Want relief from seasonal allergies without relying on pharmaceuticals? This post will give you information on natural allergy relief, including herbs and supplements that help with seasonal allergies, simple tips to help with hay fever symptoms, food that reduce allergy symptoms and foods that may make allergies worse.
What Causes Seasonal Allergies?
Discovery Health estimates the 36 million people suffer with seasonal allergies (also known as hay fever or allergic rhinitis). Pollen counts go up, and your immune system releases histamines. Histamines are naturally occurring and perfectly normal – except when your body over-reacts to non-harmful substances. Then you end up with itchy, watery eyes; runny nose and/or sinus drainage; sore or scratchy throat; and chest tightness, cough or difficulty breathing. If you’re faced with real toxic substances, this reaction helps keep them out of your body. When it’s just pollen, strong reactions pretty much only serve to make you feel miserable. Continue reading →
These have been wonderful for my winter dry skin. I used to coat my hands at night with petroleum jelly, because it was the only thing that helped with the dryness. Normal lotion didn’t help much at all, plus I don’t like the fragrance of most lotions, and many have questionable ingredients. Since I do a lot of dishes and wash my hands frequently, these bars have been a godsend. No more dry skin for me! My only regret is that I didn’t try them sooner, since they are so easy to make. The smell is light and pleasant, and they absorb fairly quickly.
Most homemade lotion recipes involve quite a few ingredients, blenders and more mess than I’d prefer to clean up. In contrast, all you need for these these bars is three ingredients, one pot, and molds – that’s it!
I used a recipe from Jo’s Health Corner, a site that I highly recommend. Jo has tons of neat ideas for natural health products.
Melt all ingredients together, pour in molds, let set until hard, unmold, and you’re done!
I used plantain infused olive oil, almond oil would probably work nicely as well. I made one batch with cocoa butter and one with shea butter, just to compare. For the wax, I used granules from Frontier, but will probably switch to some sort of unrefined beeswax in the future because it is more therapeutic.
Here’s a shot of all the ingredients as they begin to melt. In this batch, I used two ounces by weight or volume of each ingredient. I weighed the wax and cocoa butter, and used a liquid measure for the oil.
When everything has melted completely, pour the liquid into molds of your choice. I had molds available that I used for melt and pour soap making. You could also use muffin tins or some other small container. 6 ounces of product filled two molds completely and one partial mold.
After several hours, the lotion will be firm and hard and should release easily from the mold.
My mold set has a lot of fun shapes. I’m rather fond of the basic oval bars, but the boys like the stars and moons better. I bought these years ago at a local craft store, but there are some super cute molds available now like this fish, frog and turtle mold.
Shea Butter Lotion Bars
Both the shea butter and cocoa butter work well for moisturizing. I find the shea butter bars to be a little tackier and take longer to absorb into the skin. They also smell a bit “planty”, not bad, just not as good (to me) as the cocoa butter.
Cocoa Butter Hard Lotion Bar
The cocoa butter bars smell good enough to eat! My younger son loved the smell so much I caught him rubbing the bar all over himself after he got out of the shower – even in his armpits. I had been using the bars as a lip balm, too…oops… The next time I made a batch, I poured some into smaller containers to use as lip balm, and made my son his own special bar.
I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as we do. This one’s a keeper in our house! Please pass the post along if you find it helpful, and leave a comment if you have any questions or ideas.
Update: – You can find these ingredients (and containers and molds) at Mountain Rose Herbs (link below), amazon.com (linked within the post), soaperschoice.com, and many other sites around the web. I do have affiliate accounts with Mountain Rose and Amazon, so I get a small payment if you purchase from either through the links below. Keep in mind that two ounces of each ingredient made three bars, so a bulk purchase would make a LOT of bars.
Want to “cheat” a little and have someone else make the bars for you? Check out MadeOn Hard Lotion Bars. They also have complete DIY kits for making lotion and lip balm, which include a copy of the “My Buttered Life” e-book with five skin care recipes.
Herbalix deodorants are organic, all-natural products manufactured in Port Ludlow, Washington. They contain no chemicals, parabens, phthalates, petroleum, aluminum or fillers. These are the only deodorant type products that I have found that not only control odor, but also help your body to heal by removing toxins.
Getting Started with Herbalix
I discovered Herbalix deodorants after reading a negative review of their products on Kitchen Stewardship. I had just started using my own homemade deodorant, which was working reasonably well. I contacted Herbalix and offered to try out and review their deodorants. (They’ve been very patient with me…) They sent me a Detox and a Roseline deodorant, as well as sample sizes for the boys (you have never seen teen/tween boys so excited about deodorant) and a sample of Smart Salve. You can read more in the homemade deodorant link above.
I began applying the Detox deodorant faithfully every night, and used the Roseline during the day. The first week, I dropped a couple of pounds, but I can’t say it wasn’t just a happy coincidence. The odor level was not noticeably different than the odor level using my homemade deodorant (both were acceptable).
The only time I really stank after using the detox deodorant was during the 4th of July weekend when I was forced to eat at a rather disgusting greasy spoon restaurant with family members while traveling. We pulled into the parking lot, and I could smell the rancid oil as soon as I got out of the van. I picked the most benign menu option I could, but the food was terrible. I used the detox deodorant that night, and in the morning I stunk so bad I couldn’t stand myself. While gross, a quick shower solved the problem, and I’d rather have the remains of that meal out than in. This to me suggests the detox deodorant was doing its job.
Herbalix Detox Deodorant Healed My Rash
In late June 2011, I developed a red, itchy rash on the inside of my knees and on my ankles. I tried all sorts of topical treatments – plantain salve, kombucha, herbal antibiotic ointment, coconut oil – nothing worked.
Mike from Herbalix suspected that I might have some lymph blockages in my legs causing toxins to back up and reroute around my knees, causing visible inflammation, i.e., a rash. He suggested I put the detox deodorant on my feet at night as well as my armpits. In a couple of days the itch started to fade, and within a week the rash was gone. I continue to use cold rinses in the shower and dry brushing, but I know my circulation is less than optimal. My knees started itching again this winter, so I started up with the detox deodorant on my feet again, and the itching went away.
What are the Herbalix Deodorants Like?
The scents of the products are lightly spicy. The Roseline smells like a rose potpourri, the Tropical Cove smells like a cinnamon/spice blend (the boys though t it smelled good enough to eat), and the No Added Scent still have a very light spicy odor because of the natural ingredients. The detox almost has a little Christmas tree action going on (yes, I’m sitting here typing and sniffing my deodorant tubes). I’ll bet I’m smelling the rosemary.
As you can see, these products are, for the most part, safe enough to eat, although I wouldn’t recommend ingesting large quantities of essential oils and they’d probably taste a little funny. (Just licked an unused container of Roseline. Not much taste at all.)
I find the texture of the herbalix deodorants to be similar to a hard lotion bar. They are a bit oily rather than pasty like a standard commercial deodorant. It’s best if you apply them and wait a few minutes before getting dressed, so that the oils have a bit of time to soak into your skin. With extended use they may produce oil stains on clothing, but I’ve only found this to be significant the nighttime detox staining my socks and jammies, partly, I’m sure, because I just slapped it on and crawled into bed.
What Makes These Products Different?
As I mentioned above, Herbalix products are formulated to heal, not just act topically. They’ve been conducting studies using thermographic imaging, and they now have photos demonstrating that their products help remove blockages in breast tissue. I’m hoping that I’ll be able to share those images in the coming months.
The products are manufactured in the United States, in a facility with manufacturing equipment that has been specifically refitted to be 100% stainless steel. At no time does the product come in contact with any plastic piping, solder or other potential toxins.
How Do I Know If I Need a Detox Deodorant?
My personal opinion in that nearly everyone could benefit from the use of a detox deodorant. Most people use aluminum based deodorants, and I firmly believe that these are potentially harmful. Studies have found increased levels of aluminum in cancerous breast tissue, and the majority of breast cancers are found in the quadrant of the breast closest to the underarm area. I don’t believe these things are a coincidence.
Breakouts in the temple and neck area may indicate a backup of lymphatic fluids directly correlated to blockages in the armpit area. Crystal deodorants, often sold in the natural products areas of stores, still contain aluminum, and may actually be more dangerous than standard deodorants. Michael Fessler explains:
I’m now using the detox deodorant every other night during the week and skipping it on the weekends. I had started applying it to my torso, as discussed in this post about detoxing, but am on hiatus during the winter months so I don’t get my flannel jammies coated. I’m still working on getting the boys to use their deodorant regularly and to apply the detox deodorant.
I highly recommend these products and trust this company, which is why I have joined their affiliate program and purchased their deodorants and Smart Salve for my family and for my siblings. All opinions expressed here are my own. If you have any questions, leave a comment below or contact Herbalix directly – they also have great customer service. You may also want to check out some of their skincare videos, which explain why they do what they do in a lot more detail. I had no idea that coriander could be used to bond with metals (such as aluminum), or the differences between natural and refined beeswax.
Common Sense - n. Sound judgment not based on specialized knowledge.
Homesteading - v. Seeking greater self-reliance, with emphasis on home food production.
I'm a mathematician and engineer by training; a mother, educator and writer by vocation. I dig gardening, herbalism, natural healing, self-sufficiency, cooking, fermenting, food preservation, renewable energy, ancient history, science fiction, the LOTR trilogy (best movies ever!) and I never want to stop learning.
I'm lucky enough to be married to my best friend, August. I try each day to learn something new and keep up with my two boys, who make life perpetually interesting. We have been very blessed.
We homeschool and homestead on 35 acres in the country, where we built our green dream home in 2005. Like many people, we went through some ups and downs when the economy tanked. My husband is now working two hours away, and I say a little prayer each day that he can find a job closer to home soon.
I hope you enjoy your time on this site, and look forward to growing our online support community.
“Believe nothing, no matter where you read it, or who said it, no matter if I have said it, unless it agrees with your own reason and your own common sense.”
-Hindu Prince Gautama Siddharta, the founder of Buddhism, 563-483 B.C
Cheesemaking and Live Culture Food Supplies
Coconut Oil, Chia Seed and Hemp Seed
Herbs, Seeds, “Weeds”, Oils, Teas and more
Emergency Preparedness
Your Custom Homestead
New E-book from Jill at The Prairie Homestead
Natural Bodycare Products
FCLO/Butter Oil – Supplements
Learn About Real Food
DIY Non-toxic Cleaners
Support my blogging habit!
As regular visitors probably know, I don't have a website designer or support staff of any sort (unless I can wrangle the boys into helping). It's just me, squeezing in time between projects, and trying to figure out coding.
If you're looking for sources for many of the items listed in my posts, I'd appreciate if you'd use the links above and below to purchase through my affiliate sites. These businesses offer quality products and reasonable prices and hard to find items. Visit the Affliates page to learn more.
Thank you!
