Julia Stephenson: The Green Goddess

Got an allergy? Run for the hills!

I have always been reasonably healthy so it came as a bit of a shock suddenly to find myself sneezing all the time.

One of my doctors tracked it down to an allergy to dust and feathers. Dust and feathers! The world is made of dust. Was I becoming allergic to the world?

I knew in my heart it was the final revenge of my first husband. He had been allergic to cats but I had always dismissed his sneezing and told him to get a grip.

How I wish I had been more sympathetic. Talk about bad karma - my chicken (feathers) had come home to roost.

It is scant consolation that if the current bird flu hysteria gets any worse and there is a massive bird slaughter there will soon be no feathers left anyway. It is ridiculous that there is so much hysteria about bird flu when global warming poses a much greater threat.

Unfortunately, none of my doctors could tell me how to rid myself of this ridiculous allergy, so I have come to Switzerland (Eurostar to Paris then four hours to Geneva) to consult a top Swiss homoeopath and allergy specialist.

She specialises in removing the toxic effects of inoculations from our body. A side effect of all the jabs we have is a suppression of immunity that can block energy pathways and manifest itself in allergies and health problems.

Indeed, hay fever, eczema and allergies to common foodstuffs such as peanuts are on the increase, especially in children. She attributes this to all the inoculations we receive.

It's always good to have an excuse to come to Switzerland, a country of sparkling cities and ravishing scenery. Lausanne is full of men in electric vehicles maniacally mopping the streets. It is just the place to come for a holiday if you have a dust allergy.

Yet, for some unfathomable reason, people say that the country is boring. They have obviously never experienced the joy that is a Swiss train, or witnessed the country's stunning recycling strategies.

Switzerland recycles 51 per cent of its waste, putting it at the top of Europe's recycling league table. It also has the highest proportion of organic farmers in Europe, who farm 10 per cent of the country's agricultural land.

In 1992, it was the first country in the world to phase out battery farming. The addition of antibiotics to animal feed has been forbidden since 1998. Hormone supplements are also banned.

All this is enough to make the most stony-hearted of Green Goddesses weep with joy, but there is more: Swissair was the first airline in the world to serve organic in-flight meals.

My consultation with the homoeopath was fascinating and I have been prescribed homoeopathic medication to rid my body of vaccines. This will not take away my immunity but will definitely remove my allergies.

Cynical reader, don't dismiss this as hocus-pocus just yet. Give me a few months and I will report back if my cure has worked.

Now I am off to take the glorious mountain train to visit a friend who is doing up a chalet in Gstaad. She is at the early stages and there is time to convince her to install solar panels and a wind turbine.

I just hope there isn't too much dust. I haven't seen any since I arrived so I am crossing my fingers, but I had better start taking my medication straight away.

Nurse! Time for my pills!

j.stephenson@independent.co.uk