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Title: Practical Measures to Prevent and Treat Allergy
Author: Knut Holt
Article:
By allergy the immune system react against a substance that it
is not supposed to react against, and the reaction is often
exaggerated. Objects containing substances that commonly cause
allergy are domestic dust, animal hair, household chemicals,
chlorine, microorganisms, pollen, nuts, citrus fruits and
seafood. Also bacteria and parasites can cause inappropriately
strong immune reactions.
THE MECHANISMS OF ALLERGY
The total set of reactions occurring by allergy is very
complicated. Many of these are the same as by normal immune
reaction, even though they occur when they should not take
place, Here are listed some of these reactions:
By exposure to a new substance, cells in the immune system learn
to recognize that substance (allergen), and it learns to produce
anti-bodies towards the substance, and a certain amount of
antibodies is produced. The type of anti-bodies called IgE is
the most important by allergic reactions.
IgE will glue itself to some cells in the blood called
mast-cells, and stick out from the surface of these cells. By
following exposures to antigens, these will attach themselves to
the IgE-ends sticking out from the mast-cells. This will trigger
the mast-cells to produce histamine and other signal substances.
These signal substances will then spread through the surrounding
tissues.
The signal substances will then trigger the walls of small blood
vessels to leak fluid into the tissues and accumulate in the
tissues. This will cause tissue swelling. They also will cause
blood vessels to widen and thus increase the blood stream in the
tissues. The consequence of this will be swelling and redness in
the affected body parts. The signal substances will also make
glands in the tissue produce more mucus, making symptoms like
running nose and tight throat.
The new exposures to the antigens will also provoke even more
anti-body production. The antibodies will also glue allergens
together to bigger complexes. These complexes can clog small
blood vessels and in other ways disturb the function of the
affected organ.
The allergen-antibody-complexes are then recognized by the cells
and other mechanisms that the body uses to collect and eliminate
garbage. Eater-cells gather and engulf the complexes.
The immune system also will make enzymes that attack the
antigens to break them down. Also this production is stimulated
when antigens attach themselves to anti-bodies at cell surfaces.
But these enzymes are not entirely specific, and can also to
some extend break down components of the body's own tissue,
causing harm and disease symptoms.
WHAT CAUSES THE IMMUNE SYSTEM TO REACT WITH ALLERGY TO A
SUBSTANCE
In the beginning of the life of a person, the immune system has
the potency to react against most substances in the body itself
and the surroundings. However, there are mechanisms that learn
the immune system to recognize normal substances found in the
daily life in the early infanthood, and suppress the reactions
against these. If this learning mechanism is disturbed, allergy
can develop.
Allergy can also develop if a small child is never exposed to
substances that later will be a normal ingredient of his daily
life. In this case the immune system will not get the chance to
suppress the reaction against this substance. Letting a small
child grow up in an exaggerated clean and sterile environment
can therefore cause allergies.
On the other hand, certain elements not being a port of a normal
environment can cause allergies by repeated and massive
exposure. Examples of such substances are chlorine.
TYPES OF ALLERGIES
Allergy varies according to the compound that causes the
immunological reaction. An allergic condition also often implies
reaction against a combination of several substances. Common
substances causing allergy are: Pollen, domestic dust, mites in
domestic dust, moulds and mould spores, chlorine, chemicals in
soaps and cosmetics, animal hair, seafood, strawberry, fish,
parasites, medicines like anaesthetics and antibiotics
An allergic condition may periodically get better or worse
according to the concentration of the allergen in the
environment. A typical example is pollen allergy with peaks in
the pollination season of grass or treas.
An allergic person will often get symptoms from several tissues
in the body, but the symptoms are often most prominent at one
body part and give very specific symptoms at that site. Examples
of specific conditions often caused by allergy are eczema in the
skin and asthma in the lungs and lower airpipe.
THE SYMPTOMS OF ALLERGY
Any organ can exhibit allergic reactions, but often the symptoms
are confined mainly to one organ or organ system.
By allergic reactions in the respiratory system there will be
symptoms like: Itching and soreness in the throat and nose
cavities, swelling of the airway tissues, increased amount of
secrets in the airway cavities and coughing. There may also be
asthmatic symptoms or fully developed asthma. The main symptom
of asthma is cramping that constricts the airways all the way
down into the lungs (constriction of the trachea and tracholes).
By allergic reactions in the skin, there will be symptoms like:
Redness, swelling, red spots, itching and soars.
HOW TO PREVENT ALLERGY
To prevent allergies in an individual the best way, one must
begin in early childhood.
A child must be allowed to get in contact with natural elements
like earth, dirt, animals, plants, physical contact with other
humans, and the like. This exposure to natural elements must
occur before an allergy has developed. In this way the immune
system will learn to recognize common and harmless elements, and
not overreact against this later in life.
Research projects have found out that children having much and
early contact with pet animals like cats and dogs have a less
chance of getting allergic problems later than children not
having contact with pets. This is contrary to what many people
believe.
On the other hands, every person should be protected from early
childhood from certain elements normally not found in a natural
environment, for example chlorine, soaps and cosmetics with
artificial substances, and food containing unnatural additives.
METHODS TO TREAT ALLERGY
The first approach in the treatment of manifest allergy is
avoiding exposure to substances causing the allergic reactions.
Even though exposure to natural substances can prevent allergy,
exposure to an allergen should be avoided when an allergy
already has developed. Ways of doing this is:
- Avoiding food one reacts against - Avoiding contact with
animals one have an allergic reaction towards - Keeping rooms,
clothes beds and furniture well cleaned - Avoiding use of
cleaners, soaps and cosmetics with unnatural additives -
Avoiding foods, drinks and snacks with unnatural additives -
Avoiding daily exposure to chlorine and other chemicals - In
cooperation with your doctor change medicines you use that may
cause allergy with others - Avoiding growth of moulds in the
environment. This is done by well cleaning and keeping the
environment dry.
Children are often exposed to allergens at school, and adults
are often exposed at work. Parents with allergic children must
inspect the school environment and require from the school
administration and teachers that practically possible
environmental measures are provided to keep the school free from
allergens. An employee should require the same from his employer.
If you do not know exactly everything you react against, you can
try to stop exposure to one factor after another, until you feel
that the allergy alleviates, and then keep this factor out of
your daily life for the future.
Sometimes avoiding allergens is difficult to accomplish, or make
the lifestyle to restricted to be acceptable. Then one must
apply medical treatment that alleviates the allergy.
A common way of treating allergy is applying medication that
block the effect of the substance histamine, and thereby
alleviate or prevent the symptoms occurring when the antigen get
into the body.
Another way is desensitisation treatment. By this treatment one
let the body get a controlled and gradually increasing exposure
to the allergens over a time period, and when this period is
over, one let the body get recurrent exposure to a controlled
dose at regular time intervals. By this treatment the response
from the immune system from the allergens gradually decrease,
partly because the immune system thereby learns to recognize the
allergens as harmless, and partly because the antibodies against
the allergens are used up.
There are also natural products on the marked that contain
ingredients that help the immune system to react more
appropriately. Important effects of these products are reduced
histamine secretion and increased histamine metabolism. Examples
of ingredients in such medicines are: Methylsulfonyl methane,
vitamin C, vitamin E, Echinacea purpurea, Quercetin, grape Seed,
Stinging nettle, Coleus Forskolin.
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Knut Holt is an internet consultant and marketer focusing on
health items. TO FIND natural medicines against allergy, asthma,
acne, eczema, rosacea, scars, wrinkles, over-weight,
hypertension, heart disease, hypothyroidism, hemorrhoids,
depression and other common health problems, PLEASE VISIT:----
<a href="http://www.abicana.com">http://www.abicana.com</a>
----Free to reprint with the author's name and link.
About the author:
About the causes and mechanisms of allergic conditions. Possible
ways to prevent or treat allergy are presented.
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