Handling hayfever at home

Garlic and horseradish have been known to reduce hayfever symptoms since time immemorial.  More recently, orange peel has been identified as another (and sweeter) effective treatment.

Orange peel contains natural chemicals similar to anti-histamines that can help you deal better with allergies and hayfever.  It’s a good idea to use organic fruit that hasn’t been sprayed.

Peel your orange (then eat or juice the fruit to get the Vitamin C benefit).  You’re mainly after the zest, with not too much of the bitter white pith.

Dry the orange peel gently.  You can either dry it in the sun, or in your oven at 100 degrees C for about an hour (with the door wedged slightly open).

How to use your orange peel?

Its the flavonoids in the orange peel that are the active ingredient, and they’re best released in hot water.

One really simple option is to use about a teaspoon of the dried rind to make a simple orange tea.

You might also like to make a cooling iced tea by steeping some orange rind and black tea together in hot water, maybe sweetened with little honey.

It’s worth getting hayfever under control

If these simple, natural alternatives sitting in your fruit shop aren’t making enough of a difference, then talk to your practitioner about other herbs such as eyebright, elderflower and higher-dosage flavonoids.

If your system is already allergically reactive then it could be primed for other seasonal problems like thunderstorm asthma  – so some simple preventative steps could be a good health investment.