Problems can arise with the immune system where it turns against itself. This leads to a series of auto-immune diseases, such as rheumatoid arthritis, Grave’s disease or systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). These problems can be especially difficult to treat or control.
Allergies occur because the body’s defences are hypersensitive to some allergens in our environment. The inflammatory response releases histamines and other inflammatory response releases histamines and other inflammatory agents into the bloodstream, and the person may start sneezing with a runny nose and even have breathing difficulties. Both the cell and antibody-mediated immune response overreact to antigens, producing an allergic reaction. Most allergens are things like pollen, dust (or more specifically the house dust mite), cats, dogs or horses. Food allergy also occurs and has a range of severity. The most severe form of allergic reaction is anaphylactic shock, when a person can have breathing difficulties, swelling of the throat, a drop in blood pressure and loss of consciousness.
Here, death can occur within minutes unless adrenaline is administered to counteract the allergic response. This type of allergic reaction is fortunately fairly rare but can be caused by a bee or wasp sting or by eating nuts, especially peanuts, or shellfish.
At the other end of the scale, some people can be sensitive to some foods, and this may cause problems such as migraines, respiratory difficulties, tension, depression, joints and muscle aches, and headaches. Other conditions, such as hay fever symptoms, irritability, cramps, stomach upsets and indigestion, may also result from food intolerance. The most common type of food sensitivity is to dairy products or wheat. It may be difficult to pinpoint any specific food that triggers a reaction, but it may be worthwhile eliminating a suspect food from your diet for a time and seeing if the symptoms alleviate.
Some nutritional doctors believe that allergies can be treated and eased by supplementation with certain vitamins, minerals and essential fatty acids. Adults with an adverse reaction to pollen and dogs have had their symptoms removed by taking selenium and calcium tables each day. Children allergic to horses and milk and suffering from asthma have been ‘cured’ of these problems by treatment with zinc, selenium and gamma-linolenic acid. Asthma patients patients treated in this manner have noticed a reduction in respiratory difficulties and in mucous formation in the lungs. In some cases, people have no longer required their normal medical treatment of steroid pills and inhalers. It must be noted that each case of allergy or asthma is treated individually, and benefits derived from nutritional supplements can vary. In asthma, inflammation of the bronchi plays a large part in the condition, and free radicals are known to be involved in inflammatory responses.
Asthma and allergies are activated by prostaglandins and the immune system. People with allergies have higher levels of the antibody immunoglobulin E (IgE) in their bodies, which is under the control of the B-cells. The B-cells are also controlled by the T-cells, and it is the T-cells that weaken faster as we grow older. Thus, reduced activity of the T-cells, particularly a group called the suppressor T-cells, which normally tells an immune response to stop, is linked to auto-immune diseases and allergies, asthma and arthritis. So supplements to boost the functioning of the T-cells would be beneficial.
Zinc can stimulate the hormone thymulin and interleukin-2, which both activate T-cells. Essential fatty acids such as gamma-linolenic acid, eicosapentanoic acid (EPA) and docosahexanoic acid (DHA) help regulate the protaglandin and leukotriene metabolisms and temper the inflammatory response. Antioxidants can be taken to fight the free radicals produced in the inflammatory response.
