I used to have DEBILITATING allergies every year.

Couldn't even go outside without breaking out into tears and itches.

Now I forget that they even exist.

This is what I learned about allergies, the science of how they work, and what you can do to break free of them:

There are a few chemicals that induce the symptoms of allergies:

- Histamine
- Serotonin
- Prostaglandins
- Leukotrienes
- Type 2 cytokines (IL-3, IL-4, IL-5, IL-9 IL-13)

These drive excess mucus production, itch, airway thickening / constriction, redness… everything.

The primary cells involved in releasing them are:

- Mast cells
- Eosinophils
- Basophils
- Neutrophils
- T Cells

This system is in place to protect us against things like parasites and foreign toxins. It helps us eliminate them effectively before they cause even more damage.

The question is, what causes the increased production of these chemicals from these cells unnecessarily?

Why do some people’s immune cells release more of these mediators in response to things that are harmless like pollen?

The obvious place to start is the gut.

In fact, around 80% of your immune cells reside in the gut, and they are major players in your susceptibility to allergies.

Poor gut health can wreck your immune system's ability to properly deal with allergens in a few ways:

◈ Bad bacteria shift the balance of T cells away from an anti-inflammatory (regulatory) state to a pro-inflammatory one (Th2/Th17)
◈ Intestinal permeability exposes the immune system to more allergens by allowing "leakage"
◈ Inflammation / bacteria can stimulate innate lymphoid cells (ILC2 via IL-25, IL-33, TSLP), which activates eosinophils, mast cells and B cells to produce IgE
◈ The gut is the biggest source of histamine + serotonin in the entire body by far.

The two threads below get more into that last point.

View Tweet

In fact, you can literally give animals allergies simply by giving them the gut bacteria of another animal who has allergies.

The animals with allergies mainly had higher endotoxin containing bacteria, which drive all sorts of inflammation in the gut and beyond.

Allergies start and end in the gut.

BUTYRATE is an absolute Godsend for allergies.

Animals given butyrate were protected from allergies, as they had:

⬩Less anaphylaxis
⬩Lower IgE
⬩More “tolerant” / anti-inflammatory immune cells
⬩Reduced mast cell degranulation - the release of histamine

Butyrate also:

⬩Seals up leaky gut
⬩Promotes T cells to differentiate into the regulatory type

Your gut produces lots of butyrate when it's healthy, and lacks it when it doesn't

You can also supplement it for tons of benefits, which I wrote about below.

View Tweet

Probiotics alleviate allergies.

Here, a bifidobacterium blend reduces symptoms of:

⇨ Runny nose
⇨ Itchiness
⇨ Sneezing
⇨ Asthma

by supporting the conversion of T cells away from their allergenic phenotype.

In general, things that support gut health also are anti-allergy.

Optimizing gut health should be at the absolute top of your list when it comes to eliminating allergies.

My masterclass on doing just that is here:

View Tweet

Nutrients are vital for overcoming allergies.

Vitamins A+D are probably the most important.

The metabolites of each act on the genetic level in immune cells.

Both, in unison, increase the gene expression of proteins involved in immune tolerance, away from excessive activation.

Vitamin A - beef liver, egg yolks, dairy fat
Vitamin D - seafood, the sun

Vitamin D improves allergies.

50,000 IU weekly of vitamin D reduces:

◇ Itchiness
◇ Runny nose
◇ Sneezing
◇ Postnasal drip
◇ Eye swelling

with trends for reducing other symptoms too.

View Tweet

Vitamin A improves asthma & allergies.

Vitamin A is so important for the immune system as it is needed for the multiplication of immune cells,

as well as their transformation into their proper types.

Here, it reduced lung damage, as well as markers like IgE in asthma.

View Tweet

Vitamin C is a cardinal protector against allergies.

Vitamin C is one of our primary buffers of oxidative stress (free radicals).

Excessive oxidative stress, especially in neutrophils, can directly drive the inflammatory response in mast cells and in T cells, the main mediators of allergies.

Vitamin C also supports collagen synthesis, which reduces allergen exposure, and has some epigenetic mechanisms of supporting the immune response.

In kiwis, peppers, citrus fruit / juices, berries, veggies.

High dose vitamin C improves allergies by 80-90%.

7.5g as an IV.

➜ 90% of patients improved symptoms
➜ On average symptoms improved by 80%
➜ Massive reductions in itchiness + nasal inflammation

Prevents histamine release from mast cells by lowering oxidative stress.

View Tweet

Zinc is the other vital anti-allergenic nutrient.

⇨ Reduces allergen exposure (improves barrier function)
⇨ Mitigates oxidative stress (drives mast cell degranulation / cytokine production)
⇨ Shifts T cells away from Th2 towards tolerance

Zinc also is needed for vitamin A metabolism.

Oysters, beef, cheese.

View Tweet

Cortisol drives allergies.

Glucocorticoids released from the adrenal glands shift T-cells towards the Th2 type - the type that contributes to allergies.

CRH, released from the hypothalamus in the cortisol production cascade, directly promotes the number and activation of mast cells.

Lowering cortisol / stress is going to be paramount in overcoming allergies.

I put together a masterclass on doing just that below.

View Tweet

Pregnenolone inhibits CRH release, which ups the histamine producing mast cells.

Pregnenolone + progesterone also have their own independent anti-inflammatory effects,

which also help shift T cells towards their non allergenic state.

View Tweet

Nicotine reduces allergies.

Administering nicotine:

◇ Reduces mast cell proliferation
◇ Inhibits inflammatory T-Cell responses
◇ Allergic symptoms

The nicotinic acetylcholine receptors of the immune system have anti-inflammatory effects.

Acetylcholine is the primary "rest and digest" relaxing neurotransmitter.

Key nutrients for acetylcholine:

• Choline
• B1
• B2
• B5
• B9
• B12
• Glycine
• Creatine

Improving parasympathetic (cholinergic) tone:

• Grounding
• Humming
• Breathing practices
• Pregnenolone
• Progesterone

View Tweet

Baking soda rapidly lowers inflammation.

1/2 tsp stops the inflammatory response by activating the vagus nerve,

which connects to the spleen and calms down inflammation of the resident white blood cells.

A few reports have recorded a halt in life threatening allergic responses with baking soda.

View Tweet

Allergies are mitochondrial conditions, too.

Some of the biggest inherited risks of developing allergies are genetic impairments in mitochondrial function.

These energy producers in our cells are at the epicenter of so many cellular events it's hard to keep track of.

Dendritic cells, which can present allergens to other immune cells, are highly tolerant when they have high energy production capacity.

They don't alarm the rest of the immune system unnecessarily if their energy production is satisfied.

If mitochondria aren't working properly, they have multiple ways of contributing to allergies throughout the immune system:

◇ Increase calcium content in cells - which drives inflammatory responses (especially mast cell degranulation)
◇ Drive oxidative stress - which does the same
◇ Creates immunogenic (not tolerant) immune cells

Coenzyme Q10 is therapeutic for allergies.

People with allergic asthma have depleted CoQ10, which is an essential component to mitochondrial energy production.

Adding it back reduces:

➜ Eosinophils
➜ Lung damage
➜ Type 2 cytokines
➜ Leukotrienes
➜ IgE
➜ Histamine

Nicotinamide Mononucleotide prevents allergies.

NMN helps to form NAD+ - the primary energy carrier in our mitochondria that allows them to churn out energy.

Raising NAD+ via

⇨ NMN
⇨ Nicotinamide riboside
⇨ Vitamin B3
⇨ Niacinamide

can reduce the allergic immune response