Allergic Rhinitis Due to Pollen: Causes, Symptoms & Effective Remedies

  2025-03-25 01:59:04  |    Admin   Disease Treatment

What is Allergic Rhinitis Due to Pollen?

Allergic rhinitis is also known as "hay fever," and it is an inflammation of the nasal mucosa due to allergens your nasal mucosa, inside your nose becomes inflamed which is due to exposure to certain allergens. There are actually two types of allergic rhinitis one is known as seasonal or intermittent and seasonal or intermittent allergic rhinitis is caused by pollen from seasonal sources. So pollen from true grasses certain trees like spruce pine and weeds so there's many other causes but these are some examples.

Now the second type of allergic rhinitis is known as perennial or chronic allergic rhinitis and it's chronic or perennial because the exposure or the allergens are going to be common throughout the year so these include mold spores dust mites and animal dander.

So these are the two types of allergic rhinitis, and they're going to slightly differ in their clinical presentations. The signs and symptoms of allergic rhinitis. I want to talk briefly about the pathophysiology behind what happens in allergic rhinitis so it'll help us better understand why signs and symptoms occur. What happens is when an individual gets exposed to an allergen that they are susceptible to, whether that be pollen or mold spores, or dust mites, they have a response to that allergen they have a release of immunoglobulin E.

They have increased levels of ige in response to that allergen and that immunoglobulin e or ige is going to bind to mast cells so they're going to cross-link and they're going to bind to mast cells leading to degranulation of mast cells and what i mean by degranulation is that mast cells release pre-formed cytokines these include histamine and when mast cells release histamine along with some other inflammatory mediators they lead to the increased production of mucus in release of mucus from the mucous glands histamine specifically acts on the trigeminal nerve to induce sneezing and histamine and other inflammatory mediators cause local inflammation and mast cells will also release

Other types of cytokines including interleukin-4 and interleukin-13 and these induce cell infiltration into nasal mucosa so cell infiltration like eosinophils and then this will lead to nasal edema and congestion so this is a very brief overview of the pathophysiology of this condition but i just want to mention that here because it's going to help us understand why signs and symptoms occur.

What are the Causes of Allergic Rhinitis Due to Pollen?

The primary cause of allergic rhinitis due to pollen is the body's immune response to pollen grains from trees, grasses, and weeds. When pollen enters the respiratory system, the immune system releases histamine and other chemicals, leading to allergy symptoms. Other factors that may contribute include:

• Genetic predisposition (family history of allergies)
• Environmental exposure to high pollen levels
• Weak immune system
• Indoor and outdoor allergens like dust mites and pet dander

What are the Symptoms of Allergic Rhinitis Due to Pollen?

The symptoms of allergic rhinitis due to pollen can range from mild to severe and may include:

• Sneezing
• Runny or stuffy nose
• Itchy nose, eyes, throat, or ears
• Watery or red eyes
• Coughing
• Fatigue due to disturbed sleep
• Headache or sinus pressure

Rhinorrhea: What rhinorrhea means is a runny nose, and the discharge is clear, so that's very key, and this is because those mucous glands we just mentioned are stimulated by histamine. Other inflammatory cytokines stimulate they're stimulated to produce and release mucus.

Another symptom of allergic rhinitis is sneezing, which is triggered by the allergen through histamine-mediated action. Sneezing is caused by histamine-induced activation of the trigeminal nerve, as we previously mentioned. This is why we see sneezing in allergic rhinitis another symptom of allergic rhinitis is nasal congestion so this is congestion of the nasal cavity and because of this there may be difficulty breathing through nairs or through your nostrils and in some cases the nasal congestion can be so bad that there can be some loss of smell or difficulty smelling and this can also be due to excessive mucus production and this nasal congestion is caused by interleukin 4 and interleukin 13 released from mast cells.

Which recruit other cells to the nasal mucosa, as we just mentioned, so those other cells get recruited. Then that leads to more edema and congestion in the nasal cavity, so that is the reason why we see nasal congestion in allergic rhinitis. We can also see postnasal drip, so postnasal drip is the sensation of mucus dripping in the back of the throat, so you can imagine that there's so much mucus being produced in the nasal cavity can drip into the back of the throat, and this is what we call postnasal drip, and it may feel like.

There's something in the back of the throat so some patients may just have a sensation that there's something in the back of their throat that they feel like they need to clear and if you were to look at the patient's pharynx or their throat we see cobblestoning so what that means is these little bumps here this is cobblestoning it looks like cobblestone this is why we call it cobblestoning of the throat so this is a sign of post angled grip this is due to some local edema in this area due to the postnasal drip and as i mentioned before individuals with postnasal drip may attempt to clear their throat they may feel like there's something in their throat that they need to clear.

Home Treatments For Allergic Rhinitis?

If you prefer natural remedies, there are effective home treatments for allergic rhinitis due to pollen:

some tips to help you relieve your allergy symptoms. These tips serve as an alternative or a supplement to antihistamine medication. If you aren't near the allergen anymore and want to relieve your allergy symptoms, follow these rules:

Sinus Rinsing

Add 2 teaspoons of salt and 1 drop of liquid iodine, if available, to a glass of warm boiled water, and rinse your nose with this solution. You can also use a ready-made drugstore solution. This method is effective and safe, even for children.

Water Balance

Drink more fluids. This will make the mucus in your nose less thick and the lining thinner. Your runny nose and nasal congestion will recede. Aim for an indoor humidity of 40-60%. Use a humidifier or put water containers in your room.

Peppermint Oil

Add a few drops of peppermint oil to your humidifier water. Peppermint relieves inflammation, but some people may have an intolerance to it.

Ginger Tea:

Chop fresh ginger and add hot water to the mix. Use a ratio of 1 teaspoon of ginger per 200 ml of water. Ginger acts as a natural antihistamine, so you can drink the tea and inhale the steam to feel the effects.

Note. If you have difficulty breathing, experience chest pain, dizziness, or changes in blood pressure, seek medical attention immediately.

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