifestyle changes or starting supplements!)
Short-Term Tips for Symptom Relief
Reduce your exposure to pollen:
Check pollen counts before heading out. (Find them at the National Allergy Bureau.) 🗺️
Wear sunglasses and a hat on high-pollen days. 🕶️
Shower before bed to wash off pollen and avoid transferring it to your bedding. 🛀
Exercise in the morning or late evening to avoid peak pollen times. 🌅
Skip outdoor drying for clothes and bedding on high-pollen days. 🏠
Use a nasal rinse when you get home—studies show it helps reduce symptoms. 👃
Upgrade your air filter: Replace HVAC filters every 2–3 months. 👩🔧
Professional-grade Air Filter - this is the FIRST 'wellness’ item I invested in for my home 10 years ago because of the amount of contaminants that linger in our indoor air, from micro- and nano-plastics, mold, to phthalates and PM2.5.
SAVE BIG ON THEIR SPRING SALE HERE
Why I use and love Air Doctor:
UltraHEPA filter - independently tested to remove pollutants down to 0.003 microns (100x more effective than ordinary HEPA), including dust, pollen, smoke, pet dander, some bacteria, and viruses.
Dual-action Carbon/Gas Trap/VOC filter captures toxic VOCs (or volatile organic compounds) from candles, off-gassing from furniture, building materials, paint, carpet, household cleaning products, and even formaldehyde and ozone.
Sensor & Auto mode - constantly monitors the air quality in the room, automatically adjusting the level of filtration required, taking the guesswork out.
And if you’re wondering which model is best for you, this is what I use in my home:
AD5500 in my living/dining area - the most powerful and quietest model, suitable for larger, open spaces with high ceilings. Circulates the air in 1,043 sq. ft. 4x/ hour or in 2,086 sq. ft. 2x/hour
AD3500 in each of the bedrooms - Circulates the air in 630 sq. ft. 4x/hour or in 1,260 sq. ft. 2x/hour.
AD2000 in my study - good for nurseries and home offices. It circulates the air in 305 sq. ft. 4x/hour or in 610 sq. ft. 2x/hour.
Foods that can help
Load up on quercetin-rich foods: Yellow onions 🧅, capers, red apples 🍎, grapes 🍇, green tea (my favorite is, of course, matcha 🍵 click here to get up to 20% off my favorite toxin-screened teas), and berries 🍓. These are packed with flavonoids and vitamin C, which work synergistically to support the immune system.
Nettle tea - a couple of studies have shown freeze-dried stinging nettle could help alleviate allergy symptoms.5 The evidence in human studies is not super strong, however, it’s rich in minerals like calcium and antioxidants like quercetin, making it a great anti-inflammatory daily habit. I like making an infusion with oat straw, another mineral-rich herb (recipe below).
Cut back on inflammatory foods: Limit ultra-processed foods and refined sugars (hidden in cereals, granola bars, and yogurt), and consider reducing dairy if it worsens your congestion. My husband has to eliminate gluten during allergy season - he is intolerant of gluten, and eating it during allergy season makes him miserable.
Fermented foods - if you don’t have histamine intolerance. Probiotics - the friendly bacteria in fermented foods - can build immune resilience, and studies have shown certain friendly bacteria can help reduce food/environmental allergies. If you struggle with histamine intolerance, you might need a targeted probiotic instead of random fermented foods. Not all probiotics are the same—work with a doctor to find the right strain for allergies.
The important thing to remember about probiotics is that they are just like vitamins— they have a transient effect while they are in our bodies, and the effect goes away when you stop it. Research currently suggests they do not have a permanent impact our our microbiome diversity - in fact, a study in 20186 showed it could actually REDUCE microbiome recovery after antibiotics.
Not all probiotics are the same. Benefits are specific to each strain, so work with a doctor to find the right strain for your particular symptoms, rather than taking a random one off the shelf. If you’ve been here for a while, you’ll know I have a hard time recommending probiotics for that reason - I believe they need to be tailored to the specific symptoms - maybe I will do a cheat sheet of the different strains and what they’ve been found to help with one of these days :) - let me know in the comments if that’s of interest! ❤️
Root Causes of Allergies
The Gut-Allergy Connection
Studies have linked antibiotic and antacid use in infancy to allergic diseases. These medications can disrupt the gut microbiome, affecting immune system training.
My kids had severe food allergies as infants. My daughter has outgrown hers completely, including anaphylactic allergies to peanuts and eggs. My son has gone from nine IgE-mediated food allergies down to three.
Improving their gut health and reducing their toxic load played a massive role in their recovery, in my opinion.
What I did for my kids
These strategies aren’t magic cures—they take time. In fact, it took 2–3 years before I really saw improvements in my children’s health. I can’t promise that food allergies can be reversed because every situation is unique. That’s why I always recommend working with an integrative MD to tailor a plan that’s right for you. The information below is for general guidance only.
Optimize Gut Health: I cover this in-depth in my Detox Right Course because a healthy gut is the foundation of overall health.
Reduce Toxic Load: Environmental toxins affect both our immune and gut health. Reducing toxin exposure and our body’s existing toxic load was a crucial step for my kids. I even realized I passed on some toxicity during pregnancy without fully understanding it at the time. For a deeper dive, check out my Detox Right Course, where I guide you step-by-step on how to detox your home and support your body’s detox organs.
Optimize Nutrition: Nutrition fuels our body, yet many of us are deficient in key micronutrients due to a standard American diet. Essential nutrients that support a healthy immune system include Vitamin A, Vitamin D, omega-3s, zinc, and selenium. I also love incorporating fermented foods into my diet. Unlike probiotic pills, foods like kimchi offer hundreds of beneficial bacteria strains. I aim for 3–4 different types of fermented foods daily.
Supplements that may help allergies
(and medications we take when we need them)
Luckily, I don’t suffer from allergies, but what supplements do I pull out of my medicine cabinet for my husband? And when these don’t work, what medications do I reach for when allergy hits my family?