Got that sneezing, wheezing feeling again?
It must be allergy season!

In an air battle, the flight leader’s safety and success depend in part on the skill of his wingman. The same holds true for you and your body; the immune system is constantly fighting off viruses and bacteria so you can perform at your best.

But what happens when your body mistakenly identifies a normal substance as potentially dangerous? You experience an allergic reaction. Your immune system aggressively attacks the substance, inflammation begins, and those aggravating symptoms we often refer to as “my allergies”—nasal stuffiness, itchy eyes, rashes, breathing problems—rear their ugly heads.

“What drives allergy symptoms is inflammation, and it causes all sorts of other things to happen,” says Charles Wagner, M.D., a board-certified allergy and immunology specialist at Allergy Consultants in Salem. “For some people, the symptoms are truly incapacitating.”

Clues and culprits
If you repeatedly get a “cold” at the same time every year or a rash whenever you pet the neighbor’s dog, you’re probably experiencing an allergic reaction. Typical symptoms include:

• Nasal stuffiness, sneezing, itching, or discharge
• Itching in ears or roof of mouth
• Red, itchy, watery eyes
• Hives, itchy welts, or rashes
• “Allergic shiners”—dark circles under the eyes
• Asthma (airway problems, such as shortness of breath, coughing, wheezing)

Accurately diagnosing an allergy, however, is not as simple as identifying its symptoms. Physicians usually review your family history, complete a physical examination, and conduct a special skin, blood, or nasal test. These tests measure your body’s response to various allergens, the trigger substances that cause an allergic reaction. The most notorious troublemakers are: 

• Pollens
• Molds
• Household dust, dust mites, and their waste
• Animal dander, urine, or oil from their skin
• Industrial chemicals
• Foods (such as wheat, dairy, peanuts, soy, and tree nuts)
• Medicines
• Feathers
• Insect stings
• Cockroaches and their waste

Minimize your misery
According to Dr. Wagner, 20 percent of Americans experience allergy symptoms. You don’t have to be one of them. Avoidance, immunotherapy, and medication are three common treatment options that can help you and your physician battle allergies and improve your health.

Avoidance. Stay away from substances that cause an allergic reaction. If you’re allergic to dairy products, read all ingredient labels carefully. If you react to dust mites, avoid wall-to-wall carpeting, blinds, and down-filled blankets and pillows. If you suffer from pollen allergies, use an air filter or remain indoors on windy or high-pollen-count days.

Immunotherapy. Often called “allergy shots” or “desensitization,” immunotherapy is commonly used to treat hay fever (pollen allergies) and asthma. Patients receive gradually increasing doses of the allergen over the course of 12 to 18 months until their immune system learns to fight them off. About 80 to 90 percent of immunotherapy patients improve with treatment.

Medication. Various prescribed and over-the-counter medications are available to treat allergies. Antihistamines prevent some allergic symptoms from emerging. Decongestants narrow the blood vessels and allow clogged nasal passages to clear, and eye drops help alleviate symptoms. Doctors may also prescribe a steroid nasal spray, which reduces congestion and dampens the body’s allergic response to the invading agent.

Studies show that most of these treatments are safe for long-term use in both children and adults. But be aware of possible side effects, such as the increased risk of an irregular heart rate when prescription antihistamines are taken with certain other medications, or the possible connection between infection and steroid nasal sprays.

“Steroid nasal sprays thin the skin layers inside nasal passages and can reduce resistance to other infections,” says John McNulty, R.Ph., manager of retail pharmacy services at Salem Hospital. “Sometimes the infection can cause greater discomfort than the allergen.”