Hay Fever
 

.....or, to be more precise, pollen allergy.

I'm not a sufferer, myself, but my daughter has been since the age of 10 (she's now 32). She has tried everything, she had injections a few years ago (didn't do much) but they are no longer available, she has had local honey, nasal sprays, lozenges, antihystemine tablets, she now has a little machine that works by electricity (you stick the little prongs up your nose and switch on - it alleviates the symptoms - a little). Nothing really helps.

Every year it starts about the beginning of April and it gradually gets worse until now - June - when she is horrendously affected. Her eyes are itchy and sore, her throat is raw and she sneezes constantly. On top of all that she feels quite poorly.

Come the middle of July she will start to improve and by the end of that month she'll be fine, it's been the same pattern for 22 years. She was also unaffected in Malta, in May 3 years ago, but was dreadful in Zakynthos a few years before that. We haven't worked out what plants/grass are absent in Malta. I think you've got to either suffer from it, or live with someone who does, to appreciate how debilitating this allergy is.

Anyone got any cures or remedies to recommend? Has anything worked for you?

Re: Hay Fever
 

ive had the allergy reliever for 2 weeks now & its helped me a lot ...not taking the puffers that im supposed to do but still taking my clarityn at night, i am using it every 6hrs & i managed a hill yesterday without stopping for a rest on the way up & found i was ok at the last meet with all the perfumes & stuff in the air, i suffer from allergic rhinitis & have alsorts of allergies & up to now i recommend the reliever ... i do hope she can find something cos it is the most dibilitating thing of all a damm pain to have .

Re: Hay Fever
 

if you can get hold of some locally produced honey - that is supposed to be great - something to do with eating produce of the pollen you are allergic to kind of like having a vaccine i suppose - never tried it myself but i know someone who swears by it ( but she does live in devon!!
i suppose honey produce in a similar environment would be useful if you cant get local

Re: Hay Fever
 

My other have has just started with it this year and she's in her sixties, I have never suffered from it even though I'm asthmatic, even then I am not alergic to flower or grass pollen, just tree pollen, and other things

Re: Hay Fever
 

I used to suffer from it really badly when I was younger, the full works, streaming eyes, raw itchy nose/throat/roof of mouth, sneezing. I have no idea how I managed to get through my exams at school and I'm convinced that I'd have got better marks if I'd taken them in the winter.

I also have all sorts of other allergies like Mez but after I got pregnant with Mimi I never really suffered as badly with hay fever in the summer. I still do get more wheezy and breathless at this time of year but nothing like it used to be. Mind you, there's a plant in an overgrown garden up Willows Lane that really gets me huffing and puffing.

I too tried all kinds of remedies, the one which worked best for me though was a homeopathic thing called "combination H" (not to be confused with "Preparation H"). I got them from the stall inside the market but I don't know if they still do them. They were little white things that just dissolved on your tongue.

Other than that all I can recommend is pregnancy. :D

Re: Hay Fever
 

This should sort out your allergy to that plant willow. Just give it a little spray as you walk past.

http://www.accringtonweb.com/forum/a...1&d=1213082359

I used to use those. I think you took 4 at once. They appeared to work for me at the time.

Re: Hay Fever
 

You could always move to Malta she will be fine then:o

I used to have an allergy to Strawberries i only need to eat one or two and i would get a itchy rash thank goodness i grew out of it.
even strawberry flavored lollies would bring me out in a lumps that where very itchy and would last a few days.

Re: Hay Fever
 

I can't work out if I'm allergic to my cat or pollen. Either way I have bouts where I can't stop sneezing and eyes itching. That is as far as it goes for me though, I guess I'm lucky, even if I never used to be affected at all when I was a bit younger.

Re: Hay Fever
 

She tried the local honey last year, Keetah. It didn't make much difference but maybe she didn't have enough of it, she doesn't like honey (strange girl!).

Mick, I would move to Malta tomorrow but she doesn't want to . :D

And, Willow, you're right about pregnancy. She wasn't half as bad when she was having Laura but it just came back again after Laura was born.

Re: Hay Fever
 

Re: Hay Fever
 

My hay fever only started after my pregnancy; it's kept under control with loratadine, a smear of Vaseline just under your nose will help trap some of the pollen, don't hang your washing out to dry and don't have hairy pets that bring the pesky pollen in ( says she with vast hairy Persian Eric !).
Some pills work better than others, maybe worth swapping around, ie Clarityn works for me but Zirtek doesn't.
I have heard good things about the honey remedy too.
The little white pills are called New Era; think we have them in at Boots too, they are homeopathic, based on salts.

Re: Hay Fever
 

Never suffered from it till I got Shingles about ten years ago got rid of that and have suffered with Hayfever ever since:(

Re: Hay Fever
 

Sometimes i get it other times i dont. If i cut the grass ... i dont get it but yet if someone else does ie next doors gardener ... i start sneezing... though this year hes cut the grass twice and i havent sneezed. What is worse though when the council come and cut the grass down at work ... i always hope and pray that im not working when they come to do the 5 football pitches ....

Re: Hay Fever
 

Can I ask a question about Hay Fever please? Does it cause you to constantly sniff up?

The reason I ask is that a work colleague constantly sniffs up all day long, and it is quite honestly disgusting. I won't go into detail but you can imagine. I've tried giving them tissues, and even told them, but they say that they have hay fever.

So does hayfever cause you to sniff up all the time.......they don't sneeze.

Re: Hay Fever
 

I have a nasal spray and the telfast. Summer is a nightmare and what can affect me one day might not the next.
Things are at there worse when the weather's so hot that I have an Urticaria out break. I wouldn't wish that on my worse enemy. The blisters are so hot I can defrost a pk of frozen peas quicker than the microwave.

Re: Hay Fever
 

Just read an article about this and the lady that wrote it used to suffer terribly with hay fever, she had tried all the usual stuff from the chemist to no avail. She then decided to try homeopathic remedies helped by research on the internet. Unfortunately she doesn't go into detail about which remedies worked for her but maybe a google search will help anybody still suffering.

Re: Hay Fever
 

Just seen an advert in one of the Sundays, about a machine that helps control Hay Fever, I think its being marketed by Lloyds, it costs £19.95p and is on special at £14.95, it consist of two electrodes inserted into the nostrils three times a day for 3 minute burst, this does sound better than taking drugs which can leave you feeling tired and listless

Re: Hay Fever
 

My eldest lad has suffered with hay fever for around 12 years, as soon as anyone cuts the grass he is full of the itchy eyes, coughing etc, always stocked up on the drugs for it, he lives in spain now and I havnt spoken to him about it, but will now.

Re: Hay Fever
 

I found this on the web
It is expensive, but the Lloyds pharmacy version mentioned will be cheaper
http://www.anhealth.co.uk/site_html/press_medinose.html

I sometimes get vasomotor rhinitis - same symptoms, different cause.
Might try this one if cheap enough

PS http://www.enjoymoresummer.com/Pages...sNasalReliever

Re: Hay Fever
 

i have been using the lloyds one now for 5 weeks & i must say ..........IT WORKS FOR ME ..... most of my friends have commented on how much better i seem, so for the price of £14-99 try it.

Re: Hay Fever
 

Nik has been using hers for 2 months now - the same one, Lloyds. It helps but she's still quite bad. Her symptoms, from April to July, really are very bad and she hasn't been able to enjoy early Summer since she was 10 years old.

Before that she had no sign of hay fever. It came on one evening when she was playing with friends in the fields opposite our house. I went to call her in for bed and at first I thought she had been punched in the face as her eyes were like tomatoes and her nose was swollen. No, it was just pollen and since then it's been an annual thing. It doesn't help that a lot of oil seed rape is grown round here (though not nearer to us than a mile) and it's a killer-diller for allergy sufferers.

Re: Hay Fever
 

Has she tried homeopathic remedies??

Re: Hay Fever
 

I think that with homeopathic remedies you need to get the right one.....and there are a few that can be used for Hay fever(mixed pollens, Allium Cepa, Nat Mur - to name just three)....if you buy one and it isn't the right one then you lose faith in the remedy and in Homeopathy as a whole. It is worth going to see a practising homeopath to get the right treatment, but this can be expensive as they charge in the region of £60 per hour.

The University of Central Lancashire trains homeopathic practitioners, and they have a clinic......it is run by trained homeopaths, but the students get their practical skills there too......because of this it is cheaper. £25.50 for a first session, and about £15 for subsequent sessions...but this includes the cost of any medications needed.
If anyone is interested please PM me and I will supply further details.

Re: Hay Fever
 

This is it

http://www.accringtonweb.com/forum/a...ever-nose1.jpg

Re: Hay Fever
 

my ex had one..... if nothing else it entertained the kids lol

Re: Hay Fever
 

On top of all the petrochemical nasties I avoid breathing in:rolleyes:,
I now have rhinitis (streaming nose, itchy eyes and throat), and think it is likely to be birch tree pollen from the small copse at the front of my flat.

I have bought a gadget from Boots
Boots Pharmaceuticals Allergy Relief Device Batteries Included - Boots
which uses the same 'red light phototherapy' as the Lloyds machine detailed at post #24.

This red light therapy has many glowing user reviews, which is very apt because my nose visibly glows red when I use it:).

I got my deck chair out ready to have 'afternoons in the sun' during this warm spell, but it isn't possible.

The birch tree pollen season is due to end in two weeks - hope we get more sunshine in June and July.

I missed out on sunshine last summer because of the dust clouds from the Heys field construction site, and was hoping that there would be some chances of 'sitting outside' this summer.

Re: Hay Fever
 

Tried allsorts until my doctor prescribed me Loratadine and it cured it straight away.

Hayfever remedies have come a long way in the past 20 years.

Re: Hay Fever
 

bought this for my son, but didn't work for him

Re: Hay Fever
 

if you have a garden ... have a read of this ... gives you some ideas what to plant

Attention, you 15 million hay fever sufferers! The top garden is guaranteed to make you sneeze, while the lower ones lets you linger without tears | Mail Online

Re: Hay Fever
 

Ya beat me to it Jen I've just read that myself and was going to post it

Re: Hay Fever
 

The red light phototherapy works by desensitising the lining of your nose.
It doesn't work for everybody, but a double blind clinical trial showed a reasonably high percentage success rate.

ScienceDirect.com - Annals of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology - Narrow-Band Red Light Phototherapy in Perennial Allergic Rhinitis and Nasal Polyposis
Following treatment, improvement of symptoms was reported by 72% of the allergic rhinitis patients and objective improvement was endoscopically demonstrated in 70% of them as compared with 24% and 3%, respectively, in the placebo group. These differences were significant. No improvement was obtained in any of the patients with polyposis.

The conventional method of 'desensitising' is either antihistamines or steroids.

When these are taken orally they are bound to have an effect on more than just your nose.

I am reluctant to even use antihistamine and/or steroids in a nasal spray, because mucous membranes have a great capacity for allowing whatever they are in contact with, to pass into the bloodstream.

Re: Hay Fever
 

now that is a change ... me beating you ... :p

Re: Hay Fever
 

The trees at the back don't look as though they are birch, so I am taking the risk of opening my windows at the back, and keeping front windows closed.
Opening windows to change the air is essential.

I do have two air cleaning devices

..: Airfree :..
but they don't generate oxygen, and unlike Jaysay, I don't get it free on the NHS :D

Re: Hay Fever
 

I have my fingers crossed as I say this.....this year I haven't had any symptoms of hay fever.
I used to get it really badly....have been known to stop my car on the way to work in order to stem the flow from my eyes and nose....recently, it hasn't affected my nose so much, but my eyes have been itchy sore and have run like a tap........this year, so far(fingers still crossed) Nothing.
Only Piriton worked for me......made me sleepy too...couldn't take them and go to work.

Funnily enough didn't have it when I visted Oz....wonder if antipodean pollen is different.

Re: Hay Fever
 

Their trees are different - no birch, hawthorn etc

Re: Hay Fever
 

Yes, the hawthorn near us is just beginning to flower...so I may not be out of the woods(no pun intended) yet.

Re: Hay Fever
 

Just found a spray here in Italy which works!! Just once a day for a week and I've been symptom free. It's produced by Schering-Plough and the main component is:
Mometasone furoato monoidrato. Obviously This is written in Italian but a good chemist should be able to work it out. It's good because it doesn't make me sleepy like the pills do

Re: Hay Fever
 

It's a steroid:

Mometasone furoate - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Re: Hay Fever
 

I wish to god I didn't get it Margaret, you know your card is marked when you have to walk round with a tube up your nose 24 hours a day:(

Re: Hay Fever
 

Just to compound the misery of runny nose and itchy eyes, I have a shower (have no bath) which malfunctions in hot weather :(

The water pipe which feeds my shower runs through the loft, and as the air in the loft heats up the shower gets fed hot water and shuts down.

I have re-set it, after locating the instructions how, but the effort of doing that has sapped what little energy I had to take a shower in the first place.

I sit here sweltering and smelling.

I can only open two of my four windows due to those sodding beech trees at the front. I have an air conditioning/cooling machine but to use it I need to put the air exhaust pipe through a front window.

I think the answer is to become a night owl - sleep during the day and awake all night, when it's cooler.

Oh dear - won't be possible - the empty flat below mine is to have its bathroom and kitchen refurbished (smashed to bits) starting tomorrow.

A thunderstorm and heavy rain would be wonderful.

Re: Hay Fever
 

Not always, Margaret! In recent years my hayfever has been wonderfully under control but a heavy downpour can throw everything up in the air and actually make things worse.

Sounds bizarre but I'm not the only one who reacts this way.

Re: Hay Fever
 

That has been my experience too. People would tell me that I couldn't have Hay fever(or pollen allergy) as it always gets better when it rains....for me it invariably got worse.

Re: Hay Fever
 

Of course Hay Fever is caused by an allergic reaction to pollen, as is, for a lot of people, asthma, although I've got chronic bronchial asthma, pollen has no effect on me what so ever, nor do cats or dogs, but put me near trees and its a different matter,

Re: Hay Fever
 

Trees produce pollen - that is the current problem.
I have read a fair bit about birch tree pollen recently.
High pollen years and low pollen years alternate - we are on a 'high' this year.

Re: Hay Fever
 

Well I was aware of tree pollen Margaret, but was just making the comparison, lots of people are surprised when I tell them that grass or flower pollen doesn't effect me one bit, I can leave my windows open when they mow the grass, but if I go across Merlin Drive, to where there are trees I start wheezing very badly, never noted which trees are worse than other though

Re: Hay Fever
 

I have had a hard time breathing for several weeks now - it has been like having an everlasting cold which sometimes escalated to flu.

The 50 or more birch trees opposite my flat have been pumping out pollen like there is no tomorrow. At times I felt that there would be no tomorrow for me !.

They were so laden with rust coloured pollen catkins that the season could have been mistaken for autumn.

I have been affected more this year than last, so I have decided to move - I don't feel well enough to have that hassle, but 'needs must'.

Tree allergy woman critical - National - NZ Herald News

Re: Hay Fever
 

It must be very frustrating Margaret, luckily things like pollen don't affect my asthma, just tree pollen slightly, but there are no trees around where I live. just wondering, after the start to the season we've had, are your symptoms worse this year.

Re: Hay Fever
 

This is an old streetview pic from several years ago. The trees are bigger now.
https://maps.google.co.uk/maps?q=Osw...41.85,,1,-1.76

I post this to illustrate that they are all silver birch trees and I think my saying they number 'about 50' is a serious underestimate.

From what I have read, it seems that some places ban their planting in residential areas.
The species originated in Russia, so I am naming them Stalin's revenge.

If I had the energy I would start trying to get them removed/replaced.
They are on LCC land and any action, even if successful, takes too long, and I don't think I would last it out.

Re: Hay Fever
 

The woman hospitalised in New Zealand, which was a link few posts ago, died after a few weeks.

Page 2 of this pdf file
http://www.mapua.gen.nz/CNaug07.pdf

Re: Hay Fever
 

Even though I said that I would just move and not do anything else, I just couldn't resist writing to LCC Forestry and Woodland Management to make them aware of the problem they have created. I don't suppose that anything will come of it but I had to make some effort.

http://www3.lancashire.gov.uk/corpor...u_id=844&tab=4

I have applied for a house move via BwithUs.
I have registered with Homeswopper.

If my efforts to be rehoused within the 'social housing' sphere are fruitless, I could always resort to moving into Puddleside:rolleyes:

Re: Hay Fever
 

A thought for all you Hay fever sufferers.

Re: Hay Fever
 

Margaret - it must be very upsetting that something introduced into the local environment is causing you such distress & ill health. I know it's not ideal & you have probably considered/tried it but pollen is a solid entity (as opposed to a gas) and should be stopped by appropriate filters. Maybe you could use an allergy mask ( http://www.amazon.co.uk/s/?ie=UTF8&k...l_9gd91raqro_b ) at times of high risk until you or the trees can be moved. Just a thought.

Re: Hay Fever
 

I do have some masks with a carbon filter built in.
I defy anybody to wear one 24 hours a day, which is what I would need to do. Birch pollen is the finest of all tree pollens and needs Hepa filters to block it.

Re: Hay Fever
 

How long do these trees pollinate Margaret:confused:

Re: Hay Fever
 

Only for two or three weeks, BUT some trees start early, and some later - The have been 'at it ' since the end of April and the signs of that 'rusty appearance' are just on the point of disappearing today in the late starters.

It isn't as though you can go out with a conductors baton and a stop watch to get them 'do it' synchronistically.

Re: Hay Fever
 

I am going to touch wood as I say this.....I haven't been taking antihistamines and my hay fever hasn't been so bad this year.
I put a thin smear of soft paraffin wax inside my nostrils ...it is supposed to trap the pollen.......and so far it seems to be working.......funnily enough my eyes which usually run like taps haven't been bad either...can't sttribute this to the paraffin wax

Re: Hay Fever
 

I have avidly web researched the topic.
My severe problem was caused by 'sheer density' and 'close proximity' to those trees. Airborn pollen travels hundreds of miles, but it is most concentrated at its source (on my doorstep !)

I like trees and enjoyed living near them. Over the 10 years I have lived here they have increased in size and output. Like many sensitivities the health effects are cumulative - I have reached my tolerance limit.

Re: Hay Fever
 

This birch pollen allergy really makes life complicated!
Birch Pollen Allergy: List of Foods to Avoid or Limit

Last night I made myself a smoothie with 2 eggs, yogurt and a banana.
Within 5 minutes the glands under my chin swelled, and I was struggling to swallow.

The problem wore off in about 2 hours after taking an antihistamine lozenge, but I didn't risk sleeping until it did.

As I am struggling to breathe, the added complication of struggling to swallow was alarming.

The birch trees have finished pollen release but I seem to be having a slow recovery from their effects.

One simple bit of advice - never live near a dense planting of birch trees - you may not be a hay fever sufferer when you move there, but after a few years you likely will be.

Re: Hay Fever
 

How do you know its the trees and not the grass or something else?

Re: Hay Fever
 

Because I have been like this two successive years and only when the trees were pollinating. It is easy to know when they are because the 'catkins' are rust coloured and the whole plantation has the appearance of autumn.

Re: Hay Fever
 

I used to use a natural remedy for hayfever that used to work well for me. Can't remember what it was called now and don't usually need anything because a nasal spray I use for sinus problems helps with the hayfever as well (when I remember to use it)

Re: Hay Fever
 

I have had to do what I hoped I would never need to do - I have had a doc's home visit and will be taking prescription meds.:(

The birch pollen allergy caused a COPD exacerbation which immobilised me.

Acute Exacerbations of COPD | Doctor | Patient.co.uk

"Common pollutants such as nitrogen dioxide, particulates, sulphur dioxide and ozone may also trigger exacerbations."

I have decided that prescription meds may well shorten my life but at least they are likely to improve the quality of the life I have left.

So I am back on that daily blue pill inhaler I had 5 years ago (Spiriva) and a short course of steroids to clear residual inflammation.

Steroids are the worst sort of poison - I watched my mother die slowly with diabetes and osteoporosis due to long term steroid use - but two weeks is less likely to cause me much harm.

I have already reduced my smoking to 4 a day and will have to give up if I get that flat in Clayton ('no pets, no smokers') but I haven't found it hard to do - when you struggle to breathe the desire to inhale smoke seems so very unimportant.

So I have joined the ranks of the medicated elderly :(- I can't say I am glad that I need to resort to medical intervention - but needs must.

I may well start a campaign to have silver birch trees removed from residential areas.:D

Re: Hay Fever
 

Know how you feel Margaret - I was 65 before I saw a doctor. In my case it's definitely a needs must and will continue, but it sounds like you may be lucky and not have the meds for too long. In any case, I hope things settle down soon and your condition improves.

Re: Hay Fever
 

I steer well clear of doctors...but you have to be sensible when you know they can help you...then you have to submit...even if it is only for a short time.
I hope the prescription meds do the trick Margaret...and that the move means you will have less of the problem in the future.
Hope you feel better soon.

Re: Hay Fever
 

Funnily I've never heard of your blue pill inhaler, Spiriva, Margaret, can only think its sabutimal (ventolin) based. One thing I could never get my head round is the fact you still smoke, especially with the care you take looking after your health. I progressed from being a medical person to the medical elderly only because I used prescribed meds, plenty of them, I'd hate the alternative, which would mean I wouldn't be replying to your post:D

Re: Hay Fever
 

Spiriva is a small blue pill that you crush into a powder using a special gadget, and inhale
https://www.spiriva.com/

tiotropium bromide inhalation powder

I would prefer a red pill but beggars can't be choosers :D

Red-pill/Blue Pill - YouTube

Re: Hay Fever
 

You blame pretty much everything for your many ailments yet you carry on smoking (it just killed my dad by the way) , baffling. Sorry to sound harsh but if you have breathing issues the obvious thing is to give up smoking. ( and I know a bit about asthma and inhalers from personal experience)

Re: Hay Fever
 

On thread though you can get 30 loratadine for around .69p online on some website (Chemists4you??), ordered them last week, you can get upto 12 packs, minimal postage and seem to be working...bargain :)

Re: Hay Fever
 

You and me alike Lindsay, and I gave up smoking 35 years ago, I'm sure if I hadn't I wouldn't be here now, in fact I'd have been long gone

Re: Hay Fever
 

I use a handyhaler which is used with Spiriva, but not for that drug for Promixin Powder, according to the link the blue pills are Ipratropium Bromide (Atrovent) which I use in the nebulizer with Ventolin, have used that combination for well over twenty years. It says to use it once a day, to help COPD patients to keep their airways open, I use it 5 times, under instruction, and I can honestly say it works, i'm still here:)

Re: Hay Fever
 

I am not asthmatic so my problem is not as severe as yours.
To reach age 70 and only need one regular prescription is an achievement, judging by the carrier bags full that I have seen delivered to others younger than me.

COPD is not exclusive to smokers, but I do concede that it worsens the condition and that is why I will be free of addiction by the time I move house.

I spent the first 20 years of my life inhaling industrial smog (pre the Smoke Control Act) - a fact that you ought to consider when 'judging' my 'erroneous behaviour'.

As a careful 'light eater' I do not ostracise fat people for indulging in food :D

Re: Hay Fever
 

I have reported side effects to recent prescription meds using the 'yellow card' facility here -
Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency

The side effects were so unpleasant that I have ceased using the medication.

I was prescribed 7 days of oral steroids plus daily use of inhaled Spiriva.

On the 7th day just as steroids ended I experienced prolonged bouts severe nausea after eating. I blamed this on the steroids and hoped that the 'side effect' would pass.

I continued with the Spiriva, and as well as prolonged spells of nausea I also had a dry mouth and thirst, accompanied by a nasty taste that never went away no matter how much water I drank . This affected my appetite - zero desire for food.

A week of this was as much as I could tolerate so I ceased using Spriva.

In the days since, the nausea, thirst, foul taste have gradually subsided, and now ended.
My morning cough returned but I was glad to have the cough reflex restored in order to clear my lungs of the inhaled meds. Each ' clearing' signaled a lessening of the side effects.

I now feel that the steroids were useful (short term only) to clear the inflammation caused by birch pollen allergy but Spiriva makes my quality of life worse than without it.

I will be advising my doc of all this after I have moved. I don't want the risk of him persuading me to take some other inhaled med, and risk having more disabling side effects happening at the time of moving.

Re: Hay Fever
 

Gloss paint fumes (kind gesture :rolleyes: by new landlady who spruced up paintwork recently) triggered another bout of serious breathlessness.

I have another doc visit today and am now on inhaled steroids (at a very low dose fortunately)

Looks like I have reluctantly joined the ranks of the 'medicated elderly':(

Re: Hay Fever
 

But for medication I wouldn't have got anywhere near the medicated elderly:rolleyes: