Allergies – Antihistamines and How They Work

In this article we’re going to discuss the most common form of treatment for allergy sufferers; the use of antihistamines, what they are and how they work in the body to rid people of their allergy symptoms.

These little wonder pills are advertised by brand name, the most popular antihistamine brand names are Clarityn, Zyrtec, Allegro, Benadryl and there are plenty more.  The antihistamine industry is a multi-billion dollar a year industry because there are multi-millions of allergy sufferers.

What are antihistamines?  The best way to explain what an antihistamine is and what it does is to actually break the word down.  Antihistamine is composed of two words, anti and histamine.  Anti means to be or act against something.  A histamine is chemical your body produces in defense to an attack of what it considers foreign or unacceptable. We call these unacceptable foreigners allergens.

Histamines are what bring on the uncomfortable symptoms of sneezing, itching, watery eyes, etc. that we suffer from when we are attacked by an allergen. Taking an antihistamine works against the histamines our body naturally produces.

An antihistamine commonly comes in a little pill form.  How it actually works is quite amazing.   These pills release a chemical that is very similar to and looks like a histamine to our body.  These look-alikes make our body think we already have enough histamines in our system and keep our receptors from working against the allergens.  In other words, they stop histamines from developing so we don’t feel uncomfortable allergy symptoms.

What most people don’t know is that this irritating effect is not the only function of histamines.  They also play a very important role in the brain, keeping us attentive, alert and awake.  So, if we stopped all of the histamines in our body from working we would actually fall asleep.  Not good. This can be especially dangerous when driving a car or operating heavy machinery. Severe drowsiness happens if we take old antihistamines.  So if you have any expired drugs, please get rid of them. Those expiration dates on antihistamines are there for a reason.

The good news is newer forms of antihistamines have a much better effect on your allergies with less effect on your brain.  How this is accomplished is actually very simple.  Some medicines, like antibiotics, barely make it into the brain from the blood.  Antihistamines made with the same properties as antibiotics allow very little of the drug into the brain.  If the label reads, “non drowsy” it’s made with this property.

If you are among those who would rather not take antihistamines because of the side effects, consider taking preventative measures to eliminate the indoor causes of allergies like mold, germs, bacteria and dust mites. These are common indoor irritants that cause allergies in the first place.

However, cleaning with harsh chemicals usually just exacerbates the problem and the symptoms. If you already have itchy, watery eyes and a runny nose, the last thing you want to do is breathe in bleach or ammonia – the most common ingredients in household cleaning chemicals.

The smart alternative is thoroughly cleaning your home with a good quality steam cleaner. Use it throughout the whole house, especially where the allergy sufferer sleeps, eats and bathes. This chemical-free cleaning alternative gives especially effective allergy relief with no side effects.