If you’re constantly battling sneezing, congestion, or itchy eyes, you’re not alone. Allergies are incredibly common and can range from a mild annoyance to something that seriously impacts your day-to-day life. Most people turn to medications for quick relief, but those don’t always get to the root of the issue.
But surprisingly, your Lithia chiropractor might be able to help. While chiropractic care might not be the first thing you think of for allergies, it can actually support your body’s natural ability to handle allergic responses. So, let’s explore this in more detail below.
What Causes of Allergies?
Allergies occur when your immune system identifies otherwise harmless substances as threats and mounts a defensive response. This overreaction leads to the release of chemicals like histamines that cause the uncomfortable symptoms we associate with allergies. But what causes your immune system to respond this way in the first place?
Genetic Predisposition
Your genetic makeup plays a significant role in determining your likelihood of developing allergies. If your parents or close family members have allergies, you’re at higher risk of developing them as well. This genetic component influences how your immune system recognizes and responds to potential allergens.
Some people inherit a tendency toward atopy—a genetic disposition to develop allergic diseases—which can manifest as allergic rhinitis (hay fever), asthma, or eczema. While you can’t change your genetic code, understanding your inherited risk can help you take proactive steps to manage environmental factors that trigger allergic responses.
The good news is that genetics is only one piece of the puzzle. Other factors that contribute to allergies can often be addressed through lifestyle changes and appropriate care, including chiropractic treatment.
Environmental Allergen Exposure
The environment around you contains numerous potential allergens that can trigger immune responses:
- Pollen from trees, grasses, and weeds
- Dust mites that thrive in household dust
- Animal dander from pets and other animals
- Mold spores that circulate indoors and outdoors
- Chemical irritants in cleaning products, perfumes, and air pollution
Exposure to these allergens, especially during early childhood, influences how your immune system responds to them later in life.
The timing, duration, and intensity of allergen exposure all contribute to whether you develop allergies and how severely you react. Modern, indoor-focused lifestyles have changed our exposure patterns, potentially contributing to rising allergy rates in developed countries.
Nervous System Dysfunction
Your nervous system and immune system are intimately connected, constantly communicating to coordinate responses to environmental threats. When this communication is disrupted or imbalanced, it can affect how your body identifies and responds to potential allergens.
The autonomic nervous system—which controls involuntary bodily functions—plays a particularly important role in immune regulation. It includes the sympathetic (fight-or-flight) and parasympathetic (rest-and-digest) branches, which need to remain in balance for optimal immune function.
Spinal misalignments can create tension on nerves that connect to immune organs and tissues, potentially contributing to inappropriate immune responses like allergies. This neurological component is where chiropractic care may offer unique benefits for allergy sufferers.
Gut Health Imbalances
An increasing body of research points to the importance of gut health in immune function. Your digestive tract houses approximately 70% of your immune system, and the balance of microorganisms in your gut directly influences how your immune system develops and operates.
Poor dietary habits, antibiotic use, and chronic stress can disrupt your gut microbiome, potentially leading to immune dysregulation and increased allergy susceptibility. Food sensitivities may also compound respiratory allergies, creating a greater overall allergic burden on your body.
The connection between digestive health and allergic responses explains why some allergy sufferers notice improvement when they modify their diets or take steps to support gut health.
Stress and Adrenal Function
Chronic stress significantly impacts immune function and can worsen allergic responses. When you’re under stress, your body produces hormones like cortisol that can alter immune activity and increase inflammation, potentially making allergy symptoms more severe.
Ongoing stress can lead to adrenal fatigue and hormonal imbalances that further compromise your body’s ability to regulate immune responses appropriately. This stress-allergy connection explains why many people notice their allergies worsen during particularly stressful periods in their lives.
Addressing stress through lifestyle modifications and supporting healthy nervous system function can help reduce this contributing factor to allergic responses.
How Chiropractic Care Addresses Allergy Factors
The primary focus of chiropractic care is detecting and correcting spinal misalignments (subluxations) that interfere with proper nervous system function. These adjustments are particularly relevant for allergy sufferers when focused on the upper cervical spine (neck) and thoracic spine (mid-back), as nerves in these regions connect to many structures involved in allergic responses, including sinuses, the respiratory system, and immune tissues.
By removing interference to these nerve pathways, chiropractic adjustments may help normalize the nervous system’s control of immune function.
Ready to experience this firsthand? The At Last Chiropractic team is here for you. Book your appointment now.
