Seasonal allergies are now in full swing. Trees and flowers are blooming and that means that pollen is in the air.

Diet and lifestyle could be the reason behind more allergy sufferers. Professor Jean Emberlin of the University of Worcester says that lack of exercise, lack of sleep and stress can all cause your symptoms to be worse.

Stress is a particular culprit. Stress results in excess cortisol which will affect your immune system, making allergy symptoms more severe.

Want to get rid of that stress with a glass of wine? Studies done in both Spain and Denmark show that alcohol could be linked to allergic sensitization. In other words, you could be setting yourself up to be more allergic.

Poor diet will also work against you. The more your diet supports your immune system, the more likely your symptoms are reduced.

Not every healthy food is the right food for someone with seasonal allergies though. If you have birch pollen allergies, avoid apples and other tree fruit with stones, as well as tomatoes. Eating these foods can result in oral allergy syndrome.

Milk can also work against you. A new study shows that milk containing certain proteins can stimulate mucus production! Certain breeds of dairy cattle produce milk that contains beta-CM-7. This is the protein that causes the mucus problem. Don’t want to give up milk? The trick is to buy milk from Jersey, Guernsey, Asian or African breeds. Unfortunately, no milk carton will tell you whether your milk is from a certain breed. However, if you buy and drink either goat or sheep milk, you’ll also avoid beta-CM-7.

Sources: The Independent; Mercola.com