Replied by Art (California) on 03/30/2023
Frances,
Amalaki powder is Amla in powder form.
When you search PubMed for Amla + allergy, it only retrieves 9 results of which none are for amla by itself for allergies. Rather, the majority of the studies are for a product called Aller-7 which does contain amla, but it also contains 6 other components suggesting that amla alone may not be a potent anti allergy supplement. Amla does act as a natural antihistamine, but it takes more than that for an effective allergy relief supplement.
When you search PubMed for Amla + sinus, it returns zero results.
When you Google search for amla + allergy you get plenty of results, but very little specific to the use of amla as an anti allergy supplement other than by places who are selling amla. Here is a typical example :
https://www.jiva.com/blog/seasonal-disease-alert-are-you-at-risk-of-allergic#:~:text=Amla (Indian gooseberry) is a, and help in allergic rhinitis.
Here is a relevant quote from their article on using amla for allergies :
' Amla (Indian gooseberry) is a rich source of Vitamin C and anti-oxidants and has a curative effect on allergies. Take ½ spoon of dried amla powder, mix it with 1 spoon of honey and swallow it. Taking this twice a day will enhance your immunity and help in allergic rhinitis. '
So although it may help allergies according to this article as opposed to an actual study, I do not consider this strong evidence. Although I have used amla in a test, I can not comment on its potential use for allergies as I don't have any apparent allergies that I could test it against.
On a related note, my friend who used amla as part of her memory restoration supplements has had a long standing sinus condition and she said she noticed no improvement in her sinus condition while she was using amla at a dose of 1,150 mg per day.
My opinion is that amla alone may not be potent enough for allergy or sinus relief and you may have to consider a multi supplement that contains multiple components in order to get a better effect.
Art
