Sinusitis Experience #024
Dairy Contributed to Sinus Problems

Open letter to the Allergy, Sinus, and Asthma Newsletter

At age 65, I have had a great deal of experience with sinus problems. It is only in the last five years that I have achieved a level of control without side effects. If I watch what I eat, and begin taking homeopathic remedies for tree pollens early enough.

My history: I was raised on an Indiana dairy farm where I drank milk and ate cheeses daily. I also spent a lot of time with a father who smoked, usually a pipe, but also cigars and cigarettes. (No one understood the dangers of second-hand smoke in those days.) I also helped blow chopped dusty hay into the barn year after year, and did other farm chores that involved fine particulates. No one suggested respiratory masks back then, although I used a bandana over my nose during haying time. (I would not trade any of those experiences for what I do now, which is teach fifth graders full-time! I loved farm life!)

I experienced numerous "colds" and upper respiratory problems throughout my school years. (Walking pneumonia, bronchitis, etc., were the diagnoses.)

Finally in college I was diagnosed, after skin tests, with dust and mold allergies. I began 15 years of weekly allergy shots, and was given all the usual antihistamines. (Clortrimaton put me to sleep in classes, and got me in trouble with several college
professors.) None of these things brought real relief without side effects that were almost worse than the help. I tried them all, including sprays that caused rebound reactions that were worse than the original symptoms.

These symptoms never changed, even though as a Marine's wife, I moved all around the U.S. for over 10 years. Where we settled in Ohio did not improve the sinus conditions.

When re-tested for allergies, the allergist said, "All those years of shots have been useless, haven't they?" I replied, yes - no relief. "You weren't really allergic; it was just your sinuses responding to ANY small airborne particulates." Great!

We moved to Florida in 1994, and about 10 years ago, I began studying homeopathy with a local study group. That was when I began a journey of finding my own "cure". After losing ALL sense of smell over seven years ago, and finding no one who could help, I began eliminating certain foods. I found a reference to casein in milk being a thickener in foods, and began there. I eliminated all dairy products (and of course
got the "You are lactose intolerant?" whenever I asked if there was any dairy in what I was about to eat or order. I soon learned that my sinus mucus stopped being thick, and I no longer had sinus infections! (I had taken various antibiotics about every other month for YEARS, and many no longer had the desirable effect of getting rid of the infection.)

Every so often I "tested" my theory, either by choice or forgetfulness, and ate ice cream or cheese - usually pizza day at school. (Goat and sheep cheeses do not cause the problem!) Within 24 to 48 hours, I would be totally congested, and the mucus would be
turning thick and yellow. If I didn't start the right homeopathic remedy right away, it would get green and awful. So - NO DAIRY at all helps me most of the year.

I also found when I do not drink enough water, the sinus problem was worse, as was my energy level, and memory.

I still didn't have the sense of smell back, and began working on that. I realized that since moving to Florida, I had had trouble every February. At first I thought it was head colds, but realized the symptoms weren't the same. I began looking at the fine particulates again. (I cannot be around cigarette smoke of any amount!!! Sinus problems and migraines result quickly!)

But that wasn't it. I then found Pine and Oak homeopathic remedies, since those were the major pollens at that time of the year. They helped, so the next year I began taking them in January - and until the orange blossoms began to bloom, I was sinus-clear! It took awhile to locate Orange blossom as a remedy, and I spent several wonderful years with no sinus problems to speak of, if I started the remedies soon enough. I do not take the remedies longer than two weeks, prior to the season. There were combination allergy/sinus remedies that helped, when I didn't start early enough, but our study group
tries to avoid the combinations.

This year I had a real test as to the benefits of the homeopathic remedies. I had a number of stresses, including a husband's heart attack, and a very challenging class of students. I totally forgot to start the remedies in January, and didn't always check
what I was eating as to dairy. Result - a really full-blown sinus infection, all the way to green, before I got it checked.

With several homeopathic remedies for infections, lots of green tea, Echinacea, and other herbal teas, and vitamins, I was again able to beat the infection without resorting to antibiotics.

Oh, a benefit, although to what I do not know - maybe just time without the sinuses being constantly infected - I now have my sense of smell back. Food tastes SO GOOD again!

My advice - listen to your body, explore avenues that do not result in side effects that are worse than the problem, and do look into homeopathy - with a reputable practitioner. I will never regret the 10 years that I have spent studying the alternative to the medicines that only made me feel much worse, never better.

~ B. Harper

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User experiences should not be considered medical advice. Always seek the advice of a physician for proper medical diagnosis.

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