Jake enjoying the fresh air... allergy-free thanks to the Paleo Diet!
Hey everyone – we have another great post today from my husband Jake! Enjoy!
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Do you or someone you know have hay fever or seasonal allergies? If yes, then this post is for you.
For all you allergy sufferers out there, yes you with the stuffy nose, watery eyes, and the lovely post nasal drip, the allergy season is upon us. I use to dread this time of year. Lucky for me, living in Seattle all year around was allergy season. It got so bad that I considered getting the weekly shots. I even considered moving away from Seattle, it was so miserable, until I began taking nasal spray and zyrtec daily. One thing my allergist never mentioned is the inflammation that was causing my allergies was being exacerbated by my poor grain based diet.
I always wondered how humans could evolve to live on this planet but be allergic to all plants and tree pollen as I was. That made no sense to me. Once I eliminated grains from my diet and started on this Paleo adventure with my wife, everything changed for the better.
Eating Paleo or Primal helps in so many ways. I have more energy. I’ve gone from a very tight-fitting size 36 jean to loose-fitting 33’s. One aspect I didn’t realize would be affected was my allergies. No more itchy eyes, no more nose running like a faucet, and no more daily nose spray with zrytec which I took the last 4 years. I’ve been allergy medication free for the last year and feel great. So for those of you who are on the fence about trying this way of eating please, for your noses sake, give it 30 days. I know you won’t regret it, and you might just have your best allergy free spring and summer ever.
Jake
Sleep Love Eat 
I completely agree! Especially taking milk products out of your diet! I also struggle massively with allergies and yes Paleo helps a ton!
I haven’t experienced this benefit yet, but I believe it. I normally get awful hay fever in the spring, this year I’ll be watching for it…
I agree, that no dairy really helps.
Before going Paleo/Primal I was good for 5-6 sinus infections each year. My last sinus infection was just prior to changing things up. It’s been 4 months so far – and I’ve been allergy/sinus free. Funny how that works. Perhaps there is a connection?
There has to be. I can vouch for Jake that his allergies were MISERABLE, on a daily basis, and completely impacted his/our life. Eating Paleo has done so much for us both, and this is just one more great side effect!
I was looking for some new salad ideas, so came back to your site to print the turkey tacos (thank you, they are now a family staple) and ended up at this post. I was just thinking about the allergies and was wondering what would happen to me this year after changing my diet…only time will tell. It’s exciting to know that others have noticed a change!
By the way, love the blog and your new website.
Going vegan didn’t help much at all, despite all the claims followers of that diet make for its efficacy against allergies.
I’ll be curious to see whether paleo helps.
I have also often wondered how our species evolved in this environment yet suffers such terrible allergies. I wondered if it was because of pollution or because of recent massive migrations of peoples to areas of the earth far from that of their ancestors. However, during the four years this Anglo-American lived in the UK, I experienced a hay fever so terrible I cannot even describe it. So, who knows. I’m going with diet + pollution.
How long did it take for the paleo to begin to have an effect on your allergies? I am absolutely miserable, can hardly function, even on three kinds of otc meds. Only been on paleo for three or four days, so of course don’t expect effects yet, but just wondering when I meet see improvement. Any words of encouragement are appreciated!
Hi Julia, I can’t recall how long it took… I don’t think it was too long because I think my hay fever Rx ran out mid-season, and I never refilled it because I realized I didn’t need it after being without for a few days. I think, as with most great side affects of Paleo, the better you are about sticking to the diet, the more you will notice all the great effects. You’re just at the tip of the iceberg, so stay strong these next few weeks and you’ll be feeling all kinds of wonderful fairly soon!
I know I am a few months behind on your blog but I only stumbled across it yesterday through Crossfit Darwin website and I am slowly making my way to through all your posts.
I am so excited to hear your allergy story Jake! I am from Darwin, Australia (a tropical climate) and am forever sneezing, runny nosed and with itchy eyes and throat. This story is even more motivating for me to start Paleo! I am having my first paleo dinner tonight – lemon dijon pork tenderloin – which is marinating as we speak. So excited to begin this new and promising adventure.
Amy
I love the idea of the Paleo Diet but it was always too strict for me to stick with (if I wasn’t allergic to nuts and eggs, it might have been easier). That said, just cutting out gluten and being “grain-lite” in general (kind of by default, you end up eating more fruits and veggies if you’re eating less grain) has made a huge difference in my health, and it’s particularly noticeable with allergies. I used to use an inhaler and take clariton daily, and now I do neither and it doesn’t even bother me that I live with dogs and have mold in mildew lurking around the house (I live in Seattle…just impossible to keep things dry around here).
I, too, have suffered seasonal allergies my whole adult life. It’s like I just “grew into them!:( However, after eating Pale-esque for the past 4 months ( I happily consume cheese without a stich of guilt…!) , I am experiencing my first Spring/Summer in the Beautiful BC interior without allergy pills! And another thing, after a poor decision to eat a burger with a big nasty wheat bun not long ago, I developed (within a couple of short hours) a nasty itchy nose and throat, and woke the next morning with the sneezes and swoolen eyes! Man, this alone is enough to keep me eating Paleo!