In addition to applying treatments, people with allergic rhinitis also need to pay attention to diet to prevent and support the treatment process. So what should you eat when you suffer from allergic rhinitis, the following article will help you answer these questions.
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What to eat allergic rhinitis?
What diet allergic rhinitis should be a common question of many people. Due to the causative mechanism of allergic rhinitis, the body produces excessive histamine. Only when the patient can control the condition through abstaining from or not consuming allergy-causing foods and increasing the use of good, resistant foods, can allergic rhinitis be controlled. Healthy foods that people with allergic rhinitis should eat include:
1. Omega-3 rich foods
When the body comes into contact with an allergen, a series of allergic reactions occur. At this time, the body will release inflammatory mediators, which are histamine, which cause allergy symptoms such as sneezing, dry cough, runny nose, tears … Therefore, patients need to supplement foods rich in omega. – 3, this food group has an effective anti-inflammatory effect. A 2005 study by German scientists showed that people with the most common type of omega-3, EPA in the blood, were at the lowest risk of allergic rhinitis.
Foods rich in omega-3 can be mentioned as salmon, herring, sardines, mackerel … However, people with allergic rhinitis should not eat much seafood. Therefore, patients only eat in moderation and replace them with foods such as algae, canola, flax seeds, walnuts, pumpkins, soybeans …
2. Zinc-rich foods
Zinc is a trace mineral that plays a role in protein synthesis and is involved in many immune responses of the body. Not only that, but zinc also plays a role in the proliferation of immune cells to fight infections. Zinc supplementation helps to improve the immune system, inhibit the massive release of histamine, which stimulates the nasal mucosa, but also aids in healing, preventing the effects of harmful free radicals body.
Foods rich in zinc to include in your diet include oats, pumpkin seeds, legumes, turnips, onions, peanuts, clams, red meat, whole grains, and ginger. In particular, red meats such as beef, lamb, and pork are rich in zinc, which is the best source of zinc, and our bodies also absorb these foods more easily.
3. The spice group is anti-allergic
Spices such as onion, garlic, turmeric, ginger … are extremely effective against allergies because of their anti-inflammatory and bactericidal properties from natural bioactive substances. Specifically:
- Garlic : Rich in Sulfur and allicin that have anti-inflammatory, antibacterial, purifying, and detoxifying effects, increasing white blood cells to eliminate harmful toxins. Not only that, but garlic also helps increase the resistance, supports the elimination of bad cholesterol, increases the antioxidant enzyme. Garlic is also a good source of potassium and vitamin C for the body.
- Onions: Onions are a rich source of quercetin, which both stabilizes histamine production and has anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects that help reduce inflammation.
- Ginger: Through reducing the level of IgE in the body ginger can help slow down the production of free histamine in the body. You can use ginger tea, ginger essential oil or add ginger to foods to prevent and aid in the treatment of allergic rhinitis.
4. Foods rich in vitamin C
Vitamin C not only enhances the resistance and strengthens the immune system, but also aids in reducing the concentration of histamine in the body, destroying the toxin of histamine and preventing respiratory infections. Not only that, these foods are also rich in antioxidants that help fight asthma, allergic rhinitis effectively.
Foods rich in vitamin C that patients should add are bell peppers, citrus fruits, tomatoes, carrots, cherries, star fruit, grapefruit, apples, blueberries, strawberries, guava … In addition, should also be fortified. eat a variety of cruciferous vegetables like spinach, choysum, bok choy …
5. Probiotics
Supplementing with probiotics not only aids digestion, but also reduces the symptoms caused by allergic rhinitis. These foods include yogurt, milk mushrooms, miso soup …
What should I drink if I have allergic rhinitis?
People with allergic rhinitis should also pay attention to what to drink to support treatment, help prevent and improve the disease. Specifically, the patient should:
- Drink plenty of water: Water is very good for the body, drinking enough water will help the body, especially the kidneys, excrete and detoxify.
- Honey: Honey has antibacterial, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant properties that increase resistance, helping the body’s immune system to cope better with allergies. Therefore, when you have allergic rhinitis, you can drink 1-2 cups of honey a day with warm ginger.
- Some teas: Herbal teas such as ginger tea, chamomile tea, green tea, nettle tea, mint tea … help provide antioxidants, help improve the immune system, reduce the symptoms of rhinitis. allergy.
- Fruit juices: Fruit juices such as guava, oranges, and grapefruit juices are rich in vitamin C, helping to enhance the immune system. Meanwhile, the juice of pineapple, kiwi, carrot contains vitamins A and E, which help to regenerate the damaged nasal mucosa.
What diet allergic rhinitis?
In addition to knowing what to eat, people with allergic rhinitis also need to avoid some of the following foods:
1. Greasy foods
This is a group of unhealthy foods, so even if you are healthy, limit your intake. Fatty foods contain excess fats, they not only put pressure on the stomach but also affect the digestive system, hindering the body’s metabolism, causing a deficiency of essential nutrients. .
At this time, the immune system will not be able to absorb the substances necessary to enhance the body’s immunity, causing serious health problems. In addition, greasy foods also make symptoms such as stuffy nose, nasal discharge worse because they increase the secretion of mucus in the body.
2. The food group is prone to allergies
When you have allergic rhinitis, it’s essential to avoid eating allergen-prone foods. However, not everyone knows what allergenic foods are. You can consider eliminating the following foods from your meals while being treated for allergic rhinitis, including:
- Some hard-shell nuts: Ginkgo nuts, chestnuts, cashews, pecans …
- Shellfish: Usually shrimp, oysters, snails, crabs, mussels … According to statistics, up to 2.5% of the population is allergic to these foods.
- Improperly frozen seafood: When improperly frozen, certain types of seafood can be converted into histamine. Moreover, some types of seafood are only semi-antigens, but if combined with antigens in the body, it will cause an allergic condition.
- Eggs: Common in children because the body mistakes the protein in the egg as a foreign protein, causing an allergic reaction.
- Chicken: Cold, if you eat chicken will easily increase allergic rhinitis.
- Silkworm pupae, fungi, insects, beef, soybeans, peanuts: Easy to cause allergies, not suitable for people with allergic rhinitis.
3. Cow’s milk and cow’s milk products
Cow’s milk is also one of the foods that can cause allergies. Because cow’s milk contains 2 proteins that can cause an allergic reaction, whey and casein. In it, whey exists in the liquid part and casein in the solid part of milk after the milk has settled. Therefore, the patient is best not to use cow’s milk and dairy products such as whey, cheese …
4. Hot spicy food
When suffering from allergic rhinitis, patients often encounter congestion, fluid in the sinuses. Because hot spicy foods or causing the body to accumulate heat leading to internal heat, causing the respiratory system to produce a lot of mucus leading to sinusitis, patients absolutely should not use them. Especially, you should not eat dishes with lots of chili, pickled foods, silage …
5. Food containing stimulants
Stimulants cause vitamin C deficiency, increase IgE antibodies and destroy antioxidants in the body. Not only weakening the immune system, stimulants such as alcohol, tobacco also cause the body to overproduce IgE, leading to a massive release of histamine, making allergic rhinitis worse.
6. Sweets
Sweets not only adversely affect the digestive system but also disturb the metabolism of fluids in the body. Not only that, they also contain a lot of refined sugar, fat, artificial colors that burden the pancreas, increasing the amount of mucus in the body, making a runny nose, and nasal congestion worse.
Therefore, when suffering from allergic rhinitis, patients should limit confectionery, soft drinks, canned fruit juices, chocolate, syrup …
Some notes for people with allergic rhinitis
Not only do you need to know what you should eat when you have allergic rhinitis, you also need to pay attention to the following issues:
- Clean the ears, nose and throat every day, should wash the nose with saline 0.9%
- Increase exercise, build a proper nutrition and a healthy lifestyle to increase resistance.
- Drink enough water, at least 2 liters of water per day combine relaxation, stress relief with meditation, yoga or listening to music, reading clean …
- Clean living space, avoid contact with allergens such as dust, pollen …
- Be careful when applying folk tips when treating allergic rhinitis because they only help improve symptoms, can not be completely treated.
Above is some information to help you determine what diet when you have allergic rhinitis. If your allergy does not show signs of remission but is getting worse, quickly consult your doctor to find out the right treatment.
