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Snake Oil & Herbs Nov/ Dec |  | | By J. Allen Meadows, MD |
I always find entertaining the latest "snake oil" preparations being sold to help allergy sufferers relieve their symptoms. If you remember one basic principle, it will help prevent you from being confused. Dust mites are critters; they've got legs, they don't have wings. I call products that offer to remove the dust from the air "methods of no proven value" because in the air of an undisturbed room there are no mites. Allergens settle to the ground within 30 minutes of running a vacuum cleaner. I generally don't endorse services such as special vacuum cleaner, room air cleaners, or having the vents and the ducts of the house cleaned. If the vents and ducts in your house are truly contaminated, they need to be replaced, not cleaned, and the system redesigned to prevent future problems. Even people who support the use of room air cleaners agree that small, relatively inexpensive tabletop models are not useful, and they endorse the varieties that begin at about $1500. One exception seems to be with people who are allergic to cats and keep a cat. A high efficiency vacuum cleaner with a HEPA filter may be of some benefit in those patients. However, even the good stuff that certified allergists recommend have no value if the patient is non-allergic. Among the proven methods to help with mite allergies would include washing the bedding in scalding hot water, placing hypo-allergenic zip-up encasings on the pillow and mattress, and placing duct tape on the zipper to completely seal them. However, remember, even these proven methods are worthless if you are not allergic to dust mites. For pollen allergy, the simple solution is to keep the windows of the house closed 100% of the time. Opening the windows for a few hours is not like taking a walk in the park. Opening the windows is about like dragging your bed through the tall grasses on the interstate and leaving it there permanently, something I don't recommend.
I am frequently asked about herbal remedies and treatments. There is very little objective scientific data about herbal treatments, although I hear the federal government has invested billions in a special research unit, and I would expect more solid data to be available within the next five years. Scientific data exists about the potential benefits of three herbal remedies, Zinc, Vitamin C, and Echinacea. These products should be used in moderation according to the package insert dose.
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