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Seasonal Allergies and Drinking Water

Seasonal Allergies and Drinking Water

Published on by Kate Wisialowski  

As winter melts into spring–blooms, blossoms, and other botanical beauties make their way back into our lives (and noses). With all of the bounty that spring has to offer, it often is accompanied by a less desirable side effect–seasonal allergies.

Allergy severity can range from mildly bothersome to severely crippling. We can all agree that no one wants to spend their spring sneezing.

Onset by a variety of causes–from environmental factors (such as pollen) to food-related allergens (such as tree nuts)–many allergies are chronic and incurable. This means that allergy management is crucial in order to avoid potentially severe bodily reactions.

There are many allergy-management options on the market, but one easy and surprising way to manage allergic reaction severity can be found at your tap. In our new guide to seasonal allergies, we’ll explain how drinking water can help manage your springtime symptoms.

What are Allergies?

Allergies occur when your body’s immune system reacts to an ordinarily harmless substance known as an allergen. These  reactions-like sniffling and sneezing—are stimulated as your system produces antibodies and histamine.

Histamine is an organic nitrogenous compound that helps regulate  physiological functions in the gut, as well as serves as a neurotransmitter, and perhaps most notably–as an immune response. Symptoms of elevated histamine levels causing  an allergic reaction include: 

  • Congested, runny, or itchy nose
  • Red, itchy, or watery eyes
  • Hives
  • Sneezing
  • Nausea
  • Headache

    • While over-the-counter antihistamines are readily available, managing your hydration level is an essential step you can take to limit reaction severity.

    Not only does dehydration suppress your immune system (making you more susceptible to allergens), histamine is produced at a greater rate during periods of dehydration. This is due to the fact that histamine levels rise in order to help retain water. Even though drinking water does not prevent nor treat an allergic reaction, avoiding dehydration will help maintain normal histamine levels.

    Staying sufficiently hydrated will allow histamines to focus on battling allergens, rather than fighting to retain water.

    How much water should you drink to stay hydrated?

    The Institute of Medicine (IOM) suggests 3.7 liters and 2.7 liters are the minimum intake for food and beverages combined for men and women, respectively. For more tips and facts about hydration and, take a look at our guide here.

    This brings us to our next question: With all of the different types of water on the market (from alkaline water to electrolyte-infused water), what’s the “best” water to keep you hydrated and keep allergies at bay?

    In general, fancy functional waters won’t harm you--but their claims of super-hydration powers often fall flat (take a look at our Guide to Functional Water for the in-depth look at these fad water trends!) While there are exceptions, we recommend that you keep to your (tested) tap water–as it will cost your wallet and the environment far less.

    For any more questions about drinking water, send us a message at hello@gosimplelab.com–our team of chemists, engineers, and treatment experts are always standing by!
    author portrait
    About The Author
    Kate Wisialowski

    CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER

    Kate leads operational strategy as COO at Tap Score and SimpleLab. She oversees daily, as well as long-term logistics for tens of thousands of environmental samples across hundreds of certified laboratories. However, she started her environmental testing career by way of scientific blog writing at Tap Score and it continues to be one of her favorite aspects of the business. Outside of Tap Score, Kate loves making homemade pasta, floral arranging, and singing along to Dolly Parton tunes.
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    About Tap Score

    Tap Score combines world-class laboratory science with customer service to ensure testing your drinking water is simple, fast and factual. Everything we do is driven by data and supported by a team of experts ready to answer your questions. Let’s get started.

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