See post below for contest information. This Saturday, April 19, will be the last day to enter. The winner will be announced next week.

CONTEST IS OVER!

Lands’ End has a new product called PureLoft Pillows, the latest technology in allergy-free bedding. PureLoft Pillows are treated with a 100% natural Neem Oil which repels dust mites and inhibits bacteria that can trigger allergies.

I received two Lands’ End pillows, one to review and one for a giveaway.  So, I am giving away one brand new Lands’ End PureLoft standard-size pillow, valued at $25. It’s a plump, very soft pillow that mimics goose down. I know because I have one of my own.  Our son, who has bad allergies, is going to be using the pillow, and I feel good that he will have a pillow that won’t add to his allergy problem.

There are several ways you can be entered to win.  (CONTEST IS OVER)

1. To be entered once, leave a comment with your name (first name is fine) and email address. Your email address will not be published. I will contact the winner by email.
   
2. To be entered three times, leave a comment and subscribe to my blog. (if you’ve already subscribed, that counts)
3. To be entered four times, leave a comment, stumble, & subscribe to my blog. (again, if you’ve already subscribed, that counts)
   
4. To be entered five times, do the above plus write a post about my contest on your blog. (You can copy the above text if you want to.)

I will pay shipping within the U.S.

Contest will last approximately one week. Ending Date will be given during the middle of next week. Click here for ending date. (Ending date was Sat., April 19th.)

In your comment, let me know if you’re doing option #1, #2, #3, or #4. Thanks!

Soy has helped a lot of women with hot flashes, and it helped me for a while. I found that eating 1/8 – 1/4 cup of soy nuts a day greatly diminished my hot flashes. I continued this for five months or so until….I started breaking out in hives. I’m not talking about a few hives in one small area. I’m talking about hives in several areas, some small areas and some large areas. I had them on my arms, my elbows, my hips, my thighs, my waist. I was miserable and the itching would be intense at times, so much so that it would wake me up during the night. I never had a food allergy before, but I learned that the best thing to do is keep a food diary. So that’s what I did. There were several foods (soy, wheat, barley, especially) that I had reactions to, and the hives would itch more after eating them. These were foods I’ve eaten my whole life and never had a problem. I found the common denominator between them was phytic acid, and soy has the highest content of phytic acid of all. I decided, for a while anyway, to elliminate all the foods that made me itch. After a couple of months, the hives went away. When the time for my appointment with an allergist finally came around, the hives were gone. I told her I thought it was the soy. She didn’t think so. After two different allergy tests, she said that she thought it was the soy. So after paying all the out-of-pocket medical expenses (our insurance isn’t very good), I didn’t know anymore than I did before I went to the allergist. I have continued to stay away from soy nuts ever since, but I was able to start eating everything else without any problem.

I had told a friend of mine about the soy nuts when I first started eating them, and she started eating them to help her hot flashes. When I realized it was the soy nuts that were causing my hives, I told her about it. She said that she had been itching some since she started eating the nuts. Well, after she heard about my experience, she quit eating soy nuts immediately and the itching went away.

Everyone is different, but if you are eating soy nuts on a regular basis, watch for any signs of an allergy…especially itching or hives! I’ve read that there are quite a few people who are allergic to large amounts of soy.

Ragweed pollen is at such an extremely high level this season that it’s driving a lot of people absolutely crazy. I’m not one to have sinus headaches very often, but I’ve had one nearly every day this week. I have a couple of friends who have developed bronchitis recently, and I’m sure their allergies had something to do with it. I checked at www.weather.com just a minute ago to see what the pollen levels are. Weed pollen is at the “very high” level in so many areas all across the country. I just wish I had bought stock in Sudafed and Benadryl!! LOL Actually, we use the store brands and those work great for us.

There are some things we can do to help. I try to drink lots of extra green tea and that helps congestion. Also, peppermint oil is great too, so I keep peppermints in my purse. Make sure they’re the kind with real peppermint oil and not just peppermint flavoring. Those won’t work. Drink plenty of fluids, especially hot soup and hot tea or coffee. These help the mucus to flow and relieve sinus pressure and congestion. If my sinuses are hurting on either side of my nose or on my forehead and I’m going to be at home, then I’ll put a little bit of Vicks on those places and that feels so good. If chest or nasal congestion is a problem, then a vaporizor eases breathing and helps clear congestion. Ginger cookies or anything with ginger helps. And my favorite, eat Mexican food!! The spices in it work wonders. So bring on the queso and salsa! That sounds so good I think I’ll go eat some chips and salsa right now!

The number of people allergic to peanuts is increasing.  There are 1 1/2 million people in the U.S. who are highly allergic to peanuts.  Often when people are allergic to peanuts they are allergic to other legumes as well, including soy.  One thing that may be adding to the rise in numbers of allergic people is the fact that roasting peanuts changes the protein structure and causes them to be harder to digest.  Food allergies can result in hives or breathing problems, can cause a person to be sick at their stomach or have stomach pain, or can cause severe problems.   I’m not allergic to peanuts, but I have had an allergic reaction to soy nuts in the past which caused a terrible case of hives.  So if you even slightly suspect an allergy, stay away from whatever you think is causing the reaction and see if that helps.