The flowers are blooming, the grass is growing, the trees are sporting beautiful colorful blossoms and new foliage is springing forth from every corner.

Spring is a wonderful time of year unless you’re plagued by seasonal allergies and are one of those who are allergic to the pollen released at this growing time of year.

If you’re suffering from the sneezing, watery, itchy eyes, dripping nose discomfort of hay fever you might want to try some natural antihistamines to relieve your symptoms rather than going the drug route.

What you eat is one of the most important steps in your battle against seasonal allergy symptoms.

When you have an immune system that is sensitive to respiratory allergens, such as pollen, dust, mold, etc. you need to make sure your diet contains high quantities of beta carotene, vitamin C, magnesium and quercetin.

Long ago people chewed natural honeycomb to protect themselves from all types of allergies and today there are many advocates for the use of bee pollen to naturally relieve pollen allergies by slowly titrating their systems by taking very small amounts of bee pollen (1 grain to start) and slowly building up. 

Eating lots of garlic is also thought to counteract allergic reactions and don’t forget, if you’re using a microwave to heat food, you’re creating a whole host of “frankenfoods” that your body’s immune system considers an invading army, which will in turn trigger an allergic reaction in your body.

If you have a serious pollen allergy, and bee pollen itself is too strong for you to start with, try a little honey every day, then start mixing a few grains of bee pollen into the honey.

When you think about it, this makes sense, because it’s the bees doing all the pollinating, so if you can eat a food made by bees who visit every flowering grass, flower and tree, over time you could certainly build up an immunity to pollen.

When you have an allergy to pollen, the pollen triggers your cells to release histamine. 

Chamomile tea is a natural antihistamine you can use to counteract this and remember to add some honey to build up your immunity to pollen. Also a hot cup of Elderflower tea or syrup before bedtime can help keep hayfever sniffles away.

Ginger is another natural antihistamine and decongestant which likely provides relief by dilating constricted bronchial tubes. Try some in your tea.

Studies have shown that if your diet is deficient in MAGNESIUM, this can release histamine and cause allergic responses, so make sure your diet contains lots of magnesium. Some leading food sources for magnesium include amaranth, almonds, avocados, barley, brazil nuts, buckwheat, chocolate, pumpkin seeds, spinach, sunflower seeds, oysters, and quinoa.

Another natural histamine blocker is QUERCETIN, which reduces inflammation and blocks allergic reactions to pollens. Leading food sources for quercetin include apples, cranberries, garlic, grapes, green cabbage, kale, onions, pears, spinach and white grapefruit.

Don’t forget to include VITAMIN C on your list of natural antihistamines which are capable of blocking the effect of inflammatory agents that some people produce as a response to pollen and pet dander allergens. Foods high in vitamin C include kiwi fruit, oranges, potatoes, red bell peppers, red cabbage, strawberries, tangerines and other mandarins.

If your immune system is sensitive to respiratory allergens, it’s very important to boost your immune system by eating foods high in BETA-CAROTENE, which is a powerful disease fighting antioxidant found in many common foods. The leading sources include apricots, butternut squash, cantaloupe, carrots, spinach and sweet potato.

When you throw away your microwave, exclude fast and over-processed foods and eat a fresh, healthy diet, which includes foods high in beta-carotene, magnesium, vitamin C and quercetin you may find that you can markedly reduce the severity of the symptoms caused by your allergies if not eliminate them totally over time.