Allergies

Allergies are caused by the body's overzealous reaction to normally harmless substances. Allergies can be triggered by pollen, animal dander, mold, dust, and insect droppings, or by certain foods or insect stings. Upper respiratory allergy symptoms include runny nose, itchy eyes, coughing, wheezing, and sneezing. Up to 50 million people in the U.S. have allergies.

What is an Allergy?
It’s crazy to think that so many people -- 40 million by many estimates -- suffer from allergies. How does it happen? Let me put on my scientist's cap and explain. An allergic reaction happens when an allergen triggers your body’s immune system and causes it to produce antibodies, which then attach themselves to cells within your body and release chemicals, including histamines. This is when you get all stuffy and sneezy. Once your body reacts to something like pollen, it often makes a conscious decision: A particular allergen is determined "hostile," and reaction to it becomes pattern.

So as we all took a quick break to let my eyes calm down, we started sharing allergy stories. My make-up artist recently started taking a sulfur product called MSM (Methyl Sulfonyl Methane) for her allergies. It helps your body flush out foreign particles that could be causing reactions. Interesting. I had never heard of it, but she was having good luck with it.
The photographer’s assistant, on the other hand, was eager to try anything…so I told him about my favorite cure. It’s been proven effective by many people all over the world, but maybe, most importantly (in my opinion, anyway) in my household, by my husband. The guy, poor thing, had horrible allergies every spring that would usually last throughout the summer. We’d go to my parent’s house in Michigan and he could hardly sleep with the windows open. He would, of course, (just to make me happy) -- and then wake up hardly able to breathe, with eyes so swollen they brushed against the wall. Ok, maybe a small exaggeration, but close.
Bee Pollen, the Natural Solution
So a few years ago, I suggested he start taking bee pollen. This man has tried many things that most people would deem strange, gross or insane because of me, so he didn’t hesitate to give it a try. He started, as I would recommend anyone do, with just a few granules and worked his way up to a teaspoon or two every day. A few months later, as spring began to take bloom, we waited for a sneeze or a stuffed up nose and none came. He went the whole season without suffering at all.
Bee pollen works by desensitizing your body to the pollen that travels through the air and causes your body to react. With small daily doses, your body builds up its defenses to fight off the allergens and avoid reaction in the future.

(Suu tam)