Allergies, Your Immune System and You
If there’s one aspect of your body that’s arguably more important than any other in keeping you happy, healthy and well, it’s your immune system. Your immune system attacks and destroys anything that doesn’t belong in your body, whether it’s pathogens like bacteria and viruses or drugs, tumors and even dead cells.Sometimes, however, your immune system gets overzealous and the part of you that’s supposed to keep you healthy can actually make you sick. When it attacks donor organs, for example, it’s acting contrary to the way we want it to work. More commonly, a misbehaving immune system can cause allergic reactions. Learn about allergies, the immune system and the steps you can take to address these unpleasant and sometimes fairly serious attacks to remain well.
Allergies and the Immune SystemWhat many people don’t realize is that allergies and the immune system are very closely interrelated. In fact, allergies are a common immune system disorder, the most common out there. They occur when your body reacts badly to an otherwise common and harmless substance, like pollen, dust, pet dander or food items. When this happens, it produces chemicals called histamines that attack the substance.
What Are Histamines?Histamines are part of your body’s natural response to foreign substances. Have you ever gotten a cold or the flu and gotten all stuffed up with a runny nose and pressure in your sinuses? That’s the result of histamines attacking the virus. In allergies, histamines are attacking things they shouldn’t attack, making you feel ill and giving you the classic symptoms.In some cases, your body can react even more fiercely, leading to a reaction called anaphylaxis, which can be deadly. With this sort of reaction, your glands swell and your throat can even close up. Many people who have serious shellfish or nut allergies suffer this kind of reaction.
How Are Allergies Treated?There are several approaches to treating allergies. The first is the standard medical approach. In this approach, medication like antihistamines can control mild allergy symptoms, while epinephrine injections can help to save someone from anaphylaxis.Another option, however, is the chiropractic approach. It may seem odd to associate spinal manipulation with allergies, but in truth this is a practice that’s been going on for over 100 years and has been highly praised for its effectiveness. Chiropractic care doesn’t actually treat the allergies, but looks for vertical subluxation in your spine and corrects it, which allows your immune system to work more efficiently.Your nervous system and immune system are closely intertwined, and when one works better, so does the other. By correcting subluxations, a chiropractor can help you to better adapt to environmental stresses, which can improve allergy symptoms.
Allergies and ChiropracticChiropractic is a whole body approach to health and wellness. It starts with the spinal cord and nervous system but spreads treatment techniques to your entire body. ACT Wellness has been helping people in Woodbridge, VA with holistic wellness services for years. If you’d like more information about how we might be able to help your allergy problems, give us a call today!
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