Introduction of Allergic rhinitis
It is quite common in spring to see people sneezing. Allergic rhinitis commonly known as Hay fever is in full swing and you feel the urge to rub your nose, eyes and ears. Throat is constantly sore and itchy. This is all due to immune response to airborne pollens of different plants and flowers. In Ayurveda a disease is a state of imbalance in the three doshas present in the human body namely vata, pita and kapha. Allergic rhinitis is also, one of those diseases. The most common cause of allergies is pollens of the grass, trees, weeds and molds. Rhinitis could range from mild nasal congestion to skin rashes. It can be extremely infectious, as in the case of the common cold and non-infectious when it comes to seasonal and allergies.
Signs and symptoms of Allergic rhinitis
The symptoms of vataja prathisyaya (Ayurvedic name for Rhinitis) are: Nasanaha is nothing but nose block, Kaphasruti is running nose, rhinorrhoea and Kshava is sneezing. Sneezing may include paroxysms of 10-20 sneezes. Rhino rhea is profuse, thin and watery. Headaches and earache may accompany nasal congestion and prolonged congestion may lead to alteration or loss of smell and taste. The treatment for allergic rhinitis involves anti-histamines, decongestants and immunotherapy. The line of treatment in ayurveda is nasya, dhoomapana, shamana. Drugs like lakshmivilas ras, panchamrutha.
Ayurvedic approach on Allergic rhinitis
Certain foods are more mucous producing and Ayurvedic medicine recognizes those foods as Kapha foods. Dairy, wheat, sugar, night shade family like potatoes, tomatoes, bell peppers, peppers, and bananas, oranges, tangerines, grapefruits all are considered Kapha foods, thus aggravating allergies.
Diet rich in lots of fruits and vegetable of different colors are recommended, as they provide photochemical, which reduce susceptibility to allergies. Neti is nasal douching with salt and baking soda of the nasal passages, which helps soothe the irritated mucous membranes. Ayurvedic herbs like Guggul, Shilajeet, Amla and Pippli also help tremendously. Shilajeet is a mineral pitch that helps boost the immune system.
Diet and lifestyle for Allergic rhinitis
Allergic rhinitis is used to describe an inflammation of the lining of the nose caused by an allergy. The symptoms include a ‘runny’ nose and sneezing, nose, roof of the mouth, and the ears, may be itchy.
Ayurveda believes in three doshas, which are vata, pitta, and kapha, an imbalance in which results in a disease. Ayurveda has the faith that allergy or Sheetpitta is variety of unwholesome condition of pitta. In this condition the pitta loses its natural warmth. It can occur when you eat spices or hot food, drink caffeine, or are exposed to irritant chemicals, such as tobacco smoke or perfume. It also occurs due to airborne allergens, such as pollen of all types, house-dust mites and their faeces, mould spores, animal dander and feather and household sprays.
Allergic rhinitis can best be taken care of by taking certain dietary and lifestyle precautions. Some of them are:
- · Certain foods are more mucous producing and Ayurvedic medicine recognizes those foods as Kapha foods thus aggravating allergies like dairy, wheat, sugar, potatoes, tomatoes, peppers, bananas, oranges, and grapefruits. Food additives like artificial dyes and different preservatives also play major factors
- Home environment such as forced air, gas heat, pets and carpet which harbors dust mites, molds, bacteria along with many chemicals are certainly aggravating factors.
- Dry grains like chickpeas, kala channa, corn, fish like salmon, trout, cod are better choices. Tea with cardamom, pepper and ginger, lemon juice and honey work effectively. Diet rich in lots of fruits and vegetable of different colors are recommended.
- Carpets are one of the major contributors to allergies as they breed dust mites. The best choice is to remove the carpet, which eliminates the area for the dust mites to breed also use pillows with micro fiber.
- Yoga -The Sheetpitta of respiratory system like Rhinitis can be cured by the regular practice of certain type of Pranayamas like Bhastrika, ujjai.
- Panchakarma-Vaman (the emesis therapy) and Virechan therapy (the laxatives therapy) are very effective to detoxify the body.
Ayurvedic medicines for Allergic rhinitis
Allergic Rhinitis from an Ayurvedic perspective is due to the toxins present in the body (ama) and due to the low immunity. Ama aggravates the levels of Pitta or Kapha in the body, giving rise to different symptoms of allergies. Allergic rhinitis is characterized by excessive sneezing, runny nose, itchy eyes, and throat irritation, nasal congestion accompanied by headaches and earaches and loss of smell or taste. It is common during early summer and spring when the plants are flowering or producing pollens. Ayurveda considers this as a Kapha-Pitta disorder.
Ayurveda believes in balancing the three doshas present in the human body thus treating the disease on the whole. Therefore it suggests the following approaches to get rid of allergic rhinitis:
1. A slice of ginger, pepper and cardamom can be added while preparing tea. Dried ginger can be also added to coffee without milk and taken.
2. Mix honey with half the amount of lemon juice and take the mixture early in the morning for few weeks.
3. Take two spoons of Apple cider vinegar and a bit of honey to a glass of cooled boiled water and take it early in the morning.
4. Have a diet rich in vitamin C and vitamin B.
5. Take chamommile tea twice a day.
6. Take one cup of Indian gooseberry and mix with two tsp of honey. Have it twice a day.
7. Pouring two to three drops of coconut oil into the nostrils at bedtime could provide relief.
8. Ayurvedic treatment procedure involves inducing therapeutic vomiting which helps in balancing Kapha.
9. Herbs like santalum, cardamom and licorice can be boiled in water (ratio 1:4) and reduced to quarter of the quantity. Drinking this often will help in preventing the aggravation of Pitta dosha.
10. Taking two tablets of guduchi thrice a day or consuming tea made of camphor, cloves and basil for about two weeks will help prevent the aggravation of Kapha.
11. Consuming herbs like Evening Primrose, nettle and Butterbur are also useful in treating allergic rhinitis.
