Looking for a New Allergy Treatment? Go for the Cure!

Summer is allergy season in many parts of the country, particularly in the colder-climate regions, where grass is begining to pollinate. Once again, like an annual exodus, people are rushing to the drug store or the doctor's office to get allergy relief. Medications work well for most people, but they have limitations: First, you have to take them; second, they have side effects; thrid, they are expensive; and last, you can take them for years, and the symptoms still return once you stop taking them.

Allergy shots, or immunotherapy, which have been given since 1911, come the closest to curing allergies. Immunotherapy can be used to treat allergic rhinitis, allergic conjunctivitis, asthma and stinging insect allergy. And, allergy shots, unlike medications, change the body's immune response to allergic triggers, so that symptoms won't occur with future exposures. What's more, allergy shots continue to work for many years even after they've been stopped.

Want to go for the cure? Read all about:

• Basics of allergy shots
• Allergy shots in children
• Allergy drops (sublingual immunotherapy)