I remember one case of a small boy who was allergic to cocoa.  Any time he went to a party his mother always asked the hostess to remember his allergic reaction to cocoa and not offer anything with cocoa in it at the event.  The last party he went to killed him in a matter of hours and the hostess could not understand it until someone told her that the chocolate she had put in one of the desserts consisted mainly of cocoa.  "Chocolate has cocoa in it?" 

One can almost hear her muttering, "It's not my fault.  Nobody told me."

There are SEVENTY TWO TRILLION allergens circulating in the average American Home.  One of them is bound to get someone upset.

I for one, cannot walk into a sporting goods store without risking my life.  I for one, cannot walk into an office supply store without risking my life.  Certain fluorocarbons in certain areas of these stores will quietly put me to sleep after a short (warning) period of disorientation, confusion, and gasping for breath.  At least there is no pain until later.

Other allergic reactions are not so gentle on me.  For example, I cannot drink from a plastic hose or a hard plastic glass without experiencing excruciating, life-threatening reactions.  Our Church meetinghouse put in a new carpet and my lungs became inflamed, the top of my tongue became stripped raw.  I couldn't go back for more than a month.

What is so bad about some plastics is that quite often they have not finished exuding gases when they are on the store shelf.  Shower curtains come vividly to mind.  Hard plastic glasses like you see in so many restaurants get the very edge that you drink from worn off until the gases inside the plastic begin to escape.  In two restaurants I have been knocked to the floor in writhing pain just by absentmindedly touching one to my lips.  

Then there are the gentler allergies all around us that affect millions of people, reactions to flowering rag weed, pollen, cat hair, feathers and dust mites are only a few.  

Allergies can kill you.  Fast or slow, allergies can kill you -- or put you through weeks of misery.  Face masks can help with controlling substances that you breathe, but there are other air borne substances which are absorbed through your skin.  Nothing short of a space suit can protect you from contact with them; they must be removed from your environment at home, and avoided in the work place.

Allergy relief medicine can help.  Even when the doctor knows what s/he is doing I must change allergy medications about twice a year because it ceases to protect me and I must find something else.  Sometimes over the counter allergy relief medicine will help me more than what the current doctor prescribes.  

Over 90% of all infection-causing bacteria enter the human body through the nose. Here is a product we are using which does a tremendous job. I saw some in Wal*Mart once.

Xlear Nasal Wash (pronounced “Clear”) is an all-natural product that helps the body's natural cleaning process wash away bacteria, pollens, dander, molds and other irritants that cause nasal congestion. Xlear contains natural ingredients such as saline, grapefruit seed extract (as a preservative) and xylitol, a substance that is clinically proven to be one of bacteria's natural enemies.  The company does use distributors, but not affiliates.  Distributors buy the products and hope they can sell them.