Hayfever in Pregnancy

[LaDeeDa]

Hi All,

With spring upon us now I am starting to get the dreaded hayfever symptoms..
Sneezing, wheezing, itchy eyes etc

Does anyone have any suggestions of what I can do to make this bearable. Normally I would just dose up on antihistamines but thats a no no these days

TIA xoxox

[Kmn]

I used rhinocort nasal spray while I was pregnant (on the OK of my Doc and Ob).
Call the obstetric drug line at Monash - 03 9594 2361 and discuss your options.

[Devon]

I feel your pain, Dee!

I have shocking hayfever, usually as the first symptoms start to appear I start on the nasal sprays, antihistamines etc. But I just don't feel like I want to take anything when I'm pg. So I'm struggling on. It's not very nice.

Hope you can find some relief soon.

Devon
xxxx

[Jewel]

I had bad hayfever with my pg, so i just asked the pharmacist and my ob what i could take. I forget the name of the stuff I had. I only really took it if I really really needed to.

Good luck with your pg and i hope the hayfever settles down.

xoxo

[Sair]

I was going to say Benadryl Allergy is safe as I was taking that for my nausea and vomiting but it turns out it is a Category B drug. I googled allergy medicines in pregnancy and came up with a ninemsn health article that had this

Included in Category A "Drugs which have been taken by a large number of pregnant women and women of childbearing age without any proven increase in the frequency of malformations or other direct or indirect harmful effects on the foetus being observed" are the following antihistamines: brompheniramine, chlorpheniramine, clemastine, cyproheptadine, dexchlorpheniramine, diphenhydramine, diphenylamine, doxylamine, pheniramine, triprolidine, chlorcyclizine, cyclizine and hydroxyzine. However, these are antihistamines of the older type, which cause sedation. This is can be a problem with driving, operating machinery and simply being able to function optimally.

Maybe just google the drug name to find out the brand names or take the list to the chemist and make them do the work. Good luck, hayfever is not fun, luckily I don't suffer as much as I used to.

[LaDeeDa]

Ladies thanks so much for the advice.
I'm going down to my pharmacist on my lunch break to see what I can take.
But like you've said it seems like the only ones you can take are the ones which cause drowsiness.
Maybe avoid the eastern tonight ...lol

[Kmn]

The rhinocort isn't a drowsy-making drug - but it's only effective for the nose part of hayfever.

[gypsy79]

I've also been told that Rhinocort is ok to take when preg. Apparently it's more of a preventative than a treatment though, so it's best if taken every day. My mum and lil bro get quite severe hayfever and this seems to work for them.

[Trillian]

You could try using a nettie pot/nose bidet - it looks like a little teapot that you fill with tepid water and pour up your nose and it runs out the other side - really does wonders to clear the sinuses out.

[Neenee Jellybeanie]

I had terrible hayfever while preg (as always sigh) and the stupid pharmacist gave me antihistamines, which I found out AFTER TAKING THEM, you're not meant to have. *anger* A neti pot/other form of nasal irrigation is the best, I have a neti pot myself.

It's best to avoid medication while preg as much as is humanly possible, just in case. I took fenugreek to increase my milk supply after preg and I found that helped my sinuses as well. You'd have to find out whether that's okay to take but I imagine it is.

[butterfly_warrior]

Polaramine.

I usually only take it at night because it does make me slightly drowsy, so I struggle on during the day. But it's enough to take the edge off and let me sleep properly over night, so the system is working for me.

Definitely category A.

BW

[fingerscrossed]

I'm with Butterfly_warrior.

The only drugs that have been tested for Preg ladies are the older style like Polaramarine. These have been around for ever, and are category A.

All the newer hayfever drugs that are more effective and are typically non-drowsy such as zytrec, claratyne are catergory B1 or B2. These have not been proven as safe to take in pregnancy, but they haven't been proven to bed bad either.

If you have asthma, use Ventolin as prescribed - it is much better to have Ventolin than reduced oxygen intake for you and your bubba.

I suffer from hayfever really badly, and I have decided to only take category A, which means taking Polaramarine repetabs slow release (6mg) when i go to bed (helps with symptoms and helps me sleep), and then if I have a bad reaction during the day, I take an extra 2mg polaramarine tablet (different packet) to deal with the reaction.

I have also read Polaramarine should only be taken in 1st and 2nd trimester but my GP said her info didn't mention that.

You can also try to prevent getting into hayfever situations, by:
staying warm (esp in the mornings),
wearing sunglasses to keep stuff out of your eyes,
drinking pineapple juice- it has an enzyme in it to help with itchy throat
using lubricating eye drops to help with sandpaper eyes
not going outside if you can help it

Hope this all helps

Carole