Do You Think Taking A Daily Antihistamine Might Help Minimize Contact Reactions?

YES! YES! YES! Can you tell I'm really sure about this LOL?? I started teaching 2 year olds recently. On days that I forget to take my antihistamine (Allegra right now but looking to switch back to Zyrtec) I get so bad during lunch and it lasts the rest of the day. My eyes water, my nose runs, I sneeze constantly, my throat/back of nose itches miserably, my hands get blisters, and my body especially head/face/ears itches really bad. Of course it depends on how many kids bring pb that day. On days I take my antihistamine I occasionally get a bit of a stuffy nose.

Rebekah

Cindy,
I think this falls under the "Does Benadryl mask symptoms" discussion. My final thought on that is Benadryl will not mask symptoms of an anaphylactic reaction, but it will 'take care of' all the little reactions that could let you know an anaphylactic reaction could be coming, ie. hives, itchy runny nose, 'funny little cough', etc.

I get the feeling our son will need to take something every day when he starts public school to help minimize the contact reactions. I'm not thrilled about that for a couple reasons - 1.) I don't like the thought of him trying to function at school(all the brain work) while on medication, and 2.) I'm not sure that I don't want to know if he's actually reacting every day or not. Meaning, if he's going to have contact reactions every day, then maybe we need to change the set up, amend our 504, or just remove him from school altogether.

This is still one of those subjects we go back and forth over. I hope my rambling made sense to someone... Have a great day!

I take allegra every day and my son takes zyrtec, he used to take claritin. I really think it helps us. When I had to stop for five days for allergy tests I ended up in the er on a neb and they had to give me benedryl, however my tests still came back as having all allergies so it did not mask them. The test was the next day so benedryl was out of system.

I think this has helped my son too. He takes Zyrtec daily and I know when my son misses it occasionally he is miserable with his environmental allergies. I do think this also helps with food allergy reactions. One time he seemed to have a slight reaction to tortilla chips (no warning on the label and I was never able to find out if it did contain something). It only involved severe coughing, watery eyes, and stomach ache. When he reacted to the Swiss Miss pudding it was very minor also (compared to his prior reactions). He only had a red rash wherever the pudding was on his face. I will ask my allergist about this too when I go in April.

My son was taking daily Claritin for his multiple food allergies but doctor switched him back to Zyrtec (the Zyrtec didn't seem to help when he was younger and the Claritin did-but the doctor prefers Zyrtec so he switched him back to it and it seems to be working). In his case it seems to make a difference as far as the frequency of his little unexplainable reactions.

My daughter who is allergic to peanuts doesn't take a daily antihistimine. I'm beginning to wonder if she should because she is starting to have more frequent unexplainable reactions.

Hope this helps!
tkiaml

Thank-you everyone for your wonderful responses. No, Lam, I wasn't trying to have this turn into another Benadryl masking symptoms thread. I believe that is a separate question, although I can see where you are making the connection.

I was simply wondering if my son has not had any contact reactions because he is also taking an antihistamine daily for his environmental allergies.

Was this coincidence or had I been extremely fortunate when he ventured outside of his "peanut free" classroom?

Again, Lam, I am sorry if it seemed as if I was posting the Benadryl ? again and getting into that whole discussion again, but this was certainly not my intention.

It is just that I have read so much about children on this board having reactions at school, contact reactions specifically, and Jesse has never had one. That's why I wondered about the Claritin. Again, it is totally separate and not my intention to raise the Benadryl ? again. I think we pretty well discussed that one to death didn't we?

No, this was totally separate.

I feel okay about my son taking the daily antihistamine and perhaps preventing contact reactions, but only because he needs to take the daily antihistamine regardless. If he wasn't already on one when he entered the school system, then I am sure I would have some concerns that I would want to have addressed before I began to medicate my child.

Rebekah, I read your post almost as soon as you had posted it last night, and I felt that essentially, you gave me the answer! I went to bed with one less question on my mind! I really liked the spirit of the post too. It was very uplifting!

Many thanks and best wishes! [img]http://uumor.pair.com/nutalle2/peanutallergy/smile.gif[/img]

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My daughter started school this September and had many weekly contact reactions at school. Since we have started the daily claritin before she goes to school it has minimized the contact reactions to two or three exposures since November. It seems like it is working for us! I believe someone mentioned in the "will benadryl mask an anaphylactic reaction" thread that the antihistamine works to prevent the reaction from happening rather than masking the reaction. I would love to understand this better!

Hi Cindy!

I was one of the ones involved in that other thread also. My husband and I have asked ourselves the same question you have asked, and I think it may have been answered for us the other day.

My son is one that has had several contact reactions. For some reason he always has some type of a reaction at my sister's house (itchy, red eyes and usually some hives). My sister is not the best housekeeper and her children used to be allowed to eat pb anywhere in the house (while my sister was at work and they were being watched by their dad!). Anyway, we figured he was reacting to pb smeared somewhere in the house or on a toy.

Well we recently moved and had to switch pediatricians. When I was going over Evan's medical history with the new DR (peanut allergy, possible seasonal allergies and asthma) the new DR wanted to get him started on Claritin right away before allergy season starts here in IL.

So last week we went to my sister's house for the first time since my son started the Claritin and guess what?? No reaction at all! He didn't even rub his eyes one time and we were there the whole day! Of course it could just be coincidence--I guess we'll never know. But it sure was nice to not have to get up and leave (with my son crying and asking why???) because of a reaction.

As Peanuttrace mentioned, I would love to understand this better. I guess we'll see what happens when he starts going to school everyday. Deanna

Cindy,
I know you, or anyone, would never want to bring up that whole discussion again, intentionally. That's just the first thing that popped into my head. My posts today have not been great. This is one of those days when I should just sit back and read, and not 'get involved'. And don't worry, no offense taken! [img]http://uumor.pair.com/nutalle2/peanutallergy/smile.gif[/img]

Lam, but I ALWAYS want you involved in discussions and actually worry about you when you're not!

I think what I was trying to say, and perhaps didn't even raise the question properly - was where any of our children taking daily antihistamines for other reasons? Yes, my son is? Is it possible that by taking this daily antihistamine for other reasons he was being "saved" from contact reactions?

I just find it mysterious, when I know that he does venture outside of his "peanut free" classroom, first thing in the morning in fact to listen to the school announcements, that he has NEVER had a contact reaction. He also goes to the science room, library, computer room, and gym and has no reactions.

Also, I only feel comfortable with the Claritin perhaps controlling contact reactions with him because he is taking it regardless and also because I have definite proof that it did NOT stop him from experiencing every symptom of anaphylaxis when he was in danger.

Best wishes! [img]http://uumor.pair.com/nutalle2/peanutallergy/smile.gif[/img]

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Let me brave the waters again...

Thanks, Cindy, for understanding. [img]http://uumor.pair.com/nutalle2/peanutallergy/smile.gif[/img]

I've thought about this thread a good bit today, and I just want to clear up something. I wholeheartedly believe that antihistimine (Benadryl, for us) is part of the treatment for any and all allergic reactions. We have and will use it every time, contact or otherwise. As a matter of fact, we have used it several times in a 'pre-medicating' way. My husband's grandfather eats nuts all the time (residue everywhere), so anytime we plan to go there, we give our son a dose of Benadryl on the way there. We don't stay very long, but for the times we've been there recently, he's been 'reaction' free.

I know that a daily antihistimine is in my son's future, and for good reason, I know. If it works to help our children live as reaction-free as possible, I'm all for it.

I am having a terrible time trying to get my message across today. Forgive me!
Time to go! Take care everyone!!

At what age can a child start using Claritin?
My 2yr old has a runny nose, and itchy eyes everyday.
Deanna

Lam, I totally understand where you're coming from with this. My decision for my son to take a daily antihistamine had NOTHING to do with him being PA. Now, as it turns out, it may actually have helped him not to experience contact reactions so I consider that a plus.

Deanna, you may want to speak with your doctor, allergist or pharmacist. I do know that I started Jesse on a daily antihistamine (Benadryl) for his environmental allergies at the age of 2-1/2. Given that he is also asthma and I believe several of his triggers are allergens, I also believe this his helped his asthma.

However, when he was getting ready to start school, and also recognizing that you can build up a tolerance to a specific medication over a period of time, thereby reducing it's effectiveness, I spoke with the pharmacist about switching my son from Benadryl to another antihistamine.

He recommended the once a day dose of Claritin. I did go through with him that it had no added ingredients to make it "non-drowsy", that it is simply the chemical make-up of the drug. Benadryl, on the other hand, had to be dosed twice a day, and CAN cause drowsiness (can doesn't always mean will). With school coming up, I decided to switch him to Claritin. He has been taking that for well over 1-1/2 years now.

Lam, again, I see your point exactly. If my son wasn't taking a daily antihistamine and I stumbled across information such as this, then I would have to strongly consider whether I would use this as a preventative medication (or simply throttle the relative that just HAS to eat peanuts! [img]http://uumor.pair.com/nutalle2/peanutallergy/eek.gif[/img] ) or something that he was given on the days that he went to school.

However, because it is Claritin that we are using, the emergency doctor that dealt with us during my son's last reaction made it very clear to me that REGARDLESS he would still require Benadryl.

I guess I just wanted to see if any other parents/people had been pondering the same thing that I had been or had actual proof to what I was thinking - that because our children are taking a daily antihistamine, completely separate from their PA, they are reducing their contact reactions.

Best wishes! [img]http://uumor.pair.com/nutalle2/peanutallergy/smile.gif[/img]

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Excuse me if I'm dragging this thread on, but... just a few more things.

Unlike you Cindy, we chose to use the daily antihistamine specifically because my daughter was having many contact reactions. So we decided to try the Claritin to see if it would make a difference.

If I were to compare the then to the now, I would say that YES, like rebekah says above there is definitely a difference.

I think the hard part is there is not a lot of information on this from our doctors and so we are doing a try and see kind of thing.

...and the part that gets difficult is understanding why it makes such a difference because the allergen would still be present. ie. touch a trace of peanut butter without claritin, get hives, itchy eyes etc... etc..., touch a trace peanut butter with claritin get nothing? How does this work? The peanut butter is still on your hands? ...and that kind of worries me!

Now, I know bringing up that thread again may be a no no, but I think that was probably one of the most useful threads on this board even if it was frustrating, because we really came to some conclusions even if it was to respect that some people have to use benadryl in some situations without the epi pen. At the end of that thread I believe it was Deanna but could be wrong provided information on how benadryl works to prevent reactions from occurring. At the time I read it and tried to understand it (but didn't) and was too exhausted by the thread to continue with anymore questions. ...but it still remains a big question with me, why does this work? ...the peanut butter is still on the hands!!

I guess I like to know that part too. If I'm taking Flovent, I know it is trying to reduce the inflammation in the airways and taken regularly will prevent the airways from inflammation. Is this the same kind of thing with benadryl/claritin?

I know the original question was does it prevent reactions from occurring and I think most people here are saying YES.
I think I need to just be happy that it is working and not be so inquisitive to figure out why!!

Well, I thought I'd through my opinion in here. Stephen's allergist put him on Zyrtec daily at four months. I was very apprehensive about putting him on a drug at that age full time. His symptoms improved dramatically, but I was attributing it all to a change in formula and being aware of everything he was near and who held in etc. Anyway, the last two nights have been terrible with Stephen (itching, screaming, miserable). About 3:00 this morning I was making sure Stephen had has his Zyrtec and my dh informs me that he was out and had been for three days. ARGHHHHHHHHHHHHH!! I keep up with everything else, but my dh has been responsible for that one medicine because he gives it to him right before he puts him to bed. Anyway, continuing to kick myself after being deprived two complete nights of sleep isn't doing anyone any good. So as soon as he gets up from his nap (if finally falling asleep at 7am can be considered that), it'll be a trip to the pharmacy for a refill. I had forgotten how bad nights used to be until we started him on Zyrtec.

Hi all,

I was reading the above posts and something my allergist told me came to me.

He said that if ever Wade had another reaction, I was to administer the epi immediately, call 911, then give him Benadril. When I asked about just giving him Benadril (if the reaction seemed mild), he said NO, a reaction can escalate without warning. That the Benadril can "mask" a reaction and lead you to believe that it's over and BANG it come back some time later.

If that's the case, and I'm not casting any kind of judgement on anyone else, would it not mean that if I gave Wade Benadril daily, that a serious reaction might in fact be masked only to come back with a vengeance?

I would like some answers to this as well given that so many of us are giving our kids antihistamines daily. I have given Wade Claratin in the past when he seems to be having difficulty with his asthma(ie: allergic shiners). Does this only apply to Benadril (which seems to be the drug of choice to be administered with the epi) or are all other antihistamines included in the advice I was given? Is this (the Claratin)something I can safely give Wade?

So many questions!

Regards,

Katiee (Wade's mom)

Cindy,
Thanks for you post. My daughter also has asthma. I will be visiting the allergist next week, and I am going to ask him about using Claritin. My daughter just had a pretty bad asthma atttack today. I hope ot will help.
Deanna G.

Katiee: I'm feeling my neck for bringing up that question again. We all had the same question about this several months ago and there is a very long thread called, "can benadryl mask an anaphylactic reaction" that talks about the epi or benadryl and when to use which one. You should read it because it is very good!

Ultimately, I think you have to do what your allergist suggests is right for your child.

Your question is answered there by different people with different plans, and I think this is the question that has potential to get people upset so that's why I'm feeling my neck.

A quick summary of the thread. Many people deal with hives, or rashes on a regular basis and their doctors recommend that they use benadryl or other antihistamine. ...but because it does not progress further than that they do not require the epi pen. With these allergic individuals they would have to epi weekly or monthly if that were the case, that for all symptoms they were to give the epi pen.

Again, I think the most important thing is that your allergist develops a plan that is most suitable for your child.

Read that thread and if you have questions try posting there about it. I feel like I may have redirected Cindy's original question so sorry about that Cindy, and Katiee.

Katiee, I'm not clear if this will help answer your question or not. My son was taking a daily dose of Claritin the day that he had his last anaphylactic reaction. Perhaps I now feel more comfortable that his antihistamine is Claritin rather than the recommended Benadryl for anaphylactic attacks, I'm not sure.

The reason I remember this so clearly is that when the six hospital personnel were trying to pin my son down onto the bed to administer the IV, I was trying to tell the emergency doctor that he had already had Claritin that day. Because they were trying to save my child's life, he did ask me, rather abruptly (and understandably) to wait until later to speak with him.

Later I did tell him that my son had had Claritin the day of his anaphylactic attack.
No matter.

Although it would appear from this thread that a daily dose of whatever antihistamine may reduce contact reactions, I can tell you for a fact, that it did not stop my son having an IMMEDIATE reaction to the pb rice krispie square that touched his lips. He progressed very quickly into full anaphylactic shock, despite having the Claritin in his system.

I guess if I were to be presented with the whole thing again, I am actually pleased that it has worked out the way that it has. We are not using the antihistamine of choice (Benadryl) daily, but it would appear that a daily antihistamine of any sort may cut down on contact reactions.

Definitely the Claritin did NOT mask any symptom of a reaction or the very quickly ensuing anaphylaxis (don't you hate when you write about or tell a story you can see yourself there all over again? [img]http://uumor.pair.com/nutalle2/peanutallergy/frown.gif[/img] This is one evening I would like completely erased from my memory except for the fact that it probably prevents the same thing ever happening again).

PeanutTrace, I see you raised the other thread under Main Discussion about Benadryl.
Thank-you for recognizing the difference in my two questions. However, I also recognize people's need to know the answers.

I'm severely allergic to dust mites. If you read the literature if you have this allergy you're not even supposed to do your own vacuuming (I've tried to get out of it to no avail [img]http://uumor.pair.com/nutalle2/peanutallergy/biggrin.gif[/img] ) However, I do know that when I had done a really rigorous vacuum cleaning, I require an antihistamine afterwards. Dust could still be on my skin but I am not reacting to it because the antihistamine has stopped my histamines from being released.

I also understand your concern about the pb still being on the skin. You may actually have your own thread starter in here, somewhere, separate from the Benadryl question and also separate from the daily antihistamine question. How Can You Explain?
You get my drift!

Best wishes! [img]http://uumor.pair.com/nutalle2/peanutallergy/smile.gif[/img]

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PeanutTrace - I think I may have come up with an analogy to help explain how the antihistamines work. It's a bit silly and if it doesn't "work" or sound right, sorry [img]http://uumor.pair.com/nutalle2/peanutallergy/smile.gif[/img].

I (allergen) go to my kitchen (allergic person) and turn on the faucet (histamine releasers). If I leave the faucet on too long I fill the sink (cells) with water (histamine). However, if I call the city water dept. (antihistamine) to turn the water off at the street, I can stand in my kitchen all day turning the faucet on, but I won't get anything.

I know it sounds kind of stupid, but that's the kind of thing I think of in my head to help me understand how stuff works LOL!

Rebekah [img]http://uumor.pair.com/nutalle2/peanutallergy/smile.gif[/img]

Rebekah, I liked that one! [img]http://uumor.pair.com/nutalle2/peanutallergy/biggrin.gif[/img]

Best wishes! [img]http://uumor.pair.com/nutalle2/peanutallergy/smile.gif[/img]

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Raising for Love my C

I take a daily Claritin, and I don't worry much about it masking food reactions. If anything, it takes the edge off the minor allergies.

FWIW, I've found that some allergists base their recommendations on theory, and are a bit out of touch when it comes to the real-world effects of what they're advising. Without my daily antihistamine, I'd be sniffling and rubbing my eyes. My 2 cents' worth! [img]http://uumor.pair.com/nutalle2/peanutallergy/wink.gif[/img]

Simply re-raising. [img]http://uumor.pair.com/nutalle2/peanutallergy/smile.gif[/img]

Best wishes! [img]http://uumor.pair.com/nutalle2/peanutallergy/smile.gif[/img]