* Cedar Fever Relief *

Updated: January, 2013

   

      Relief from Cedar Fever or an outright cure is possible. First you must manage your  symptoms without making things worse.  Here are specific strategies to consider for relief, remedy, or cure of Mountain Cedar Fever, based on 25 years of living amongst the cedar.   It wasn’t until I had gotten pneumonia two years running that I got serious - this web page is the result.

What we’re dealing with:

    The upper left photo is a close-up of a branch with scaly pollen pods  in the Central Texas Hill Country, of the juniperus ashei, known as Mountain Cedar. The one below it is of the pollen itself taken with an electron microscope, courtesy of the University of Tulsa, Oklahoma.  In large quantities, it can be irritating to the eyes and sinus cavities.

   

    There is frequently a lot of pollen in a large area for two months or so.  On Jan. 14, 2013 the cedar pollen was measured at 27,400 grains per square foot - 500 is considered heavy!  Some of the largest populations of Mountain Cedar are in the Central Texas area, according to this website.  Check the dark part of the Texas map.  It isn’t just Texas either, as Oklahoma and New Mexico also have large populations of the wonderful  shrub/tree.

      Managing the effects of the pollen helps a person get through the "season".  The goal is to control the symptoms of a temporary irritant and prevent them from becoming an "allergy" and/or a sinus infection... or worse.  Many new residents to  the develop the allergy; this page is dedicated to helping you convince your body that the pollen is not dangerous!

   

A physician in San Antonio, Dr. Paul Ratner, keeps track of the pollen levels from his office in the South Texas Medical Center.  Dr. Ratner also conducts research on asthma, allergies and other ailments through his company, Sylvana Research.  The pollen levels are published most days at WOAI-TV's website:    

     To the above  left is a graph of cedar pollen levels based on the information that Dr. Ratner put on his part of the WOAI-TV website.  The time period is typically from Christmas  to Valentine's Day.  The yellow is pollen levels.  The red is the level considered "high".

The left is data from a typical January.   January 2011 has already had one day with levels of 48,000 parts per square foot - 96 times what is considered heavy.  It seems to affect most people somewhat when it is this high.  To them it is just irritating - maybe that is how it starts... year after year.

Treatment of Cedar Fever Symptoms

Important Caveat:

     Make sure you find out whether you have an allergy or not.  Treating an allergy is different than an infection.  A sinus infection can easily morph into a head cold with sore throat, coughing, bronchitis, and even pneumonia.  (It happened to me several times!)   This web page is not a substitute for seeing a medical doctor.

The following table can help you determine whether you have "allergic rhinitis" or a sinus infection.

 Allergy or  Sinus Infection?

Sinus Infection:

1.  nasal obstruction and congestion
   

2. thick nasal discharge
   

3. facial pressure and pain
   

4. wet, productive cough
   

5. low grade fever
   

Allergy

1. nasal obstruction & congestion
   

2. thin, watery nasal discharge
   

3. itchy, runny nose
   

4.  dry cough
   

5. sneezing, watery eyes
   

Source: eHow - other link not available.

 

   As with most problems in life, recognizing their causes and taking measures to prevent them can be time well spent.  You can get months back that might have been spent on "fighting" the fever instead of managing the symptoms.  It is "part of being a Texan" , according to this article in the Texas Monthly.

There are several things working against the average person:

 

1. 1. Winter usually brings cold, dry north winds that blow in tons of pollen.  The pollen levels spike at these times, sometimes 40 times what is considered 'heavy'. (see above)
   

2. 2. In the winter, we turn on the heat, drying out our inside air.
   

3. 3.The dry air outside and inside dries out our sinuses, preventing mucus (snot) to flow and clean out the sinus, if  we are not adequately dehydrated.  This is my biggest challenge.
   

4. 4. Holiday alcohol, caffeine, and many over-the-counter medications further dehydrate our bodies, especially the sinus cavities.
   

5. 5. The upshot is that our sinuses become dried out, causing irritation, pain, and/or infection; OTC medications often worsen the situation.  The pollen and stress irritates it further, giving us cedar fever symptoms and worse.  If you are allergic, t is a slippery slope because an irritation can eventually become a sinus infection way too quickly.  I got serious about it when the sinus infection (head cold) went to bronchitis and pneumonia two years running.
   

6. If you have pets that go in and out during the pollen season, they can bring the pollens in with them.

What to Do at the First Signs of Cedar Fever:

1. Invest in a good humidifier especially for your sleeping area.  It will add the moisture to the air that you are missing.  It is not uncommon for humidities to drop to around 10%.  That isn't very good if you are used to the 40-60% level.
   

1. Take a good OTC antihistamine like Claritin.  I like the generic form, loratadine, which is very inexpensive ($13 at Sam’s Club).  Take it daily for best results.  See the label for specifics.  It minimizes the watery eyes, itchy palate, and excess mucus flow through the nose, according to it website.   NasalCrom, another OTC, can be useful as a preventative, before you get exposed, according to the www.rxlist.com.  If it is a bad day, I sometimes take two loratidine, one every 12 hours or so.  Check with a pharmacist or doctor if you have any concerns.  I’m married to one!
   

1. As soon as you get a headache from the cedar pollens, take your favorite anti-inflammatory medication, such as aspirin, Advil, Excedrin, Tylenol.  It handles the pain without unduly dehydrating you and hopefully prevents the inflammation known as infection.
   

1. I also spray saline solution up my nose when I get the headaches or malaise. It safely hydrates the sinuses and washes out any pollens, including where it goes down the throat. You can experiment with brands, but my favorites are Ayr and Ocean Breeze brands.  I find that they are the most effective and also the most expensive.  The HEB or Target house brands are OK, too. 
   

     If it seems too weird to spray stuff up your nose, it was to me, too.  I got desperate and finally tried it.  Now I do it regularly, as needed. Many people also learn to squirt a lot of warm saline solution into their sinuses when they are irritated to help heal it. 

1. Stay indoors during the windy days when the wind is from the north. This cuts down on breathing the really high pollen levels and the driest air.  Hopefully you have the humidifier so that inside is now more humid than it is outside.   Some people use a netty pot, but if you do, please be very careful and make sure that it is sterile; people have died using contaminated tap water in their netty pots.
   

1.   Limit your caffeine, alcohol and sugar intake, which is hard around the holidays and the Super Bowl.  Drinking a lot of water to stay hydrated really helps and can counteract the times when you do partake, like parties. This is especially true if the prescription medications you are taking, like me, also dehydrate you.  Ask your pharmacist if you are not sure.
   

1. We snore.  This is characterized by natural restrictions of the nasal passages, especially at night, when fleshy parts of the sinus relax and/or move.  When these tissues get irritated, they often expand, closing off the nasal passage. We use nose strips nearly every night, but find it is even more important during the pollen season. My wife finds this entire regimen useful during the Oak pollen season, too.  You often see these nose strips on football players during close ups during football games.  Breathe Right is the originator of the strips, but you can now get less expensive generic strips at Target and HEB.
   

1.   Limit Exposure. This can mean don’t go ourside for very long when there is a north wind, use a surgical mask overy your nose and or mouth, and not letting your furry pets outside for very long or very far from the house.  When you have to work outside or the pets have to go, it can bring in pollens - it is your choice.
   

     My personal regimen includes keeping our bedroom humidifier serviced, wearing the nose strips nightly, taking ibuprofen and saline solution as needed, drinking extra water and taking loratidine daily. I stay inside during the heaviest north winds, but still get outside without too much trouble... I just drink extra water and clean out my nasal passages when I get inside.  I sometimes use the dust masks if I must work outside during a "pollen storm". 

     I did have a sinu-plasty in 2007 to straighten out a “deviated septum” which made it easy for cedar to lodge in the top of the sinus cavity.  It has really helped!  I took my own advice and consulted an ENT specialist to check, and yes, I was allergic to cedar pollen - and nothing else!

Cure and Prevention of Cedar Fever

By cure, we mean teaching your body that cedar pollen is not dangerous to your body and it is safe to ignore it.  This type of prevention/cure takes some time and a positive attitude toward alternative methods of healthcare.  It doesn’t involve drugs of any kind.  If you do have an allergy and any physical problems (like the deviated septum I mentioned) have been taken care of, you can consider several options.

    If you are really brave and want to do something right now (if in mid-season), you can start eating the orangish pollen pods from the male trees.   This is desensitization. Desensitization in general is a tried-and-true, scientifically tested method of curing allergies and phobias. If you are fed up and otherwise in good health, you might want to consider this desensitization method for cedar fever.

      Here is an email I received from Chris Grant in New Mexico on how she does it:

     “I just finished reading your article on Cedar Fever.  We live in the high desert mountains of New Mexico, and have been here for 5 years.  We moved here to retire from Weatherford, Texas.  I thought I had problems with Juniper allergy in Texas, well this place is a nightmare.  The trees are native to this area, and they are everywhere you look. 

    This year is the first year [2012] I have not had too bad of a time with my allergies from them, but my husband is in bad shape.  The trick I discovered a few years ago has finally kicked in.  I do not ingest the berries [blue from female trees]. 

    I start eating the seeds from the male trees as soon as they start to form.  In this local it begins in early January.  At that time they  are soft and tender with an herbal taste.  I eat about 5 or 6 seeds a day for a month or so.  The first year this I got a really  sick feeling after eating the seeds and could not stand the taste.  Friends of mine who also tried this also had a similar reaction.  This year the seeds were well tolerated and I got through the season with a Claritin once a day, and when the levels got to their highest used allergy eye drops.  Also discovered that wrap sunglasses during this time were a must to keep the pollen out of my eyes.”       - Chris Grant

    

What NOT to do:

    1. Don’t take any over-the-counter medications that further dehydrate you.  Decongestants and allergy medications may actually make it worse.  While trying to get rid of the flowing snot, which is actually trying to hydrate your sinus and make it less irritated, an OTC med may prevent the sinus from doing its natural job.  Try variations or ask your doctor or pharmacist for specific advice.

    2. Don’t ignore your symptoms, especially if they get worse, you are dehydrated, and you have the symptoms of a sinus infection.  These infections can also drag on forever, even if they do not get worse.  In my case, it went from sinus irritation, sinus cold, post-nasal drip, bronchitis, and eventually pneumonia, a potentiall fatal lung infection if not treated. You may need medical intervention to get rid of it.

-------------------

    If you drive the beautiful Hill Country, you can see the cedars divide between male and female during the December through February pollen season.  The male trees are the characteristic University of Texas "burnt orange", the female the normal green-blue, the ones with the tiny blue berries. When the reddish branches get overtaken by new green growth, the end of the pollen season is at hand, usually by late February or March.

Homeopathic Prevention:

There are two methods of prevention I have come accross:

1.  Cedar Tea Prevention:  My spouse and I have been using  the Cedar Tea  Treatment for several years now and it does help quite a bit.  However, the Cedar Tea is supposed to be taken BEFORE the cedar season, so when the pollen is a flyin’ - its late, therefore it is in the prevention column.  We do not get the reaction that Chris above does, as it isn’t the pollen itself.  However, when the pollen levels are in the 25-48-thousand grains per square foot, I am still miserable after being outside, but do get through the day.   The Cedar Tea does help to desensitize us to the pollen, but more homeopathically. 

     Now in year four of using the tea, the irritation really is declining; it may be worth a chance next year for sure.  You might try it now, but be careful it doesn’t trigger anaphylactic shock if you are really sensitive to the pollen. 

2. 2.The berry ‘cure’: 
   

    "There is an old saying that the remedy for any ailment can be found within the vicinity of that which caused the ailment. In the case of cedar fever, the remedy is the tree. Old-timers ward off cedar fever by chewing 2-4 juniper berries per day, starting a month before and continuing through cedar fever season. The berries taste like pine with rosemary. The berries are an excellent diuretic. Do not eat them if you have bladder problems or you are pregnant.”

    The berry preventative could be viewed as something that helps the body adapt to an allergen. Once adapted, the body's natural defenses will no longer trigger the allergic reaction. This is the premise of allergy shots. Getting shots for 4-5 years builds immunity for most fever sufferers and can last 20 years. Face it. It's part of being a Texan. The trees are here to stay, and so is the allergy.”      (at end of article at: Source: National Center On Continuing Education - link no longer available.

Good luck finding the blue cedar tree berries when you need them.

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If you are interested in learning more about homeopathy, here is an excerpt from a website that sells remedies:

“Homeopathic medicine has been practiced worldwide for 200 years and plays a significant role in the healthcare systems of many countries today. This effective and scientific system of medicine assists the natural tendency of the body to heal itself. It recognizes that all symptoms of ill health are expressions of disharmony within the whole person, and that it is the patient who needs treatment, not the disease.

In 1796 a German doctor, Samuel Hahnemann, discovered a different approach to the cure of the sick which he called homeopathy (from the Greek words meaning 'similar suffering'). Like Hippocrates 2,000 years earlier he realized that there were two ways of treating ill health, the way of opposites and the way of similar.

Homeopathic remedies work by stimulating the body's own healing power. This power is very great and many complaints heal themselves unaided; but when the healing process is faulty, blocked or slow, the homeopathic remedy acts as a stimulus to the curative powers of the body.

Homeopathic medicines stimulate the body's ability to heal itself. Many health conditions can benefit from homeopathic care.”

http://www.enrichinglives.com/homeopathic%20products.htm

    I heartily agree that mountain cedar symptoms push us to figure out what is going on inside of ourselves.  I also agree that all physical symptoms are caused first by “wrong thinking” or “expressions of disharmony” and physical symptoms are a natural out-growth and expression of these feelings.  Most people seem to prefer only physical “cures” and not work on the causative level.  There are people who specialize in helping get to that place, but they are not yet common.  Homeopaths, Christian Scientists, Naturopaths, and a few other uncommon specialists can be very helpful in helping get to a place of Peace, tranquility and joy that, with effort and introspection, lead to cure, prevention, or tolerance.

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