Jane Brody's Allergy Fighter

The personal health columnist for The New York Times presents an up-to-date guide to understanding the causes of allergies and their treatments, from antihistamines to decongestants to allergy inoculations.

No part of the body is more assaulted by allergies than the nose. Because the nose is generally the first line of defense against immunity-triggering invaders, such as dust, pollen, or mold, nasal allergies have become the most common of all allergies. A sufferer of nasal allergies herself, Brody investigates the most common culprits and shows how to build up protection. An introductory chapter explains how allergies develop and lists the most common triggers. Another chapter offers guidelines for trigger-proofing homes and offices. Useful charts and tables that help diagnose, prepare for, and treat allergies are sprinkled throughout the book. For instance, a simple table helps distinguish clearly between an allergy, cold, or sinusitis, and a detailed chart displays the peak allergy seasons of each common allergen by region. After dismissing daily pollen reports because they're based on the previous day's count, Brody provides more useful guidelines that describe the weather conditions and times of day when pollen will be at its most wicked.