This is how you beat hayfever in just 24 hours

WITH pollen levels set to soar this spring, now is the time to nip seasonal allergies in the bud.

BAD NEWS for the 18 per cent of Aussies who suffer from hay fever: If pollen is your kryptonite, you can expect more irritating symptoms than usual this year. “This pollen season is going to be crazy,” Dr Suzie Bekir from the Australian Allergy Centre says.

The World Allergy Organisation suggests the increase of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is leading to the production of more pollen, while warmer temperatures are resulting in longer hay fever seasons.

Bekir warns that if symptoms are left unmanaged, they can lead to conditions such as chronic sinusitis, asthma and sleep breathing disorders. Get professional medical help, and try these hacks to outsmart hayfever this year.

7am: Skip your outdoor run

The peak pollen time is between 6am and midday, according to the Australian Society of Clinical Immunology and Allergy (ASCIA), so ditch your run outdoors and hit the gym treadmill instead.

9am: Drink green tea

Swap your caffeine fix for a cup of green tea. Scientists in Japan have discovered it contains a compound that temporarily blocks the key cell receptor involved in creating allergic responses.

10am: Hang your laundry indoors

Sure, your clothes and bedsheets will dry much quicker out in the sun, but the ASCIA recommends hanging your laundry indoors so it won’t collect pollen. Your future, non-sneezy self will thank you for it.

12pm: Eat a colourful lunch

Fill your plate with omega-3-rich salmon, or a betacarotene-boosted salad of carrots, spinach and capsicum, to help soothe sinus pain.

6pm: Shake out your clothes

Minimise the amount of allergens you bring into your home at the end of the day by shaking out your jacket before you step inside. It’s a good idea to change your clothes straight away, too.

This guy is a hayfever sufferer, clearly. Picture: Katrina Bridgeford.

7pm: Skip the glass of wine with dinner

All your alcoholic favourites — beer, bubbles, wine and liquor — contain histamine, which experts say can worsen your hayfever symptoms.

8pm: Shampoo your tresses

Those strands are like a Venus flytrap for allergens, so wash them out, especially if you’ve been outside on a high-pollen day. Just make sure you dry it before you go to bed as damp hair will encourage growth of allergy-antagonising mould spores in your pillow.

9pm: Kiss your partner

A 30-minute smooch session can reduce your body’s production of histamine, according to a Japanese study.

10pm: Put soft toys in the freezer

It may sound crazy, but the ASCIA says placing soft toys in the freezer overnight kills dust mites, another cause of hay fever. Worth a try!

10:30pm: Take meds before bed

Some experts advise taking a once-a-day antihistamine at night during high pollen season. Its powers will peak 12 hours later, when pollen levels are highest, so you’ll be starting the day with it already fighting your allergy symptoms.

Natural treatments for hayfever

Start with antihistamines and steroid nasal sprays, then boost with these.

Essential oils

“Oils such as lavender, peppermint and frankincense have been shown to help improve blocked-nose symptoms,” Bekir says. She prescribes a few drops on a tissue or a steam inhalation.

Acupuncture

If you want to reduce your reliance on antihistamines, acupuncture could do the trick, according to one German study.

Allergy sufferers who had 12 acupuncture sessions over an eight-week period reported needing less drugs than those who didn’t.

Phototherapy

“It’s one of the most popular growing treatments,” Bekir says. “Basically, UV light stuns and deactivates the mast cell in the nose, which is what releases histamine.

The treatment lasts up to 12 months.”

This article originally appeared on Body + Soul