It is an appropriate time to talk about acupuncture and hay fever as Spring has just started in Brisbane. A couple of things occur in Spring – we have many of the trees coming into blossom and we have those infamous northerly winds here in South East Queensland. The combination of these two environmental factors is enough to “stir the pot” of the hardiest individual.
However, those of us who are already predisposed towards irritation of the mucosal linings, the sinuses and also the respiratory system itself, respond in quite a virulent manner.
I guess sneezing is the initial hay fever symptom but added on to that, in severe cases, there is the constant rhinitis, the runny nose, the sore throat and just the general feeling, “Here we are again – it’s Spring and I’m going to be smashed!”
It takes months for the blossoms to settle down and for the winds to stop blowing from the inland. When the sea breezes arrive there is less potential or possibility of the blossoms blowing through the air.
Why does hay fever occur? It is a combination of factors – it’s a constitutional predisposition. Certainly some people will tend to suffer more than others from conditions like hay fever. There are also lifestyle factors.
In some cases, we may be consuming substances on a daily basis within our diet that will cause constant irritation of the mucosal lining of the body, including the sinuses, the digestive system and the respiratory system.
If that continuous irritation is present then the likelihood of suffering from hay fever attacks increases proportionally because there is already irritation of the mucosal lining, especially in the sinuses and respiratory system.
How does acupuncture help to relive hay fever? Again, the beauty of the application of traditional East Asian medicine is that we are drawing on the wisdom of many centuries of experience in dealing with things like hay fever and many other common health conditions that are not exclusively modern phenomena.
So in East Asian medicine there have been a lot of strategies that were developed and evolved over thousands of years to help people that suffered from these conditions, specifically from hay fever.
We have an ameliorated scenario in the West, especially in South East Queensland, in that our seasons are not quite as marked as elsewhere. Here in Brisbane, Queensland, the seasons tend to role into each other a little.
The seasons are very marked in the Northern Hemisphere, in particular, in a climate like Japan or China where there are definitely four clear seasons – Spring, Summer, Autumn & Winter.
So the expertise in East Asian medicine in the treatment with acupuncture of conditions like hay fever, is very deep and very thorough.
Clinically, I’ve had great success in working with people who have suffered from hay fever and respiratory problems as a result of environmental stimulation.
The acupuncture works both from an anti-inflammatory perspective and also from strengthening the immune system so that system itself is not so subject to the irritation that comes with the blossoms and the northerly winds.
If you are suffering from hay fever, do visit us at the Brisbane Acupuncture Clinic so that you can gain relief from this de-energising condition.
