Your best defense against allergies and asthma: finding relief from allergies or asthma could be as easy as changing the foods you eat and using natural antihistamine supplements.

Did either of your parents have allergies?

Do you eat a lot of fries, fried foods or fast foods?

Do you eat relatively few fruits and vegetables?

If you answered yes to any of these questions, you're at risk for developing allergies or asthma. That is, if you don't already have one or both of these conditions.

Just over half of Americans have allergies. The most common symptom is rhinitis, which includes nasal itching, congestion, runny nose and sneezing. Some of the most common allergens (that is, the substances you likely react to) include grass and tree pollens, molds, dust and cat dander.

What's more, if you have allergies, you're three times more likely to develop asthma, a particular type of allergic reaction that affects breathing.

Both conditions involve abnormal immune responses, in which the body reacts to generally harmless substances as if they were germs. Inflammation and the release of histamine, which results in itchiness, account for the uncomfortable symptoms associated with allergies.