Hay fever is a very common problem. For some people it can be a minor inconvenience but for others, it can seriously impact their quality of life at different times of the year. You can use a combination of lifestyle tips and medication to get relief from hay fever symptoms.
What are the symptoms of hay fever?
Hay fever can cause a range of symptoms and different people may experience different symptoms.
These include:
- Sneezing
- A blocked or runny nose
- Coughing
- Itchy nose, mouth and throat
- Watery or itchy eyes
- Headache
- Fatigue
- Loss of smell
What are the causes of hay fever?
Hay fever symptoms occur when your body has an allergic reaction to pollen, a powder produced by plants. Symptoms generally occur when pollen comes into contact with your eyes, nose, throat, and mouth.
Hay fever symptoms are usually worse when the pollen count is at its highest, from around March to September. Tree pollen is usually a problem in the spring whereas grass pollen is a problem at the end of spring and beginning of summer.
However, some people get symptoms all year round if they’re allergic to animal dander or dust mites. This is known as perennial allergic rhinitis. Hay fever treatments can help with allergic rhinitis.
Lifestyle tips for hay fever
There are a number of things you can do to improve your symptoms when the pollen count is high. Try your best to avoid pollen by keeping windows and doors closed, drying clothes indoors instead of outside, and not cutting grass or walking on grass. On days with a very high pollen count, try to stay indoors as much as possible.
Wearing wraparound sunglasses can stop pollen irritating your eyes and putting vaseline around your nostrils can stop pollen irritating your nose. Taking a shower after you come in from being outside can help to wash pollen off.
People who have symptoms from dust mites or animal dander may find regular vacuuming and dusting helpful.
You can use these tips by themselves to help with symptoms, or you can combine them with medication.
Allergy medications
There are a number of medicines available to treat hay fever, including hay fever tablets, hay fever eye drops, and hay fever nasal sprays.
Tablets
Various tablets exist for hay fever and there are many brands to choose from. Antihistamines can be effective at relieving hay fever symptoms although some people find some antihistamines work better than others. By trying different antihistamines you can find which ones work best for you.
Certain antihistamines are more likely to make you drowsy such as chlorphenamine (Piriton) and promethazine. Non-drowsy antihistamines are less likely to cause this side effect. Examples of non-drowsy antihistamines include loratadine, cetirizine, and fexofenadine.
Nasal Sprays
Nasal sprays are useful if you suffer from many of the nasal symptoms of hay fever. Nasal antihistamines like Rhinolast work more quickly than antihistamine tablets and they are also more effective at relieving nasal symptoms.
Other nasal products contain corticosteroids such as Beconase . These reduce the inflammation in the nose which helps to improve nasal symptoms of hay fever.
Eye Drops
Eye drops are used to treat symptoms like itchy, red, and watery eyes. Optrex eye drops 10ml contains the active ingredient sodium cromoglicate which is helpful at providing relief for eye symptoms. A number of other eye drops are available, both over the counter and on prescription.
