Will Allergy Medicine Work For A Cold

Best For Pet Allergies: Xyzal Allergy Tablet

• Maximum strength for severe allergies of all kinds

• Eases pet dander irritations

• Better for those under their 60s

• Can cause drowsiness

No matter how much you love your furry friends, life isnt going to be easy if youre allergic to them. You can give yourself some relief by taking the Xyzal Allergy Relief Tablets that were made to alleviate symptoms associated with animal dander allergies.

Unless youre willing to get rid of your pet, many say this is the only thing that works. Additionally, Parikh suggests keeping the pet out of your bedroom and getting a HEPA air purifier.

When To See A Doctor

It is not always easy to tell the difference between a cold and an allergy, so its important to know when to see a healthcare provider. If symptoms last for more than 2 weeks or if they are severe, it may be a good idea to see a doctor.

Doctors can identify allergy triggers through serum and skin tests. Once a specific allergen has been identified, an appropriate treatment plan is developed.

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Keep Sniffles And Itchy Eyes At Bay With These Options

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From pets to pollen, allergies are the worst. Unfortunately, its often difficult to avoid the stuff youre allergic to. Who can resist an adorable puppy or a lovely stroll in the park? To get your watery eyes, runny nose, and all other symptoms under control, you need a reliable over-the-counter allergy medicine.

Even though there are dozens of options available to treat allergies, the various options can be overwhelming. Allergy medications may promise instant relief, but theyre not all the samesome may induce drowsiness, while others may only treat specific allergies. Take into consideration your individual symptoms, which may be treated best by specific ingredients or forms, from liquid and sprays to tablets.

Whether youre looking for natural ingredients or a non-drowsy pill that will keep you going throughout the day, these are the best OTC allergy medicines.

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Antihistamines For The Common Cold

Review questionWe reviewed evidence for the effectiveness of antihistamines on signs and symptoms of the common cold. We identified 18 trials with 4342 participants.

BackgroundOn average, young children have six to eight colds per year and adults have two to four. Common cold symptoms include sore throat, nasal stuffiness and discharge, sneezing and cough. It is caused by viruses and usually resolves by itself within one to two weeks. However, the common cold has a large impact on time off work or school.

As there is no cure for the common cold, only symptomatic treatment is available. Antihistamines are effective for allergic symptoms such as hay fever. Nasal symptoms of hay fever are similar to common cold symptoms and so trials have been conducted to see whether antihistamines improve common cold symptoms.

Study characteristicsThe evidence is current to August 2015.

The participants were adults or children with a common cold. We excluded studies with participants suffering from hay fever, asthma or eczema. The effect of different antihistamines was compared to placebo. A beneficial effect meant a decrease in the severity or duration of the general feeling of illness and/or of specific symptoms such as stuffy nose, runny nose or sneezing. We also investigated whether side effects were more common with antihistamines than placebo.

What Should I Avoid While Taking Cold & Allergy Relief

This medication may impair your thinking or reactions. Be careful if you drive or do anything that requires you to be alert.

Drinking alcohol can increase certain side effects of chlorpheniramine and phenylephrine.

Ask a doctor or pharmacist before using any other cold, allergy, or sleep medicine. Cold & Allergy Relief are contained in many combination medicines. Taking certain products together can cause you to get too much of a certain drug. Check the label to see if a medicine contains an antihistamine or decongestant.

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Cleaning Your Nasal Passages

Regularly cleaning your nasal passages with a salt water solution, known as nasal douching or irrigation, can also help by keeping your nose free of irritants.

You can do this by using a solution made with sachets bought from a pharmacy.

Small syringes or pots that often look like small horns or teapots are also available to help flush the solution around the inside of your nose.

To rinse your nose:

• stand over a sink, cup the palm of 1 hand and pour a small amount of the solution into it
• sniff the water into 1 nostril at a time
• repeat this until your nose feels comfortable

While you do this, some solution may pass into your throat through the back of your nose.

The solution is harmless if swallowed, but try to spit out as much of it as possible.

Nasal irrigation can be carried out as often as necessary, but a fresh solution should be made each time.

Know Your Medical History

Some medical conditions make Claritin-D a less safe choice for allergy and/or cold symptom treatment. Inform your doctor if you have any of the following conditions:

• Liver or kidney disease
• Heart disease, high blood pressure
• Diabetes
• Enlarged prostate
• Urinary incontinence

Claritin-D should be used with caution in those with cardiovascular disorders. Because pseudoephedrine works by narrowing blood vessels, it can increase blood pressure and heart rate.

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What Do Antihistamines Do To Treat Your Flu Or Cold

Antihistamines function by fighting histamines. Histamines cause tissues in the nose to become itchy and swollen symptoms you also experience when you have a flu or cold, and which antihistamines can help you take care of.

Histamine actually isnt, according to scientific consensus, the main reason you have a runny nose when you have a flu or a cold. Studies also report that newer antihistamines such as loratidine and fexofenadine dont seem to do much to relieve cold symptoms. Some of the earlier antihistames like Chlorpheniramine and brompheniramine seem to work much better.

No one yet knows exactly why antihistamines can offer symptom relief for some people while they appear to have no effect in others. It may be that antihistamines don’t work when histamine production doesn’t play a role in causing your symptoms, but it’s also possible that different people simply react differently to the medications.

Best For Nighttime: Benadryl Ultratabs Antihistamine Allergy Relief Tablets

• Cheaper than most store brands

• Must take every four to six hours

Have you had a long day? Do you want to just sleep right away and forget about your allergies? The Extra Strength Benadryl Allergy Nighttime Caplets can make that happen. It can instantly put you to sleep and treat your common allergies and cold symptoms at the same time. Get ready for some uninterrupted slumber and by the next morning, youll feel as good as new.

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How Can Antihistamines Help Treat Your Cold Or Flu

Colds might not be serious, but they’re sure annoying! Though there’s not much you can do to shorten the duration of a cold, you’ve got some tools at your disposal to reduce the symptoms a bit. Antihistamines allergy medications are often said to be able to help you deal with an itchy and runny nose. Antihistamines come in various types and are usually part of combination drugs that you can buy over the counter.

Global Otc Cough And Cold And Allergy Medicine Market: Industry Development Scenario And Forecast To 2027

The research report on OTC Cough and Cold and Allergy Medicine market provides a detailed assessment of the industry vertical and highlights the various market segmentations. Also, the document assesses the impact of COVID-19 on the market growth. It further elaborates on the drivers and opportunities that are slated to fuel the market growth during the analysis timeframe. Besides this, the report also focuses on the challenges and restraints that may hamper the market growth to some extent.

It also emphasizes on the competitive landscape as well as the regional terrain of the OTC Cough and Cold and Allergy Medicine market. Also, the estimated growth rate and market share to be recorded during the analysis timeframe is listed in the report.

Elaborating the regional terrain of the OTC Cough and Cold and Allergy Medicine market:

• The regional terrain of the OTC Cough and Cold and Allergy Medicine market is bifurcated into North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, South America, Middle East & Africa, South East Asia.
• Information such as market share, sales, and revenue generated are also highlighted in the report.

A gist of the competitive scale of the OTC Cough and Cold and Allergy Medicine market:

Additional takeaways from the report which will influence the OTC Cough and Cold and Allergy Medicine market remuneration:

The research document will answer the following questions such as:

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How Is It Diagnosed

See your doctor if youre experiencing what appears to be cold urticaria with exposure to the cold for the first time.

This will allow your doctor to diagnose your symptoms. There are some conditions that have similar symptoms. Its important to rule those out.

Seek medical care immediately if your symptoms are severe.

During your doctors visit, be prepared to discuss your symptoms and health history. Your doctor will also do a physical exam.

They may also perform an ice cube challenge test to observe your bodys reaction to cold temperatures.

During this test, the doctor will apply an ice cube in a plastic bag to your body for a few minutes and then see if hives or other symptoms occur.

Your skin may not immediately react to this test if you inherited the condition. Symptoms of inherited CU may take at least 20 or even 30 minutes to appear.

Your doctor may also order blood tests to determine or rule out underlying causes of your symptoms.

A proper diagnosis for CU is necessary because other conditions may cause similar symptoms.

What’s The Best Remedy For Cold Symptoms It Might Surprise You

What’s the best remedy for cold symptoms? It might surprise youBack to video

In the past, whenever Ive come down with a cold, Ive usually reached for one of those all-in-one cold drugs or a decongestant and some Tylenol.

But Jennifer Ackerman, author of a new book on the common cold called Ah-Choo!: The Uncommon Life of Your Common Cold , argues thats not the way to go at all.

In an interview with NPRs Fresh Air , Ackerman said that, after all the research she did for her book, her treatment of choice for the common cold is now ibuprofen and a first-generation, sedating allergy drug like Benadryl or Chlor-Tripolon.

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Diagnosing Colds And Allergies

You dont need to see your doctor for a cold, but if you do make an appointment, your symptoms will likely be enough for them to confirm your diagnosis.

If your doctor thinks you might have a bacterial infection such as strep throat or pneumonia, you might need other tests such as a throat culture or chest X-ray.

For allergies, you may need to see a primary care doctor, an ear-nose-throat doctor, or an allergist. The doctor will first ask about your symptoms. Severe or life-threatening allergic reactions often require the care of an allergy specialist.

A variety of tests can be used to diagnose allergies. A skin test can be used to determine your allergy triggers. Sometimes primary doctors or allergy specialists may also use blood tests to diagnose allergies depending on your age and other health conditions.

Do Studies Show If Antihistamines Can Help With The Common Cold

There isnt a cure for the common cold, so the best you can do is make your symptoms less uncomfortable. Antihistamines do a good job treating allergic symptoms like hay fever. Studies have been carried out to see if antihistamines can treat common cold symptoms because the nasal symptoms of hay fever are very similar to common cold symptoms.

How well do antihistamines relieve common cold symptoms? An analysis of 18 studies in which over 4000 people participated compared antihistamines to a placebo. The study also explored whether people experienced more side effects when using antihistamines or a placebo.

Because common colds don’t tend to last more than a week to 10 days, the research was short-term. The results were interesting. Antihistamines were shown to offer better symptom relief than the placebo, however, this was not true for people who took antihistamines for longer periods of time. The research also suggested that sedating antihistamines didn’t do much for sneezing and rhinorrhea.

In short antihistamines might make you feel better if you use them for a little while, but they won’t do much for nasal clogging and mucus or sneezing in the longer term.

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How Long Have Your Symptoms Lasted

Colds generally linger for 3 days to about a week, but symptoms can last up to 2 weeks in some people. Starting to feel better after a couple of days is a sign you’re probably on the mend from a cold.

If you’re getting worse, your cold may become a bacterial infection. If symptoms last more than 1 to 2 weeks or get worse after about 5 days, you should see a doctor.

Allergy symptoms will last for as long as you’re exposed to your trigger. So if you’re allergic to cat dander, once you say goodbye to your grandmother and their prized Persian cat to return home, your sniffles should subside. If your trigger is pollen and you spend most of the spring months outdoors, you could be facing symptoms for the whole season.

How To Make Sense Of Otc Cold And Cough Medications

Unsure about the hundreds of cold and flu preparations on the drugstore shelves? You’re not alone. Deciding among the OTC remedies for cold, flu, or allergy symptoms can be intimidating, and a basic understanding of the types of drugs included in these medications can help you make an informed choice.

Millions of people use over-the-counter products to relieve symptoms of cold, flu, and allergy, including nasal stuffiness and congestion, sneezing, runny noses, sore throat, and cough. The common causes of these symptoms include the viruses that cause the common cold, influenza virus, allergic rhinitis , and sinus infections . Viral infections can also cause headache, body aches, fatigue, and sometimes fever. Hay fever symptoms can also include itchy eyes, nose, and throat, and watery eyes.

To benefit from OTC products for cold, flu, and allergy, it is important to understand the condition causing the symptoms, the predominant symptom one wishes to relieve, and the active ingredient in the product. Some OTC products contain a single active ingredient medication to relieve one symptom. Many others contain a combination of two, three, and even four active ingredient medications to treat several symptoms at once. Selecting the right product can be difficult at times.

Here we have categorized products for cold/flu/allergy according to the predominant symptoms they relieve:

• Sore throat

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What You Can Do

If you start to feel symptoms such as a runny nose or stuffy head, try to determine whether your symptoms are caused by a cold or allergies.

Though they can seem similar, there are a few characteristics that distinguish one from the other, including:

• Yellow or green nasal discharge

• Itchy eyes/nose/throat

• Fever

What Happens When You Get A Cold

When you have a runny nose caused by a cold, excess mucus builds up in your sinuses due to swelling and your body’s attempt to eliminate the invading germs.

Viral infections cause inflammationjust not allergic inflammation. Nasal corticosteroids may help reduce this inflammation but are not specifically indicated for this reason.

Several medical studies have investigated the use of corticosteroids to treat cold symptoms. Research results do not support the use of these medications for symptomatic relief, but study authors suggest that more research is needed.

Taking oral antihistamines for cold symptoms doesn’t help for the same reasons either, unless they’re sedating versions like Benadryl .

These drugs don’t treat a runny nose or watery eyes caused by colds, the flu, or other viral illnesses. But they are often included in multisymptom cold medications because they have anticholinergic side effects, meaning they dry up secretions. Their ability to fight histamine, the chemical in the body’s cells that cause many allergy symptoms, is irrelevant, as that effect has no impact on these infections.

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What Other Drugs Will Affect Cold & Allergy Relief

Ask a doctor or pharmacist before using this medicine if you are also using any other drugs, including prescription and over-the-counter medicines, vitamins, and herbal products. Some medicines can cause unwanted or dangerous effects when used together. Not all possible interactions are listed in this medication guide.

Taking this medicine with other drugs that make you sleepy or slow your breathing can worsen these effects. Ask your doctor before taking Cold & Allergy Relief with a sleeping pill, narcotic pain medicine, muscle relaxer, or medicine for anxiety, depression, or seizures.

Best Cold Medicine For Runny Nose

A runny nose is one of the ways your body ejects irritants inflaming your nasal passages. A runny nose can also be inconvenient and feel a little bit gross.

If you take a decongestant for a runny nose, your symptoms will get worse before they get better as those types of drugs thin the mucus in your body.

Thats why diphenhydramine might be better for drying up a runny nose. Diphenhydramine is an antihistamine, which means it reduces your bodys natural reaction to irritants and pathogens. It also might make you drowsy, which is why its best to take this medication at bedtime.

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