Allergic Rhinitis in the USA is a common concern as it affects a large population of children and adults. There are two types of allergic Rhinitis – seasonal allergic Rhinitis and perennial allergic Rhinitis. Seasonal Rhinitis, as the name suggests, is primarily triggered during particular seasons, while perennial Rhinitis means that the allergic symptoms are present around the year with no relation to a specific season. According to Ayurveda, both seasonal Rhinitis (vasanta ritu pratishyaya) and perennial Rhinitis (vata-kaphaja Pratishyaya) are linked with respiratory discomfort but have particular characteristics.
What is Rhinitis or Pratishayaya?
As per the wisdom of ancient Ayurveda, Pratishayaya means Rhinitis, which is a condition characterized by inflammation and irritation of the nasal route that results in symptoms like nasal blockage, running nose, sneezing, throat irritation, and watery eyes.
What is Allergic Rhinitis?
Allergic Rhinitis, also commonly known as hay fever, is a common allergic reaction that mainly affects the nasal passages and the respiratory system. This type of illness manifests when the body’s immunity overreacts to allergens present in the atmosphere, and it results in the inflammation of the mucous membrane present inside the nose. The two types of allergic Rhinitis are – seasonal allergic Rhinitis and perennial allergic Rhinitis.
A predicted 15-30% of patients in the US have allergic Rhinitis, which negatively impacts the productivity and quality of life in young children and adults. Allergic Rhinitis occurs along with other allergic diseases of the respiratory tract, such as asthma. Most people who are suffering from asthma have Rhinitis.
Let’s discuss seasonal allergic Rhinitis vs. perennial allergic Rhinitis to understand what the difference between the two types is.
Seasonal Allergic Rhinitis (Vasanta Ritu Pratishyaya)
As discussed above, seasonal Rhinitis manifests mainly during particular seasons of the year when exposure to allergens is maximum. Let’s discuss the Ayurvedic point of view of the disease.
1. Seasonal
Seasonal Rhinitis mainly manifests during Vasanta Ritu or spring season when there is plenty of pollen from trees and plants and may occur during other seasons when pollen grains are abundant.
2. Doshas
This type of allergy is mainly due to the vitiation of kapha dosha and produces symptoms such as heaviness, coldness, and excessive mucus secretion.
3. Symptoms
The symptoms include nasal congestion, sneezing, runny nose, watery eyes with itching, and irritation in the throat. The symptoms are pronounced in some specific seasons that trigger the allergic reaction.
4. Causative factors
Pollen grains, dust, and allergens linked with a specific season are the main causative factors that initiate the body’s reaction to these allergens in the form of vitiation of Kapha dosha in the respiratory system.
5. Treatment Approach
The ayurvedic principle for the management of seasonal Rhinitis is to limit vitiated kapha by making changes in diet, herbal remedies, nasal cleaning (Neti), and lifestyle adjustments during the particular season where the allergen exposure is high.
Perennial Rhinitis (Vata – Kaphaja Pratishyaya)
Perennial rhinitis manifests throughout the year. Now let’s discuss the perennial allergic Rhinitis from an Ayurvedic point of view and understand the differences between the two types.
1. Throughout the year
This type of Rhinitis manifests allergic symptoms throughout the year, irrespective of any particular season.
2. Doshas
This type of allergic Rhinitis is characterized by an imbalance in both Vata and Kapha doshas.
3. Symptoms
The symptoms are similar to seasonal Rhinitis, which includes nasal congestion, runny nose, throat irritation, and sneezing. Still, they continue across all 12 months of the year without any seasonal preference.
4. Causative factors
The causative factors include indoor allergens such as dust, mites, pet fur, dampness, mold, and pollutants.
5. Treatment
The ayurvedic approach works to maintain data and Kapha balance through diet changes, herbal remedies, nasal cleansing, stress management, and lifestyle modification.
Both Seasonal and Perennial allergic Rhinitis are quite similar when it comes to symptoms but are very different based on causative factors and the timing of the year.
Allergic Rhinitis in the USA is pretty common, and the need of the hour is to formulate preventative methodologies that help to safeguard individuals from allergies.
The types of allergic Rhinitis – seasonal and perennial allergic Rhinitis have similar characteristics but in the seasonal type, there is a seasonal predominance while the perennial allergic rhinitis occurs around the year.