Seasonal Allergies in Kiddos

Oy here comes the season (or soon-ish…depending on when this winter wonderland leaves us?!). The season of sneezes, itchy eyes, runny nose, red splotchy skin, and itch itch itch! This can lead to disrupted sleep, exacerbating other ailments such as asthma, and just downright discomfort for these Little Ones. Parents are left feeling a wee bit helpless and wondering what the heck to do? Reaching for anti-histamine medication at this point makes sense! Yet it’s when we see that it’s only a band-aid solution, is when we want alternatives. So, listen up! 

Why don’t we walk through what is going on inside their little bodies, then let’s walk through what we can do to help! This will then leave you as parents feeling well equipped to help your little ones survive and THRIVE in this season and all the ones to come! Sounds good? Let’s dive in!

What’s Really Goin’ On Inside Their Little Bodies?

When a child is exposed to various environmental factors during this season (snow mould, pollen, or grass that is uncovered) their body produces mast cells to the offending allergen – this is called a type one hypersensitivity. Mast cells produced the early symptoms of sneezing and runny nose. These happen right away post exposure. Mast cells then stimulate a whole cascade of troops to come ‘fight off’ the offender (the environment) including eosinophils. These troops from the immune system cause inflammation and essentially blockage of the nasal passageway, causing stuffiness, redness, and discomfort. Because so many immune troops have then come to the allergy party, the kiddo’s nose starts reacting to other hypersensitivities like tobacco or cold or dry air. Lastly – when their little bodies are undergoing a IgE reaction, histamine is then produced which causes the itchiness!

And so it goes….

How Can Naturopathic Medicine Help?

Well, first off, we want to reduce the hypersensitivity so that exposure to normal seasonal changes can occur without reaction. Secondly, we want to reduce mast cells so they don’t get the party started (runny nose and sneezing). Thirdly, we want to support pathways in the body that get rid of histamine so that their little noses/eyes can clear up and not itch.

Reduce hypersensitivity

Generally speaking, we are wanting to reduce inflammation in the digestive tract as this is where approximately 85% of our immune system sits. To balance this out we can use non histamine producing probiotics, eat proper foods and reduce inflammatory foods (see treatments).

Reduce mast cells

More specifically, the microbiome can stimulate mast cells and therefore we want to make sure this is in balance so that those pesky little party starters don’t even come a knocking! We can use strains of probiotic to maximize the anti-histamine strains in the gut as well as eat diverse amounts of foods as this encourages a balanced microbiome in our kiddos.

Encourage Histamine Elimination From The Body

There are four pathways/enzymes that help to eliminate histamine from our kiddo’s bodies. When we encourage these enzymes to work effectively, we can help to reduce symptoms such as the itchiness! We can do so by providing the cofactors to help those enzymes work.

Treatment

Let’s walk through how to set our kiddo’s up for success heading into the season, and then look to treat the symptoms to reduce discomfort.

Food

Now is the time to help to reduce severity of reactions to come… and it’s not too late! Reducing overall inflammation in the body can be done via foods! 

Adding foods in to the diet that help to reduce inflammation are as follows:

• Foods rich in omega three fatty acids. Omega three fatty acids have EPA in them which is the reason for reducing inflammation. Examples are:

  • Hemp hearts – easy to add a tablespoon on to salad, toast, sandwich, oatmeal in the morning, smoothie or coconut yoghurt

  • Salmon – get this into your dinner rotation weekly if you can!

  • Nut butters – have ‘good fats’ in them – specifically almonds or walnuts

• Anti-oxidant rich foods – prevents the secretion of histamine and white blood cells that cause the inflammatory symptoms

  • Berries, berries, berries! On salad, in smoothies, on toast, plain!

  • Veggies veggies veggies - my kids are so over me saying ‘eat your veggies’ lol! I have to stop; except I can’t help myself as they are just so rich in alllllll good things including anti-oxidants!

• Foods to help stabilize mast cell production

  • Greens (watercress…not normally used, I know, yet use this in a salad at dinner time? Or in a sauce to hide it if they are like ‘ewww no way’)

  • Apple, peaches and brazil nuts – great combo.

  • Never underestimate the addition of spices and herbs – ginger, turmeric, chamomile tea? Yes please. I love putting fresh ginger in cooking as well as in smoothie/juicing. Kids will usually say things like that’s ‘picey! They’ll get used to it, especially if you add honey!

• Whole foods free of pesticides or additives! Why? Because this is where the nutrient density comes from that nurtures the body. Quite simple, isn’t it?

Eliminating common inflammatory foods are as follows:

• North American cow dairy products – watch milk, yogurt, butter and cheese as they can not only cause inflammation, yet also not allow the mucous produced to drain from sinus area. To be clear, this is not referring to only those patients with sensitivities to dairy. Dairy is just a common inflammatory food and eliminating or reducing this may help to reduce general inflammation in the body

• North American-produced wheat products – watch for gluten-containing products, which include pastas, breads, crackers and some sauces. See if you can get your hands on these products from Europe or replace with alternative products such as seeds, potatoes, chickpeas, or rice

By changing just food, see how your little one’s fare heading into the season!

Supporting Histamine Elimination Pathways

Cofactors for the four enzymes that are responsible for eliminating/breaking down histamine in the body include SAMe, vitamin C, B6 (in the form of P5P), vitamin C, B5 (pantothenic acid), zinc, B1, and B3. Using these throughout the later months of winter and into the spring will help the body to encourage these elimination pathways to work properly.

Seasonal Support

We want to support the body to reduce the eosinophilic build up that can cause the nasal tissue to become chronically inflamed. We also want to support the local tissue in the nasopharynx pathway. We can do so with the following?

Nutrient support

• Quercetin can help to reduce histamine production as well as those initial party peeps – the mast cells

• Vitamin C can help to reduce histamine production as well as help to counteract the rest of the pesky party mates that cause inflammation in the process

• Bromelain is another one that can reduce inflammation so helps with the subsequent reactions post initial mast cells

Herbs

• I mentioned cooking with ginger however it’s a great mast stabilizer so use it in more concentrated form in a tincture

• Boswellia is a great anti-inflammatory herb you can add into any herbal mixture

• Nettle – say my name. Add this puppy to reduce histamine production

Nasal Rinse

Using this two times a day can help local tissue if the nasal congestion is something fierce. I love using tea tree oil in the morning (diluted one drop per cup of saline) and then using a probiotic at night to repopulate. See if this benefits the nasal congestion and itchy nose/sneezing.

Always ask your healthcare practitioner for the correct dosages and amounts specific to your kiddos.

By supporting these little ones throughout this season will leave you feeling less stress, have them sleeping better to combat other illness, and overall happier little beings!

Reach out with questions!