If you are dealing with allergies, you might be wondering if you will ever find relief. Luckily, depending on the type of your allergy and the severity of it you might be able to do immunotherapy. This is a great type of treatment that has helped many people. Here are some things you need to know about immunotherapy.

What Are Allergies?

The reason a person's body has an allergic reaction is an over-reaction to an allergen. For instance, if you have a peanut allergy, a peanut does not pose any threat real threat to your body, but for some reason your immune system thinks it does. When you eat a peanut the immune system is sent into hyper drive and does everything that it can to protect you. In attempts to protect you, the immune system is actually hurting you. It might close your airway, give you a rash, cause intense vomiting, and much more. Thus, it was not the peanut that was dangerous, but the body's reaction to it.

What Is Immunotherapy?

Immunotherapy is a simple science of exposure. What this means is that under the direction of a skilled allergist you will be exposes to small traces of the allergen. Usually the allergen is chemically modified as well so that it won't harm you. This is to help your body see that the allergen is not dangerous.

Have you ever heard the metaphor about boiling a frog? You get the water barely hot and then slowly heat it while the frog stays in the water. They won't even notice until the water is too hot. This is the same principle. Immunotherapy essential exposes your body to the allergen in small amounts at first and then more and more as time goes on, until the body doesn't react to it anymore. The goal is to help reset the immune system so that it works properly.

How Is Immunotherapy Administered?

There are many uses for immunotherapy. Some people get it for infectious diseases or even cancer, while others get it for allergy relief. Depending on the type of immunotherapy you need, will determine how the treatment is administered. The most common way to get the treatment is through a shot under the skin. Most allergy treatments are like a vaccination that needs multiple shots given throughout the person's life, like a booster.

If you think you might benefit from immunotherapy you should talk to your doctor right away, like at Allergy & Asthma Clinic of Wyoming LLC.