Honey

Those hyping up manuka may not be so wrong. “More research is needed to fully understand the benefits of the consumption of honey in the prevention and management of hay fever, but some limited evidence from randomised controlled trials have found that daily ingestion of certain types of honey, alongside allergy medication, helped to improve hay fever symptoms after four weeks,” says Lambert.

That study, from 2013, found honey and antihistamines had a better effect than antihistamines alone. According to the old wives’ tale, honey prevents allergy because bees use pollen to create honey, and some research does support that claim.

A paper from the International Archives Of Allergy and Immunology showed that patients with birch pollen allergy who consumed honey-containing birch pollen prior to the onset of the pollen season had a significant improvement in symptoms and a reduction in the use of antihistamines. It’s not the most robust study, but for those who aren’t vegan it might be worth trying honey before and during the hay fever months.

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