New Study Could Help Pollen Victims

By Eric Aakasa

A 2012 study from NPARU shows that the pollen barrier balm HayMax successfully blocks out over one third of pollen particles. Many hay fever sufferers are at their worst when the pollen count is high – over 250 grains per cubic meter.  For all but the highest of pollen counts, a reduction of 1/3 would be the equivalent of reducing a pollen count from high to medium. This could have significant results for many sufferers.

The study follows a previous one in 2009 which concluded that ‘HayMax does trap significantly more pollen than an uncoated nostril.’[It provides further evidence of the effectiveness of pollen barrier balms on trapping pollen, the major cause of hayfever (an allergic reaction to pollen).

Pollen barrier balms, such as HayMax, are applied around the base of each nostril two or three times a day during the pollen season. They are not a cure for hayfever, but by trapping pollen before it enters the body, they can keep the sufferer below their hayfever trigger point. Each person can tolerate a certain amount of pollen without reaction – their ‘trigger’ level – below which they suffer no effects, but above that an allergic reaction occurs. And as long as the balm keeps the sufferer below their trigger level, they will have no allergic reaction.

This new study carried out in January 2012 by the National Pollen and Aerobiology Research Unit (NPARU) looked at whether HayMax can trap indoor and outdoor airborne particles including pollens in a controlled environment. The study involved thirty healthy volunteers who did not suffer from allergic rhinitis to visit NPARU 4 times over a 3 week period.

NPARU used an environmentally controlled test chamber, capable of recreating most climate types and environmental conditions worldwide. The chamber was set to an ambient temperature of 18˚C and used to replicate pollen levels whilst avoiding all problems associated with unpredictable pollen seasons.

Grass pollen is the most important allergenic pollen type in the UK as research indicates that 95% of people with seasonal allergic rhinitis are allergic to this group. Within the allergic rhinitis group 25% of sufferers are allergic to tree pollen. So grass and tree pollens were selected and released into the chamber to replicate a high pollen count.

The study concluded that ‘This further study has shown that HayMax has the capability to trap indoor and outdoor airborne allergens and particles. It was also able to show that HayMax could block on average about a third of the pollen grains that were being captured in the personal nasal samplers worn by the researchers acting as controls.’

HayMax retails at £6.99 for a 5ml pot, and is available from www.haymax.biz, on 01525 406600 and from Asda, Holland & Barrett, selected Boots, Tesco and Waitrose, and independent chemists, pharmacies and health food stores nationwide.