Anti-Histamines are medicines
that relieve or prevent the symptoms of Hay Fever and other kinds of
allergy.
Purpose
An allergy is a condition in which the body becomes unusually
sensitive to some substance, such as pollen, mold spores, dust
particles, certain foods, or medicines. These substances, known as
Allergens, cause no unusual reactions in most people. But in people
who are sensitive to them, exposure to Allergens causes the immune
system to overreact. The main reaction is the release of a chemical
called Histamine from specialized cells in the body tissues.
Histamine causes such familiar and annoying allergy symptoms as
sneezing, itching, runny nose, and watery eyes.
As their name suggests, Anti-histamines block the effects of
Histamine, reducing allergy symptoms. When used for this purpose,
they work best when taken before symptoms are too severe.
Anti-histamine creams and ointments may be used to temporarily
relieve itching. Some Anti-histamines are also used to treat motion
sickness, nausea, dizziness, and vomiting. And because some cause
drowsiness, they may be used as sleep aids.
Description
Some Anti-histamine products are available only with a physician's
prescription. Others can be bought without a prescription. These
drugs come in many forms, including tablets, capsules, liquids,
injections and suppositories. Some common Anti-histamines are
Astemizole (Hismanal), Brompheniramine (Dimetane, Dimetapp),
Chlorpheniramine (Deconamine), Clemastine (Tavist), Diphenhydramine
(Benadryl), Doxylamine (an ingredient in sleep aids such as Unisom
and Vicks NyQuil), Loratadine (Claritin), and Promethazine
(Phenergan).
