hayfever sneeze
© UnknownCan you beat hayfever by changing your diet?
While the rest of us welcome the lengthening days, Britain's ten million hayfever sufferers greet spring with dread at the prospect of months of sore, itchy eyes and violent sneezing.

The bad news is that this year could be far worse than normal, with the National Pollen Research Unit forecasting pollen levels five times higher than last year and close to the highest ever pollen count, recorded in 1992.

Hayfever (seasonal allergic rhinitis or pollinosis) is an allergic reaction - usually triggered by pollen, grasses or mould spores. It accounts for around 2.5 per cent of all GP visits and more than £50 million in medication costs.

Although conventional treatments include antihistamines and steroids, there are alternatives. One of the most interesting theories suggests that what you eat could significantly affect hayfever.

Naturopath Roger Newman Turner of the Research Council for Complementary Medicine says: 'In nearly 40 years of practice I have found that diet plays a very important role in the management of hayfever.

'Most of my hayfever patients have been able to reduce the severity of their symptoms and, in some cases, eradicate the condition.'

Nutritional health expert Linda Lazarides agrees. She says: 'I have certainly heard of people getting rid of their hayfever using nutrition alone, although it won't necessarily succeed with everyone.'

Both experts agree the nutritional approach to hayfever involves cutting down on foods which encourage mucus production, while boosting foods that have natural antihistamine and anti-inflammatory properties.

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'Eliminate mucus-forming foods such as milk products, sugar and excessive starch,' says Mr Newman Turner. 'This will reduce catarrh and the worst of the streaming.

'A predominantly raw-food diet (fruit and vegetables) helps to reduce the inflammatory tendency and patients also do well on cleansing diets or even short fasts, under professional supervision.'

Linda Lazarides adds: 'You need to reduce the tendency for the body to form histamine by boosting your diet with foods rich in calcium, magnesium, methionine and flavonoids. Have loads of nuts, sunflower seeds, onions, cabbage, blackberries and apples, including their peel.

'Large amounts of Vitamin C are useful - it's a natural anti-histamine, and quercetin [a yellow pigment found in plants] is helpful too.'

Quercetin appears to reduce the release of histamine from cells and is also believed to stabilise cell membranes so they are less reactive to allergens such as pollen.

Linda Lazarides also reports that some people 'respond well to large doses of bee pollen supplements, starting in early spring'.

The triggers for hayfever appear straightforward, so why does one person suffer miserably while others remain sneeze-free? And why is hayfever on the increase in cities?

A report in New Scientist magazine asks whether the tendency to plant male-only shrubs and trees in cities (to avoid mess from fruit and seedlings) has led to the increase of hayfever in towns (only male plants produce pollen).

Patrick Holford, of the Institute for Optimum Nutrition, notes that pollutants such as exhaust fumes prime the immune system to react to other irritants.

And he says: 'It is interesting to note that the three most common substances reacted to [pollen, wheat and milk] are all originally grass products. It may be that some hayfever sufferers become sensitised to proteins that are common to grains, grasses and possibly milk.'

Kerrin Booth, naturopath, herbalist and nutritionist at Apotheke 20-20 in London, also advises hayfever sufferers to look at food intolerances.

'People often assume that because their symptoms are aggravated by airborne allergens, food is not a problem for them,' she says. 'But often they also have food sensitivities which are aggravating their symptoms.'

At the Chi Centre in London, they take an integrated approach. Diet, herbs and acupuncture are used alongside conventional treatments. As patients' symptoms improve, most can gently be weaned off the steroids or antihistamines, and finally from the herbs themselves.

Samantha Arthur, 32, a models' agent, and her husband David, 33, a civil servant, both found relief from their hayfever this way.

'It's not an instant fix by any means,' says Samantha, 'but we have been impressed by the results. The first year my symptoms were much reduced and finished far earlier.

'Last year it was much better all round. So far I haven't been affected at all this year, despite the warnings of a high pollen count.'

Foods To Eat

Fish: high in omega 3 fatty acids which have an anti-inflammatory effect.

All vegetables other than tomatoes.

All fruits other than oranges.

Raw, unsalted nuts and seeds.

Garlic and onion.

Fruit, honey, maple syrup, brown rice syrup or barley malt as sweeteners if required.

Beans, lentils.

Herbal teas.

Drink two litres of water a day.

Foods to Avoid

Dairy products: increase mucus production.

Meat: arachidonic acid contributes to allergic and inflammatory reactions.

Wheat and wheat products such as pasta, bread and noodles.

Caffeine and alcohol: a congested liver can increase hay fever symptoms.

Tomatoes, oranges, cheese, red wine, chocolate: contain histamine.

Avoid foods to which you are sensitive. There is a self-test in Linda Lazarides book Gourmet Nutritional Therapy Cookbook (Waterfall 2000).