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"  For 16 years, Alison Sweeney has starred on the soap opera Days of Our Lives. However, these days she&amp;#039;s become even more recognizable as the host of hit weight-loss reality show, The Biggest Loser. The busy actress, who is also a wife and mother of two, recently lent her star-power to the American Pharmacists Association in order to help allergy sufferers find some much-needed relief. She took a moment to speak with WomansDay.com about the Behind the Counter Counts campaign, being a mother to a newborn (again) and what she has learned from hosting The Biggest Loser.   What inspired you to join the American Pharmacists Association&amp;#039;s allergy awareness campaign, Behind the Counter Counts?   I&amp;#039;ve actually suffered from allergies my entire life. My mom had allergies, so I was aware of what an issue they can be. Many people allow their allergies to affect their lives. As a mom with two kids and two jobs, I just can&amp;#039;t let allergies slow me down. It&amp;#039;s a day to day thing that can really be remedied by finding the right medication.   Do you have some tips to help people get through the spring season?   I take Sudafed to combat my congestion, so I always carry some with me because I like to be prepared and make sure I&amp;#039;m ready whenever symptoms strike. It&amp;#039;s also a really good idea to figure out what your triggers are. For example, I&amp;#039;m allergic to cats, so I avoid cats whenever possible. Washing your hands so you&amp;#039;re not rubbing your eyes or spreading the allergen around is really helpful, too. It&amp;#039;s also good to know your options: Talk to your pharmacist or visit the site BTCCenter.com for helpful advice and medication recommendations.   Many fans know you from Days of Our Lives; you&amp;#039;ve starred as Sami Brady since 1993. What&amp;#039;s it been like to see the ups and downs of this daytime television character?   Oh, I love playing Sami! She&amp;#039;s a crazy character and I have so much fun because it&amp;#039;s never boring. She&amp;#039;s always in some sort of jam, in trouble or just up to no good\u2014I just get a kick out of it.   By the way, congratulations on your new daughter, Megan! How does it feel to have newborn again?   Oh, thank you. It&amp;#039;s wonderful to hold a newborn baby\u2014just so peaceful and calm, but at the same time it&amp;#039;s starting all over again with diapers and everything like that, so it&amp;#039;s an adventure.   You&amp;#039;ve always been very honest about your struggles with weight-loss. Do you have any tips for new mothers who want to drop those post-pregnancy pounds?   I think it&amp;#039;s really important to get on a program and figure out a routine that works for you. I like to set goals\u2014for example, I really wanted to get in shape for The Biggest Loser season finale on May 12th. It&amp;#039;s also important to cut yourself some slack as a new mom\u2014give yourself some allowances and be realistic about your expectations.   Speaking of The Biggest Loser, what do you think viewers would be most surprised about in terms of the contestants&amp;#039; day-to-day routines?   I think it&amp;#039;s really hard for people to understand exactly what it means to work out for six hours a day. You can hear the words, but unless you&amp;#039;ve actually done it, you just can&amp;#039;t get a handle on how intense it is.   And then, of course, there is Jillian. Is she as tough as she seems on the show?   Oh Jillian, I love her brand of toughness because it comes from all the passion she has for what she does. She has given herself to the contestants\u2014and to anyone who asks for her help. She is an expert at what she does and wants to share that with anyone who wants to hear it, because she really wants people to get healthy.   Well, we all know her and Bob don&amp;#039;t just focus on exercise, but also healthy eating. What are three healthy staples you always keep in your kitchen?   I like to keep almonds in my pantry. I also like to keep fruit on hand, just different types depending on the season. And string cheese\u2014that&amp;#039;s a really good one.   Do you have any tips for working moms who want to stay fit?   Being a working mom is tough, so knowing what your plan is for the day, focusing on nutrition and making sure you stick to it is really the key. For example, I mentioned I always carry Sudafed in my purse. The same is true about a healthy snack. You don&amp;#039;t want to find yourself hungry and your only options are a vending machine or a drive-thru window.   What are some of your favorite workout songs right now?   I like to watch Grey&amp;#039;s Anatomy when I&amp;#039;d doing cardio. But, sometimes I do need good music to get me moving. I like high energy songs by artists like Justin Timberlake and Rihanna.   For more information about getting allergy relief, go to BTCCenter.comTo learn more about Alison Sweeney, check out her website AlisonSweeney.com "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.womansday.com/life/entertainment/a3604/how-she-does-it-alison-sweeney-71582/>