Hay fever sufferers could benefit from using self-hypnosis, researchers say.
A Swiss team at Basle University taught 66 people with hay-fever the art of hypnosis and found it helped them alleviate symptoms such as runny nose.
The volunteers also took their regular anti-hay-fever drugs, but the effect of hypnosis appeared to be additive and reduce the doses they needed to take.
The findings appear in the medical journal Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics.
Self-hypnosis
The study took place over two years and included two hay fever seasons.
During the first year, some of the volunteers with hay-fever were taught and asked to regularly practise hypnosis as well as take their usual allergy medicine.
The hypnosis training consisted of one two-hour session with an experienced trainer.
The remaining volunteers had no other treatment apart from their normal allergy medication.
After a year, the researchers found the volunteers who had been using self-hypnosis had reported fewer symptoms related to hay-fever than their fellow volunteers.