Home plants and flowers are in almost every home. However, not everyone knows that they can have an adverse effect on humans. For example, some are allergic to orchids. This is a very common plant, which is very popular because of its beautiful and unusual flowers. However, in some people, after the appearance of this miracle of nature in the apartment, the condition worsens significantly. In this article, we will talk about the symptoms of such an allergy, methods of its treatment.
Features
It should be noted that adverse reactions to these flowers occur much less frequently than to most other flowering plants. Therefore, an allergy to an orchid is not so common. The secret is that allergies in most cases develop as a reaction to pollen, which is in the air, and then inhaled by a person.
At the same time, the flowers thatbelong to the orchid family, all pollen is glued together in a kind of pollinia. It can only be carried by special pollinating insects. As a result, pollen grains do not end up in the air, so it is not so easy to provoke an allergy to an orchid.
Reasons
Appropriate symptoms can only occur if a person in the process of leaving has repeatedly touched a flower or actively smelled it. Only in such a situation can pollen be on the hands or face, and then get into the respiratory tract. In addition, it is worth noting that this exotic plant is considered very whimsical, so it often has to be treated with chemicals. All kinds of pest control products and fertilizers are popular sources of various allergic reactions.
Allergy to orchids happens when the human body reacts to the specific substrate on which the flower grows. To create the most comfortable conditions for the life of this tropical flower, it is planted, as a rule, not in the ground, but in a kind of mixture of white peat, pieces of the bark of some trees, expanded clay, sand, charcoal, pebbles, mosses, walnut shells and even foam. Such a substrate in most cases consists of various components, many of which can become serious irritants for the human immune system.
It is worth noting that children are especially allergic to orchids. This is explained by the fact that the baby's immune system does not adequately respond to all sorts of stimuli, amongwhich may be from some of the above.
It should be noted that in some cases, an allergy to an orchid can be provoked simultaneously by several sources. For example, substrate and pollen.
Symptoms
Not everyone has even heard that the orchid can cause allergies. Therefore, the resulting symptoms are often attributed to a banal cold. Especially if they begin to appear in the autumn-winter period. The most common symptoms of an orchid allergy are signs characteristic of a reaction to plant pollen and hay fever.
You may suspect this condition if you have one or more of the following symptoms:
- nasal congestion;
- profuse discharge from the nasal passages without color (they can be both mucous and watery);
- frequent sneezing;
- burning and stinging in the nose;
- sore throat;
- red eyes;
- dry cough;
- fatigue;
- lacrimation;
- increased irritability.
There may be other symptoms as well. An allergy to the Phalaenopsis orchid can manifest itself in the form of itching and rashes on the skin, fever, signs of suffocation, but such symptoms are extremely rare. In especially severe cases, a violent allergic reaction may begin, which will require emergency medical attention.
As a rule, it is not easy to quickly determine the exact cause of the ailment. The fact is that the standard for allergic reactionsexcoriated samples are rarely used in such cases. Therefore, the patient himself needs to carefully monitor what events could provoke such a negative state.
Diagnosis
Facilitate diagnosis can be found a clear relationship between the onset of allergy symptoms and orchid flowering periods. It is important to remember if you have tried to touch or smell the flower shortly before. If one or more of these events took place, it is safe to say that the pollen of the plant is to blame for your disease state.
If signs of allergy appear after caring for the plant, then most likely the root of the evil lies in the use of specific chemicals, which led to such negative consequences. Finally, if you are allergic to this flower for a long time, and also does not depend on factors such as care procedures for it and flowering, then the conclusion suggests itself. So the reason is in the substrate you use for growing.
House dust mite
In some situations, allergy symptoms persist even after the substrate has been replaced. Then, in order to make sure that it is the flower that is to blame for your condition, you should temporarily remove it from the house, exclude any interaction with it. During this period, you need to carefully monitor the reaction of the body.
It is possible that the reason was not at all in the home flower. Often, allergic reactions are provoked by a household tick, sizeswhich are simply microscopic. You can get rid of it by carrying out daily wet cleaning of the room, constantly airing it. You should also get rid of soft toys and carpets, scrupulously knock out and dry the bedding in which he often hides.
Treatments
The first step that will help you get rid of allergies is to remove its source from the house. For the same purpose, you need to thoroughly ventilate the room, wipe with a damp cloth all the surfaces on which irritants could settle
To get rid of the allergen on the surface of the respiratory tract, rinse the nasopharynx with a weak saline solution. This will help relieve the most unpleasant symptoms. In order for the elimination of the irritating antigen to begin faster, doctors advise drinking as much liquid as possible.
Drug therapy
In some cases, you have to drink a course of certain medicines. In this situation, as a rule, vasoconstrictor nasal drops, antihistamines, gels, creams or ointments are used, which reduce itching and skin rashes. Anti-inflammatory drugs and eye drops also help.
Ultimately, the use of this or that remedy is determined by the symptoms that the allergy provokes. The main thing is not to self-medicate. All drugs should be prescribed by a doctor, dosage should be discussed with him. The choice depends on the patient's condition, the severity of the allergy. In a violent reaction,hormonal drugs are required, and in simple situations, antihistamines can be dispensed with.
Prevention
Now that you know whether orchids can cause allergies, it would be useful to find out what preventive measures exist that can protect against such a condition.
They will become especially relevant for those who have previously become a victim of an allergic reaction of any etiology. Especially if it was hay fever. As well as people whose bodies may be weakened by chronic diseases or infections.
For them it is recommended to adhere to certain rules. It is forbidden to put pots with homemade orchids in the immediate vicinity of a bed or a place where a person spends most of the time. The room in which the flowers are located should be regularly ventilated, as well as wet cleaning should be carried out in it. Try not to decorate children with orchids and any other flowering plants, so as not to once again provoke a potentially dangerous allergic reaction in a child.
Minimize the use of chemicals. And those of them that need to be used with a spray gun, completely exclude. Use only natural fertilizers whenever possible. It can be onion peel, potato decoction, wood ash, eggshell infusion.
Get rid of the substrate
If after such events the allergy has not gone away, the substrate should be changed. Often, an allergy can occur to fungal spores, a favorable environment for the development of which aredecomposed pieces of bark.
To prevent this from happening, change the substrate from time to time, do not flood the plants in order to avoid the process of decay. If the fungal flora is nevertheless formed, a weak solution of potassium permanganate will help get rid of it.
