Oh yes, it’s that time of year again. Just as all the trees burst forth with flowers, and brilliantly colored buds open wide to catch the warm sun . . . I seem to blossom into a sneezing, watery-eyed, allergic, phlegm-ball. Nature can be so cruel.

Seasonal allergies are the result of excessive immune response to substances that are not normally harmful — like pollen. Daniel Gagnon, the medicinal herbalist for Herbs Etc., puts it well: “Think of it as having a fly in the house. Instead of using a fly swatter to get rid of it, a shotgun is used to dispose of the intruder. You may get rid of the fly, but the damage to the room will be extensive.” The damage Daniel is referring to is the unfortunate result of a stressed out immune system, often leading to compromised immunity and weakened adrenal glands. Annoying sniffles aside, fighting allergies often leaves the body tired and more exposed to new allergies as well as illness.

I like to adjust my diet during this time of year to help give my body some extra support as it goes to battle with the pollen. I strengthen the bodily systems most affected by allergies by using nutrient-rich foods. Because animal fats cause inflammation which exacerbates allergy symptoms, eating for allergy relief is all the more reason to focus on food derived from plants.

Here are some particularly good foods to emphasize:

Apples, broccoli, & blueberries: These have a high concentration of the nutrient quercetin (for the apples, it’s actually in the skin). Quercetin is great for people with allergies, according to National Allergy, as it has been “shown to stabilize the cells that make histamine, which mediates many allergic responses.”

Oranges & bell peppers: Both foods have high levels of vitamin C, which has a special synergistic relationship with quercetin. Vitamin C is also an excellent immunity booster on its own.

Carrots & goji berries: Both foods are extreme vitamin A machines. Vitamin A goes hand in hand with Vitamin C in aiding the immune system.

Nettles: Though many people just take nettles in capsule form, you can also use them fresh, juiced, or dried and steeped as a tea. The Prescription for Nutritional Healing states that nettle “reduces inflammation in the sinus cavities. It is also a powerful antioxidant that helps prevent free radical damage and aids in preventing allergy attacks.” Depending on where you live, you can actually forage wild nettles where they grow like weeds!

Flax, hemp and chia seeds: These seeds have a good concentration of anti-inflammatory Omega-3 oils. Keeping inflammation at a minimum reduces stress within the body.

Long-term dietary support is one of the most beneficial changes you can make to help control allergic reactions. And, with the inclusion of these helpful foods, you and I may just be able to stop and actually SMELL the roses.

Quiet, yes.  But quiet it made me in exchange. The laptop stayed unusually closed, and my mind remained comfortably still as I soaked up the simple complexity of nature around me. I basked in the broad, lazy pastures with resting hay barrels and excited crickets; the frontier-like houses with dirt driveways that crackle deeply from passing cars; the families of cows resting under the shade of lanky pine trees; and then, of course, the gardens. Every house in that pristine setting had a food garden. And as ’tis the season, each garden was absolutely brimming with vegetables, berries, tubers, flowers and all the best bounty that good soil, plentiful sunshine, and a summertime season can offer.

To me, there is something so innately joyous about being able to harvest and gather one’s own food. It’s one of those instinctual “this feels right” type of tasks – you know, like the opposite of walking into a Walmart. And with my dad’s all-organic garden absolutely flourishing this year, frequent harvesting was exactly what I did. Carrots, artichokes, onions, tomatoes, broccoli, squash, greens . . . who knew I was a borderline locust.

Upon nightfall, we’d make grand simple meals of the freshest of fresh vegetables. Here’s what went into our summertime garden salad bowl, which we consumed just about every night. Delicious. When I wasn’t eating it, I was thinking about eating it. Brought to you by nature and what’s perfectly in season . . .

Life Is Good Salad:

INGREDIENTS
2 heads of red leaf lettuce, torn into bite-size pieces
3 cups shredded carrots
1 bunch chives, coarsely chopped
5-6 sweet Persian (miniature) cucumbers, sliced
3 large hierloom tomatoes, chopped
1 large Hass avocado, chopped
1/2 cup raw sunflower seeds

DIRECTIONS
Toss all ingredients together in a large bowl. I dressed mine simply with oil, lemon juice, sea salt and black pepper.
Ah.
Yes.
Perfection.