Home Remedies for Allergies

Filed in archive Latin Culture on March 28, 2008

It looks like home remedies are making a huge come back in the US. Latin America is a great place to turn to for advice on this because in Latin America, in addition to medicine when necessary, home remedies are a part of daily life.

With the arrival of spring, people are sneezing, coughing, suffering headaches, etc. And everyone is looking for relief. Here are a few ideas:

Increase your garlic intake. You'll not only breath better through your nose, it'll help with the nagging cough as well. I've also heard that chewing a raw clove of garlic will open nasal passages almost immediately.

Drink OJ and honey. In Mexico you'll easily find naranja agria (bitter or sour oranges). They're tangy and sweet. Squeeze them and sweeten them with honey and your throat should feel much better. I've also heard natural apple juice and grape juice with honey works well, too.

Eat spicy foods. The idea is that they make your nose run, which helps flush out the allergens.

Wash out your nasal passages. There are several solutions, but the most common are sea salt and water solutions. BTW, if you have a grandma that washed your eyes and nose with chamomile tea, while it does works for sinusitis, it's not recommended when you have allergies.

This last one is not a home remedy, but it is a natural one. And it works so well that I have to share: Take papaya enzymes. I discovered it thanks to the great advice of a Whole Foods employee.

They're normally taken during meals to improve digestion, but when you take them between meals they can reduce your allergy symptoms. In the States I find them mostly in capsule form, and in Mexico they are commonly seen in powder form. Just head to any natural food shop (look for the word "naturista").

If you know of something great (or something to seriously avoid), share!