Allergies and the Naturopathic Perspective

Today, we are going to look at allergies, its many manifestations, what they communicate in essence, and what we all can do to minimize their impact on our well-being.

Naturopathic medicine is a distinct system of health care - an art, science, and philosophy of health that has at its root, a more holistic perspective of the body, encompassing the whole of the individual.   Consistent with systems biology thinking, the whole is greater than the sum of its. Parts.

Naturopathic medicine is distinguished by the principles which underlie and determine its practice. These principles are based upon the objective observation of the nature of health and disease, and are continually reexamined in the light of scientific advances. Methods used are consistent with these principles and are chosen upon the basis of the unique needs of the individual. Naturopathic physicians are trained as primary health care physicians whose diverse techniques include modern and traditional, scientific and empirical methods. The following principles are the foundation for the practice of naturopathic medicine:

Introduction to Allergies – setpoint theory

• Inflammation setpoint

Allergies:

• sensitization to the environment;
• exaggerated immune response
• immune system’s job is to fight infection and to clean up debris from damage
• Symptoms – irritation, think of it as a chronic irritation
  • Irritable skin
  • Irritable bowel
  • Irritable nose
  • Irritable throat
  • Irritable eyes
  • Irritable lungs
  • Irritable psyche?
• This means that tolerance has been breached
  • Think about when you haven’t slept well for a few days, what does that do to your emotional set-point?

Steps to improve allergies:

• Fundamental health equation – you + your environment = your state of health
  • Let’s look at your environment
  • Hygiene hypothesis
  • The “YOU”:
  • Concept – inflammation set point
• #1 dietary strategy – you guessed it – avoid PUFAs omega 6
  • Role of prostaglandins
• First, look at any other sign of allergy you may have present
  • Look at skin health – if rashes, if eczema, look to resolve that
• Improve digestive health
  • Watch for diet and digestive symptoms
  • Diet
    • Role of endotoxin – LPS
    • Foods that increase gut permeability
    • Additives in food that increase gut permeability
      • Examples: Carrageenan
    • Toxins in foods – aflatoxin (fungal toxin)
      • Pesticides
      • Heavy metals
    • The focus on simple foods
    • Food preparation – cooked, easily digestible
    • Role of histamine
    • Elimination/provocation
  • Improve liver health
    • Cholegogues – herbs that move bile
      • Dandelion root, turmeric, milk thistle, black radish, rosemary, schizandra
      • Foods – bitter herbs/greens/ - well cooked
        • lemon water in the am, with honey
      • improve lymphatic health
        • lymph drains metabolic waste of organs
        • lymph transports fats – chylomicrons – need to decongest
          • signs of edema? Fluid retention – excessive?
        • Kidney helps drains lymph – energy/meridians
        • Liver also helps drain lymph
          • Analogy of a gutter, leaves bunched on the bottom
          • Increases the load, toxic burden
        • General nasal / sinus hygiene
          • Neti pot
          • Xlear – xylitol
          • Histamine modulators
            • Herbs – quercetin, nettle, bromelain, vitamin C
          • Role of histamine
            • Bigger context, tied with estrogen
            • Estrogen causes the cell/tissue to take up water
            • Of course, gut is large source of potential histamine production
          • Total load concept
            • Infections;
              • Increases the set point
            • Examples of a gut pathogen – remove pathogen, then allergies decreased
            • Lead in air, food, water
            • smog