SE LA Times

• The 26th annual Allergy & Asthma Day Capitol Hill will take place in Washington, D.C., on May 3.
• People with allergies and asthma will have the opportunity to meet with lawmakers.
• The event is free, but registration is required.

On May 3, the 26th annual Allergy & Asthma Day Capitol Hill will take place in Washington, D.C., where people who suffer from allergies or asthma can meet with lawmakers and share their stories.

The schedule for attendees includes an advocacy training and breakfast, in-person advocacy meetings with members of Congress and their staff, and a lunch briefing with members of the Congressional Asthma & Allergy Caucus. Allergists and federal agency representatives will also take part in the lunch briefing. Participation is free, but attendees must register.

Dr. Matt Hershcovitch of SoCal Breathe Free Sinus & Allergy Centers said people with allergies often find that they are frequently suffering from sinus infections, because allergies can cause inflammation, leading to a buildup of bacteria. 

"Allergies are a large contributing factor to setting off sinus problems," Hershcovitch told SE LA Times. "Allergies, just very generally, are your body's sensitivity to something. Often it could be pollen, it could be dust mites, it could be some sort of pet dander.

"When you breathe in the irritant or the allergen, it causes a reaction in your nose, and it causes all these inflammatory mediators and white blood cells to attack the allergen, which causes a lot of inflammation," Hershcovitch said. "This is what triggers the sinus problems. The sinus openings structurally, for many people, are extremely narrow and if you get even just a little bit of inflammation to shut it down, that leads to stagnation and blockage of airflow through the sinus. When that happens, you end up with this bacterial overgrowth that consumes the sinus and causes pain, pressure, drainage, headaches, you name it. Allergies are often a trigger."

More than 50 million Americans are suffering 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 and 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.

Allergy symptoms, such as itchy eyes, can be caused by inflammation, which is a result of the body attempting 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 like cortisol and chemicals like histamine, but studies have shown that those secretions can lead to inflammation, which in turn makes allergy symptoms and asthma even worse.

If you're interested in learning more about the symptoms of allergies and sinusitis, take this Sinus Self-Assessment Quiz.