Seasonal Allergies?

It's that horrible time of year again. No, not holiday shopping time or tax time ... it's seasonal allergy time!

Allergies are something I never suffered from as a child, although my mother and sister have always been plagued by them. Like a smug brat I would tease them about it and brag that it was something I didn't have to deal with. But, after moving to Idaho as an adult; I began occasionally suffering from them. At the age of 28, after having a child, I suffered my first major case of seasonal allergies. The first spring after I had my daughter I broke out in rashes, I was sneezing, my head was all stuffed up - it was awful! My mother gave me some gentle ribbing about it - after all, she never had allergies until she'd had me!

I started doing research on natural remedies for allergies, and I found some interesting information.

One that really stuck with me is using local, wild, honey. When you use honey from local bees that are exposed to natural plants, the bees are likely gathering from the plants that are causing you problems. The small amounts of pollen you will be exposed to from the honey can act almost like a natural immunization - reducing or eliminating the allergy symptoms.

In addition to the benefits mentioned above, honey is a wonderful health food. It is both an anti-fungal and an anti-bacterial, it can be used on wounds to aid healing and it makes a great cough syrup. Besides that, it tastes amazing and is lower on the glycemic index than sugar. I often use it to sweeten my tea, smoothies, and other items.

Not only does buying local honey help you with allergy symptoms, it has the added boon of stimulating your local economy and decreasing your carbon footprint. Check your local farmers markets and health food stores for local honey from "free range" bees. Ask how the bees are kept though, and ensure the bees are not fed dry soy flour.

Taste of Spring - Local Markets

The beginning of spring in Idaho (and many places) means local markets all around the valley open. These markets are overflowing with local produce, local meats, eggs, cheeses, crafts, wine, baked goods, preserves, and countless other goods. It's fun to stroll through the streets, surrounded by excited people perusing over the available wares. It's even more fun, now with a toddler in tow, watching her take in the sights; smiling as there are so many things she is seeing for the first time.

Weather around the US has been odd this year though, and in many places it's been a long long winter. This has translated into farmers losing crops, or having to getting a late start on planting. I was notified, through a local organic grocery service (not local only) that I use, that prices this year on organic foods (and all food, really) would be higher due these difficulties.

I think the higher price of food is a great incentive though, to go out to our local farmer markets and support our local community. Food is often less expensive at these markets, and you can pick up the basic equivalent of organic by looking for stalls that advertise "pesticide free" and "organic practices". It's also wonderful to talk to the farmers, get to know the people growing your food. I also feel good knowing that with mostly locally sourced groceries, my family is less likely to become a statistic in something like the 2006 ecoli outbreak from spinach. It's a lot easier to trace our food back to the source if one of us does fall ill from it, but with smaller productions it's all statistically less likely to happen.

So search your local areas for farmer markets, buy local items when you see your grocery store stocking them (provided that they are healthy items - don't forget to read labels!), and look into CSAs and co-ops in your area. Local Harvest is a great place to start! You'd be surprised at what just might be available.