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Springtime allergy symptoms can actually represent something deeper. If you’re struggling with some serious hay fever, you may also be experiencing symptoms of adrenal fatigue!
When your body experiences allergies, it releases histamines into the blood system. To combat the inflammation, your adrenal glands have to ramp up their production of cortisol.
The longer you experience springtime allergy symptoms, the higher the chance you’ll experience adrenal fatigue. Trying to produce the chemicals your body always needs, in addition to extra cortisol, can wear out your adrenals.
What Are Common Springtime Allergy Symptoms?
Spring has sprung…and as beautiful as those flowers are, they are also full of pollen. If you’re one of the millions suffering from hay fever, you’re no stranger to springtime allergy symptoms!
What actually causes your springtime allergy symptoms?
Of course, the biggest trigger is pollen. All of those blooming flowers, trees, weeds and grasses send mountains of pollen into the air. When we inhale pollen, it can send our bodies’ natural defenses into overdrive.
Your immune system identifies pollen as a dangerous object and releases a horde of antibodies to attack the allergens. This causes your body to release histamines into your blood. Those histamines trigger typical springtime allergy symptoms.
Histamine response symptoms include:
- Runny nose
- Fatigue
- Watery eyes
- Sneezing
- Coughing
- Itching in your eyes and nose
- Dark circles under your eyes
While there is no absolute cure for hay fever, there are certain steps you can take to protect yourself. More importantly, taking steps to protect your adrenal glands will help prevent adrenal fatigue!
What Is Adrenal Fatigue?
Adrenal fatigue happens when your adrenal glands just can’t keep up with your body’s demands for cortisol. Basically, you wear out your poor adrenals—which leaves you even more fatigued and stressed.
If you suffer from springtime allergy symptoms or recurring infections from allergies, you may end up experiencing adrenal fatigue as well.
Struggling to meet your body’s increased demand during allergies wears out your adrenal glands. They just can’t keep up!
Symptoms of adrenal fatigue include:
- Fatigue throughout the day with energy “crashes”
- Poor response to stress
- Inability to regulate mood
- “Brain Fog” and other cognitive issues
- More energy at night than throughout the day
- Overusing caffeine and/or other stimulants
- Weak immune system
- Craving salty or sweet foods
Clearly, some of these symptoms feel like springtime allergy symptoms—especially the fatigue! If you already have adrenal fatigue, allergies can lead to a weakened immune system.
Unfortunately, a weakened immune system may make you more likely to suffer from allergies—it’s a vicious cycle!
How Are Allergies and Adrenal Fatigue Related To Each Other?
Your adrenals are tiny glands just above your kidneys that produce a TON of hormones for your body.
Although the adrenals produce lots of different hormones, they produce a few that are related to allergic responses.
These hormones include:
- Epinephrine (adrenaline): reduces swelling and inhibits the release of histamine
- Aldosterone: regulates your blood pressure
- Cortisol: stress response, suppresses immune system reactions
The thing is, your adrenal glands don’t have an endless supply of all the hormones you need. They can only produce so much in a given day!
When you’re chronically stressed, your adrenals can become depleted. Enter chronic fatigue syndrome, blood pressure control problems, and a decreased libido. Adrenal fatigue can also make it difficult for your body to regulate immune and inflammation responses.
This makes your allergies worse.
When the seasons change, there is an uptick of airborne pollen. Inhaling all these particles makes your immune system boost its activities.
Your immune system wants to make sure those particles aren’t actually bacteria, viruses, or parasites.
It’s this overreaction that leads to springtime allergy symptoms.
Springtime Allergy Symptoms and Adrenal Fatigue Syndrome
Whether your springtime allergy symptoms are severe or mild depends on several factors. Your environment and level of health definitely play a role.
Allergies are literally a response to something happening in your environment, so stress and nutrition make a huge difference!
How well your body is able to respond to the environment is affected by your health. Managing your stress and nourishing your body with nutritious foods will help alleviate springtime allergy symptoms.
You want to give your adrenal glands all the support you can to prevent adrenal fatigue.
Because a histamine response puts so much extra pressure onto your adrenal glands, your allergies can cause you to experience symptoms of adrenal fatigue syndrome.
Adrenal fatigue is no joke—and your springtime allergy symptoms may be pushing your adrenal glands closer to the edge. When your body kickstarts a histamine response to the pollen in the air, it creates a lot of inflammation in your system.
Your adrenal glands have to work overtime to produce enough cortisol for your body to combat the reaction. This can exhaust your adrenal glands and add symptoms of adrenal fatigue to your springtime allergy symptoms.
Hopefully, being aware of the connection will help you avoid stressing your adrenal glands!
