In myths, ambrosia is called the food of the gods, which gives them eternal youth, but unfortunately this does not apply to people. At 70 million inhabitants of our planet already there is an allergy to ambrosia. Symptoms of this immune reaction of the body are nonspecific, but very obvious and painful for patients.
Ambrosia - a thunderstorm of allergies!
Ambrosia is a weed plant brought to Europe from North America. It is so well established in our temperate climate that it began actively spreading in the fields, pastures, near roads in large and small cities. This inconspicuous at first glance, weeds brings a lot of trouble and the agricultural industry. It drains the soil, prevents other plants from developing, it is eaten by cows, causing the taste and smell of milk to change for the worse. Legislation welcomes the fight against ambrosia by any means. But even more harm this weed brings to a person, because its pollen causes the strongest allergies in both children and adults.
Why ambrosia causes allergy
Pollen ragweed is considered one of the most aggressive allergens. After all, only a few of its grains are enough to cause allergies, hay fever or even bronchial asthma. The most unpleasant thing is that this weed has a very long flowering period - from July to the onset of cold weather. All this period allergy sufferers have to look for ways to save themselves from ragweed by any means, although it is very difficult to hide from it. Each plant flower can allocate up to a billion pollen grains, which spread by wind to a distance of about 500 km.
Like any other pollinosis, the reaction to ragweed occurs after contact with pollen, which contains a special substance - ambrosic acid. It is the main irritant for the human immune system. Especially strongly manifested allergy to ragweed in children. Therefore, if possible, it is better to avoid being near this plant, let alone contact with it. You can also get the disease if you use milk of animals that used the "food of the gods."Another unpleasant fact is that the allergy to ambrosia is accompanied by a cross-reaction to the pollen of wormwood, coltsfoot, sunflower, string and other plants.
Mechanism for the development of an allergic reaction to ambrosia
The ragweed allergy belongs to the classic pollinosis and belongs to the first type of reactions. That is, it occurs immediately or a few hours after contact with the pollen. In this case, allergens provoke the formation of antibodies-reactants IgG and IgE, which, when combined with mast cells and basophilic leukocytes, cause the release of inflammatory mediators into the blood stream: histamine, serotonin, heparin, prostaglandins and other substances that cause all clinical signs of allergy.
Diagnosis of the disease includes assessment of the clinical picture, elucidation of the cyclicity of the manifestation of symptoms and the conduct of laboratory tests. Modern methods allow you to easily identify allergies in both the latent and acute phase, regardless of the use of antihistamines. Basic research methods:
- Skin tests.
- Samples on mucous membranes.
- ELISA( enzyme immunoassay).
- RAST( radioallergosorbent test).
All tests are performed in special medical laboratories, and the analysis of the diagnosis and the diagnosis should be entrusted to the allergist.
How the allergy to ambrosia
is manifested In the middle of the summer, people of the common cold often meet. They constantly sneeze, their eyes are red and watery, and from the nose it pours down the river - this is nothing but an allergy to ragweed, the symptoms of which are so similar to a cold disease. Seasonality of the disease is associated with the flowering of the plant - from the beginning of the second month of summer to the onset of autumn colds.
The main signs of an allergy:
- sneezing;
- swelling and nasal congestion;
- mucous transparent discharge from the nose;
- itching and swelling in the nasopharynx and soft palate;
- a sore throat;
- difficulty breathing;
- conjunctivitis( itching, redness, swelling, lacrimation, photophobia);
- atopic dermatitis in open areas of the body( itching, flushing and rashes on the skin);
- bronchospasm, bronchial asthma;
- total intoxication: fatigue;irritability;depression;insomnia;a slight increase in temperature;headache.
Rarely, these symptoms may be associated with laryngitis and sinusitis. Nonspecific manifestations of allergy include:
- meningitis;
- encephalitis;
- hepatitis;
- gastritis;
- violation of the visual and auditory nerve.
When a person first has an allergy to ragweed, the symptoms speak for themselves. Although some patients take it for the usual ARI.
If the child is allergic to ragweed
Quite often allergies to ragweed are found in children. In 50% of cases, the disease manifests itself before the age of 15 years. Until the age of 6, the disease is rare. Usually, it develops in often sick children with reduced immunity and a tendency to develop allergic reactions that live in ecologically unfavorable places. It was found that children in contact with large animals( cats, dogs, etc.), often had pollinosis. Excessive hygiene and sterility when raising a child also causes a tendency to allergies.
If a child develops an allergy to ragweed, the symptoms of the disease will be the same as that of the adult. However, the immune system is not yet fully formed in children, so the clinical manifestations are much more vivid, in addition, there is a high risk of developing bronchial asthma or attacks of suffocation.
How to medically treat an allergy to ambrosia
Many patients begin to sneeze only from the words: "summer", "ambrosia", "allergy".How to treat the pollinosis, in order to really be the result, only the expert can tell. Therapy is prescribed exclusively by the allergist doctor, depending on the stage of the disease, the age of the patient and the individual characteristics of his organism. The main directions of therapy are:
- The reception of antihistamines, which eliminate the action of inflammatory mediators and thereby relieve itching, swelling, redness. Provoking a sedative effect, these drugs bring the nervous system of the patient back to normal. Antihistamines include: "Diphenhydramine", "Diazolin", "Fenistil", "Loratadin", "Desloratadine", "Levocithyrizine", etc.
- The reception of hormonal drugs. This treatment is used if the allergy has already developed into bronchial asthma or when antihistamines do not help. The use of steroid preparations in the form of nasal sprays and drops helps to relieve puffiness, spasm, inflammation, redness and other allergy symptoms. These medicines include: "Baconase", "Rhinocort," "Nazonex," etc.
- Alternative methods: acupuncture, immunotherapy, homeopathy.
It can be taken as tablets from allergies to ragweed, and drops to the eyes and nose.
The most effective method of treatment is moving to a place where ragweed does not grow.
How not to aggravate the condition?
To prevent the development of an allergic reaction to ragweed, you should try to follow preventive measures:
- Do not go out in the midst of blooming.
- When winding, curtain the windows with a damp cloth.
- Put mosquito nets on windows for extra protection.
- Use at home and in the car is air conditioned.
- Clean the house twice a day.
- Change clothes and wash right after coming home from the street.
- Wash daily outdoor clothing and dry it only indoors.
- Gargle and nose with saline every day.
- To bathe pets, having access to the street.
- To release an apartment from carpets, bedspreads, pillows, etc.
- Avoid stress.
- Visit an allergist.
- Perform doctor's appointments.
- Exclude herbal treatment: chamomile, plantain, dandelion, wormwood, string, yarrow, etc.
Do not eat foods that contain cross-allergens:
- nuts;
- honey;
- citrus;
- products from sunflower;
- cumin, ginger and other spices;Dill, celery and other greens;
- chicory;
- mustard;
- mayonnaise;
- watermelon, melon;
- drinks with wormwood;
- chocolate, etc.
It is also very important to follow a diet that excludes sharp, smoked, fried and fatty foods.
Folk remedies for allergy management
Sometimes, when the allergy to ambrosia prevails in traditional ways in the unequal struggle with the disease, folk remedies remain the only option. Although often the advice of doctors and "grandmother's recipes" contradict each other. For example: "Take the juice of the celery root half an hour before eating" or "Baths and infusions of camomile chamomile - an excellent remedy against allergies."Also, in people, allergies are treated with infusions of three-color violets, red and black currant calens, etc. So, by and large, these methods are unlikely to bring relief to the patient, let alone cope with allergies.
Very often women in the situation try to be treated with folk medicine, since the allergy to ambrosia during pregnancy practically does not lend itself to drug treatment, since most drugs during this period of a woman's life are prohibited. However, self-medication can cause more harm.
It is very important to recognize the symptoms of the disease in time and consult a specialist for adequate therapy. It is impossible to completely overcome with allergies, but to prevent its manifestations and reduce the intensity of symptoms is quite feasible.