Hay fever

Overview

Allergic rhinitis or hay fever, is when the inner lining of the nose becomes inflamed, usually due to the immune system overreacting to air allergens such as pollen.

Signs and symptoms of hay fever include a runny or stuffy nose, sneezing, red, itchy, and watery eyes, and swelling around the eyes.

Telfast is an effective treatment for hay fever. 

Finding a Hay Fever Treatment that Works for You

You likely know the hay fever symptoms fairly well – runny nose, itchy eyes, sneezing. Unlike a cold or the flu, it isn’t caused by a virus. Instead, it’s an allergic response, and if you’re experiencing it, you just want a fast treatment that takes you from frustrated to well in minutes. Fortunately, there are many options available.

Understanding Hay Fever

Hay fever is sometimes called allergic rhinitis. You might notice cold-like symptoms when you have it, but it’s caused by an allergic response to allergens. The allergens causing the allergic response can vary, but they’re usually things like pollen, dust mites, or even tiny flecks of skin shed by indoor animals. This happens because your immune system begins producing antibodies because it notices a harmless substance in your body. Those antibodies send a message to release histamine into your blood stream, and that leads to the signs and symptoms you’ve noticed.

There are several things that put you at risk for hay fever. If you have other kinds of allergies or you have asthma, that may make you more at risk for hay fever. If you have eczema, that, too, can be a risk factor. Additional risk factors may be if you live or work in an environment that contains a lot of allergens or if you have a blood relative who has allergies or asthma.

Handling your Hay Fever

No matter what caused your hay fever or the hay fever symptoms you experience, you likely know that it reduces your quality of life. You enjoy things less, are less productive, and make it hard to fall asleep and stay asleep. It may also increase your susceptibility to other health conditions like sinusitis. Fortunately, there are some hay fever treatments and other options that may help.

• Identify Your Hay Fever Timeline: Hay fever tends to hit everyone at a different time. Tree pollen, for example, triggers some individuals in the early spring. Grass tend to shed their pollens in the late spring and throughout the summer. Ragweed pollen appears in the fall. Many people who experience hay fever over the winter months have an issue with indoor molds, pet dander, and other issues. Knowing what allergens trigger your condition may better help you find a solution. More than that, though, it can help you avoid those triggers. For example, if you know tree pollen triggers your hay fever in the late spring, you may want to wear a mask when you’re outside.
• Consider a Saline Rinse: When hay fever does hit, there are a number of steps you can take to wash the allergens out of your nose, which may help to reduce your hay fever symptoms. Many turn to a saline rinse as a solid hay fever treatment. You can use a premixed solution or make your own. A squeeze bottle or a neti pot is the perfect way to handle this procedure. Using your solution, you’ll simply tilt your head over a sink, place the spout of the bottle in the upper nostril, and breathe through your mouth. Pour the solution into the nostril so the liquid drains on the other side. Do it once more tilting your head the other way.
• Find a Hay Fever Medicine That Works For You: There are many medications that work as the perfect hay fever treatment. Corticosteroids are one hay fever medicine. They’re long term treatments that help fight itchy, runny noses and congestion, as well as other hay fever symptoms. Typically, you can find relief from these medications within the first twelve hours of your dose because they help reduce the inflammation in your nose. That can lead to fewer sneezes and it can help reduce the size of swelling problems like polyps in your nose. They’re best taken a few days before you know your symptoms will begin, as they are more effective over time. There are also other hay fever medicines including antihistamines, which block the histamines that are causing your symptoms and decongestants which help to relieve the congestion you might feel during this time of year. Your GP may have prescription hay fever medicine options available too.

Hay fever can be a frustrating condition to manage, but the good news is that it is manageable when you take the right steps. If you struggle with hay fever on a regular basis, your best bet is to find relief fast, and at MyMedsUK, that’s more possible than ever thanks to our extensive selection of options and equipment that will help you deal with hay fever more effectively.

Causes

Air pollen from grass, trees and weeds can cause an allergic reaction in people. A high pollen count in the air, combined with warm, hot and windy weather conditions can result in a significant and instant reaction, as pollen is transported easily through the air. 

Risks

Untreated hay fever can worsen, especially if the patient has other allergies such as asthma.

The risk of hay fever is increased if there is a genetic history in the family of hay fever or other allergies.