Besides lifestyle change, nasal flushing and immunotherapy, there are some natural plants or plant extracts that work well to treat or prevent allergy symptoms.

Quercetin

Quercetin is a natural compound derived from plant. It is a natural antioxidant that can be found in citrus fruits, onions, apples, parsley, tea, tomatoes, broccoli, lettuce and wine.

Quercetin supplements can prevent allergy attacks. It is best to start using it six weeks before allergy season.

Allergy Fighting Foods

Foods rich in omega-3 fatty acids help alleviate allergy symptoms. Omega-3s can be found in cold-water fish, walnuts, flaxseed oil, grass-fed meat and eggs.

Also, add spices such as horseradish, chili peppers or hot mustard to your food. They act as natural decongestants.

Stinging Nettle

Stinging nettle (see image) acts like many of the drugs sold to treat allergies. But it has the advantage of not causing the side effects like dry mouth and drowsiness.

You can make your own tinctures or teas with stinging nettle. Or you can use stinging nettle extract capsules.

Butterbur

Butterbur is another plant used to treat allergies. It is as effective as the drug cetirizine,  the active ingredient in Zyrtec. However, butterbur doesn’t cause drowsiness.

Also see Natural Remedies for Allergy (1). Read more, go here.

There are about 50 million Americans who suffer from allergies. Many rely on drugs and sprays for relief.

However, medications have mixed results (for example, only alleviate some of the symptoms), are often expensive, and usually come with side effects, such as drowsiness , fatigue and nasal irritation.

A number of natural alternatives are proven to be effective in controlling allergy. Many prevent allergic reaction before it occurs.

Lifestyle changes

Avoid using window fans to cool rooms so that pollen won’t be pulled indoors. Keep windows closed while driving and limit your time outdoors during allergy season.

Nasal Flushing

A little saltwater can rinse away pollen and alleviate allergy symptoms and other sinus congestion. Do it at least a couple of times a day during allergy season.

You can either use your cupped hands to rinse sinuses, or a Neti pot (see image), which is a small vessel that has been used in India for thousands of years to rinse sinuses.

Immunotherapy

Allergy shots help build immunity gradually, often take 3-5 years.

Sublingual immunotherapy involves putting small dose of allergen under the tongue for 2 minutes and then swallow. It has been widely used in the U.K., but hasn’t been approved in the U.S..

Also see Natural Remedies for Allergy (2). Read more, go here.