Top Allergy Cities 2016

Knoxville TN Named A “Top 10 Worst Allergy City”

If you live in Knoxville, Tennessee being named a Top 10 Worst Allergy City by the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America is no surprise. Year after year we flock by the thousands to the local asthma and allergy doctor, ear nose and throat doctor, family doctor and drug stores to get our dose of medicine to help us cope with this horrible problem that is accentuated in the spring and fall.

Are Drugs & Doctors The Best Choice For Allergies?

With the debate raging over our health care system and considering how hard it is to see a doctor plus the rising costs to prescriptions and over-the-counter allergy medicines, is this the best route to take? Thousands of people receive monthly allergy shots and even more us over-the-counter allergy medicines to endure allergy season.

For many of us drugs and doctors is the only route taken for allergy relief. Other solutions to allergy relief are rarely discussed inside the medical community since most doctors take their cues from pharmaceutical companies. Holistic approaches like a sinus wash system or supplements like Butterbur are typically looked at after medicines become ineffective or have intolerable side effects.

Natural Allergy Remedies: Supplements and Herbs

Butterbur is a genus of flower from the sunflower family. Depending on what you read online, it can help with allergy relief and migraines. Make sure you do your research on the right type to use because some are claiming that the wrong kind of Butterbur can have adverse side affects. According to some experts, “Butterbur is the Singulair of the herbal world.” Read more

Quercetin is found in wine and many fruits and vegetables like apples, peppers, dark cherries, tomatoes and leafy green vegetables like spinach. Quercetin helps to block the release of histamine that causes inflammation. Read more

Bromelain is an enzyme found in pineapples and is great at reducing swelling and inflammation especially of the nose and sinuses. It may also help with inflammation in the bowels and arthritis pain. Read more

Natural Allergy Remedies: Household Projects

Change Your Furnace Filters – You must change your furnace filters every 30 to 90 days but I would lean more to every 30 days. The longer dust mites and mold spores stay captured in your furnace filter the more opportunity they have to multiply. If your furnace filter is working properly it should get dirty pretty quickly. If you notice your furnace filter is NOT dirty in 30 days, you may want to change the type of filter you are using.

Change the Type of Furnace Filter – Did you know air bypass allows dust and particles to reach the HVAC coils and can cause foiling of the coils and fans? What is bypass air? When air gets around the furnace filter, this is known as air bypass and significantly lowers your filter and furnace efficiency. A MERV 15 furnace filter with a 1mm gap can drop to a MERV 14. A gap of 10mm can decrease it to a MERV 8. So all that money you are spending on high MERV rating allergy filters is wasted because the simply do not fit properly. Click here to find a furnace filter that does fit properly.

Seal the HVAC Cold Air Return – The return air grille is the part of the HVAC system that holds your air filter. The return air grille also allows air from your home to enter the HVAC system so it can be conditioned. Most people don’t think about how important the return air grille can be to the life of your heat and air conditioning unit. It is extremely important to make sure it is properly sized for the flow of air to enter your HVAC system. Read more

Air Seal HVAC Ducts – According to http://energystar.gov “a duct system that is well-designed and properly sealed can make your home more comfortable, energy efficient, and safer. They basically listed five different areas that you’re gonna see benefits from when you air seal your ducts.” Read more