Allergy sufferers in Northern Virginia will be all too familiar with the uncomfortable feeling of a dripping nose and itchy eyes as spring gets into full swing this year. The pollen is in the air and the weather heats up, and rather than enjoying yourself you find your self sneezing into a tissue and rubbing your eyes.

But it doesn’t have to be so bad. While we can’t help you cure your condition all together, we can offer you the following solutions to help you relieve the symptoms of your allergies this spring.

1) Start your treatments in good time

Many allergy sufferers wait until spring is in full swing to begin their treatments, or in other words, they wait until their symptoms are too much to bear before going to the pharmacy. Unfortunately, this can lead to a snowball effect and make the symptoms harder to subdue.

Catching the symptoms when they are in infancy will help minimize the discomfort you feel.

2) Use a filter mask outside

It might not look like the trendiest item in your wardrobe, but a basic filter mask will do wonders for keeping airborne pollen, dust and mold particles out of your lungs and sinuses.

This is particularly important when doing active tasks like mowing the lawn, raking the leaves or washing the car.

3) Use a nasal rinse

A nasal rinse (such as a neti pot or nasal bulb) can help flush mucus, bacteria and dust from your nasal passage, and reduce post-nasal drip. Taking the time to rinse the excess waste from your nose daily will help keep you on top of your symptoms.

It’s very important to remember to use lukewarm, salty water in the correct proportion (roughly the salinity of tears), because water that is too salty or not salty enough can be very painful.

4) Install and use your HVAC system

Using an HVAC system to clear the air in your home is a simple but effective way to relieve allergy symptoms. Allergies are caused by pollen, mold, dust mite and cockroach allergens and cat and dog dander in the air. An effective HVAC system will work to clear the air of these particles, creating clearer and cleaner air for you to breathe.

If you really want to get your air clean, then consider taking advantage of the recent ‘Air Scrubber’ technology, which has hit the market. Using a patented technology, Air Scrubber systems can be up to 50x more effective than HVAC systems, and even remove germs and particles from surfaces.

5) Use natural household cleaners

Whilst ‘keeping your house and body clean’ would be great allergy advice on its own, we’ve decided to take it one step further and advise you to use natural cleaners wherever possible.

Using harsh chemicals to clean your home, clothes and body leave traces and odors that can irritate the nasal passages and actually increase allergy symptoms despite the cleaning effect.

Natural products are often more kind on the skin and airways, so it’s advisable to use them wherever possible.