Do you love cats, but petting or cuddling them makes you sneezy? Your eyes get itchy? Maybe the throat gets scratchy and your heart breaks because you just want to hug allover felines.
Well, your feline allergy woes may be near an end.
An Injection Could Change Everything
One in ten people suffer from cat allergies and that’s one in ten too many. Soon, a simple vaccination could bring the suffering to an end. Ten years in the making, “HypoCat” is administered not to humans, but to cats.
So, how does it work?
People with cat allergies are allergic to a protein called Fel-d1. Found in the fur of cats, the protein binds with cat dander, which is a fancy word for dry skin cells that slough off and fly through the hair to make the nose itchy.
Once in the body of the allergy sufferer, the immune system thinks of the protein as an invader. A histamine response is then triggered. Enter the sneezing, watery eyes, and general displeasure of an allergy attack.
An injection of “HypoCat” works by telling a cat’s immune system to locate the Fel-d1 within its body and then destroy the protein. A study of “HypoCat” and its effects proved Fel-d1 production was dramatically reduced in cats given the vaccine. Findings are published in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology. LADBible reports, “Of 54 cats tested at University Hospital Zurich in Switzerland, all saw an increase in the defensive cells required to destroy the protein”.
If results continue on this track, “HypoCat” could be available in three years’ time.
Try these Tips to Keep Allergies Calm
In the meantime, here are some tricks you can try to teach your immune system to calm down around kitties. According to PetMD, the majority of people exposed to allergens from a cat will build up a tolerance over time. Adopting a kitten might be a good way to start as kittens produce a smaller amount of dander than a full-grown cat. Whether a kitten or an adult cat, try these tips from PetMD to unstuff your sniffer.
- Put your kitty on a bathing schedule, but be sure this is only done once a month or even every month and a half. Cats produce natural oils and deodorants and bathing them with shampoo and water can be detrimental if done too often. If you try this approach…good luck! Most cats don’t care for bathing, but maybe your feline is the rare water cat.
- In addition to regular baths, giving your cat a good brushing will also reduce the level of dander flying off your furry one. Plus, its really cute to watch a cat make a fool of themselves over a brush. It just feels so good!
- Keep your house as free of dust as possible. The more you vacuum, sweep, and wipe down surfaces, the better chance you have at reducing your sneeze fits. Cat dander loves to float, settling down everywhere it gets a chance. Then, once stirred, you breathe it in and here come the watery eyes.
- Invest in an air purifier. Purifiers can help filter the dander out of the air, along with other toxins which could be exacerbating to allergies.
Keeping Families Together Thanks to Science
Loving cats but suffering from an allergy to felines can be devastating. Discovery of allergies often leads to cats being given over to shelters, but an innovation like “HypoCat” can keep families from being torn apart. With the aid of science, more of the population can now become crazy cat folks! That’s exciting news.
H/T: LAD Bible