Spring is here, and so is all the pollen.

  • Many effective allergy remedies now available over the counter
  • Steroid nasal sprays, while effective, often take time to build in your system
  • If all else fails, see an allergist

“I batten down the hatches. Turn the air conditioning on and stay inside as much as possible,” said chronic allergy sufferer Jen Rogers.

With allergy season in full bloom, Rogers’s life can get debilitating with a constant runny nose, sneezing, itchy watery eyes and a stuffy head.

“It’s just pure miserable,” Rogers said.

Help for symptoms

Every year, Rogers turns to her Primary Care Physician Dr. Eric Crall to help her find relief.

Dr. Crall told us the specific treatment he chooses depends on a patient’s symptoms.

“If I have someone who’s mostly drippy and runny and sneezy, they’ll do better with an antihistamine because it has a drying effect,” said Crall. “Someone who has mostly congestion does better with the steroid nasal sprays.”

The good news for all allergy sufferers is that for most people, everything they need is now available over-the-counter.

New Antihistamines

Older, first generation antihistamines like Benadryl actually work well on symptoms like a drippy, runny nose and sneezing. The big downside, however, is how drowsy they make you.

“People are knocked out by it,” said Crall, “In fact now, we use it more to help people sleep, than to treat their allergies.”

Luckily, drug makers came up with new, second generation antihistamines, like Zyrtec and Allegra, which do the same job without making you so sleepy.

“I don’t feel tired from them. I don’t get woozy or doped up or any of those other known side effects that those first generation histamines used to do,” said Rogers. “That really helped make all the symptoms manageable, so I could lead a productive day.”

Another benefit of second generation antihistamines is that you only have to take them once a day.

“You really need that once a day, convenient dosing when you’re going to be taking it for an entire allergy season,” said Crall.

Nasal Sprays

Steroid nasal sprays, like Flonase and Nasacort, help with stuffiness, and are considered safe for long-term use for adults. 

A downside of those medications, though, is that they can take hours or even days before they start to work.  So you generally have to use them every day during allergy season to get the greatest benefit, not just during flare-ups.

Saline nasal sprays are also safe and can help, if you get dried out.

Crall cautions, however, to be careful with certain nasal sprays that can become addictive.

“Any nasal spray which contains Oxymetazoline, which is the generic of Afrin, is harmful if used three days in a row, because it causes a dependency on the spray and a severe congestion, unless you keep using it,” Dr. Crall explained.

Also, some research shows when a child uses a nasal steroid spray for extended periods of time, it can slightly reduce a child’s growth-rate, so be sure to talk with your doctor about it.

Overall, for most allergy sufferers one product or a combination of products can do a good job of providing relief.

“The cocktail I take — which is the Claritin, Zyrtec and Flonase; and then saline spray, if needed — seems to help me as much as possible,” Rogers said.

If over-the-counter products don’t work, a patient can still turn to prescription strength products like an oral steroid.

If all else fails, the next step is seeing an allergist to find the culprit for your symptoms and then to get shots, so you are desensitized to the trigger. Click HERE to learn more about when to see an allergist.

Cost to control symptoms

Costs for treatment can vary, but over-the-counter access has made allergy medications more affordable:

“On average a one month supply of oral antihistamines is $10-$15, and then, the nasal sprays are typically around $18-$25 for a bottle which would last an entire month,” said Crall. “The prescription Singulair can be ordered as a generic for less than $20 for a one month supply.”

Make sure it’s allergies

Before you start taking any allergy medications on a regular basis, it is important to make sure you actually have allergies.

“The symptoms of a cold, a sinus infection or asthma are similar to allergies,” said Crall.  “You wouldn’t want to be harboring a chronic sinus infection and thinking it’s allergies; then self-treating with medication over-the-counter.”

If you have allergy-like symptoms for more than 1-2 weeks, it’s a good time to see your doctor to get a proper diagnosis and confirm you have allergies.

Click here to read more on The Best Allergy Medicine Reviews of 2017.