Okeechobee Times

• Allergy symptoms include sneezing, a stuffy or runny nose, watery eyes and an itchy nose, eyes or mouth.

• Inflammation is likely to cause allergy symptoms.

• Potential allergy treatments include over-the-counter medications, nasal sprays and immunotherapy.

Inflammation could be the cause of your allergy symptoms, according to Dr. Cody Aull of West Palm Beach Breathe Free Sinus & Allergy Centers. The good news is that there are a variety of treatments that can be used to address allergies, the doctor said.

"Allergy testing has improved a lot, and there are great options out  there for the patients," Aull told Okeechobee Times. "Blood tests can tell us that these are the allergies that a patient has. Those tests are great; insurance does pay for those. Then we can set up your treatments based on those tests."

Allergy shots are one possible option for treatment.

"Those are usually covered by insurance, but every insurance company is different," Aull said. "So we sit down with the patient and say, ‘Ultimately, this is what we have to get done. There are three different routes we can use to get this done. Which one works best for you?’"

Sublingual drops are a newer alternative to traditional allergy shots.

"The one that I think everybody likes, that everybody would want, is what I used with my son for his allergies -- sublingual  drops," Aull said. "Every day, you put a few drops under your tongue and go about your business. That's actually the most common form done in the world, over in Europe and everywhere. It's not the most common form done here in the United States. We try to set that up the best way we can to help the patients get what they need."

More than 50 million Americans suffer from allergies every year, and allergies are the sixth-most-common cause of chronic illness in the U.S., according to the American College of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology. Allergic rhinitis, also known as hay fever, can be either seasonal or perennial and can cause sneezing, a stuffy or runny nose, watery eyes and an itchy nose, eyes or mouth.

In adults, chronic sinusitis is often linked to nasal swelling caused by allergies, especially allergies to inhaled dust, mold, pollen or the spores of fungi, according to Harvard Medical School.

Allergy symptoms, such as itchy eyes, can be caused by inflammation, which is a result of the body's attempt to protect itself from allergens, according to MBG Health. When someone is exposed to an allergen, the body's natural stress response is to secrete hormones such as cortisol and chemicals like histamine, but studies have shown that those secretions can lead to inflammation, which in turn makes allergy symptoms, as well as asthma, even worse.

Depending on the type and severity of your allergies, your doctor could recommend various treatment options, according to Mayo Clinic. Some treatments options are over-the-counter medications, nasal sprays, immunotherapy or -- for very severe allergies -- carrying an emergency epinephrine shot, such as an EpiPen.                   

West Palm Beach Breathe Free offers a Sinus Self Assessment Quiz to help evaluate your sinus symptoms.