HAYFEVER

[nightmare]

My wife is pregnant however she has terrible hayfever that she is not permitted due to pregnanacy to take the usual products eg pirriton etc.Can anyone provide other alternatives , thanks

Hi! I too suffer from terrible hayfever so sypathise with how she is feeling. Whilst pregnant I couldn't take my usual antihistamines but I was still allowed to use my Beconase nasal spray which does ease alot of the syptoms. Also allergy eye drops should still be OK.

health food shops have something called 'luffa complex' (liquid version is the best and fastest working)by bioforce. safe in pregnancy and breastfeeding. after nearly 20 years of hayfever it is the best remedy i have found. i also use nasalairguard ( i would recommend size small short). also buy a garden spray fill with water and use it on fine spray to create a mini rain shower to dampen pollen down - i spray over myself/furniture/dog/bed/husband when its really bad!
coat under and over eyelashes and up nose with vasaline.
and if all else fails have shower, wash hair and change clothes to get rid of all pollen. your poor wife - its a bloomin nightmare

northerner - might be wrong but i thought beconase was a mild steriod?

Yes hrub it is. But my gp insisted it was safe during preg.

I just did a Internet search on this as I have had a terrible time with hayfever lately. There is one trial on pregnant woment and Beconase which suggested no abnormalities arising from its use. One reasoning is that even though it is a steroid, you are only applying it topically (in your nose) and therefore the chances of any of it going into your bloodstream and to the fetus are pretty small. Also similar drugs have been used orally for asthma with no ill effects recorded. Most GPs are pretty conservative and will only suggest Piriton, but that makes you drowsy. Some conflicting evidence on Clarityn (lortadine) which made me reluctant to take it, although animal trials were negative (also negative for Zyrtec (cetirizine)). Still probably pretty low chance though esp once you are past first trimester.

another vote for Bioforce Luffa, i own a health shop and we can hardly keep it on the shelf at the moment!

another good one in Bioforce Urtica drops, definatly ok during pregnancy.

link to info on Luffa

you will probaby get info on urtica here too.

thanks for that...I have been taking cetirizine but its not doing anything. I keep waking up early in the morning sneezing with eyes that look like I've been up drinking all night!

I'll try some of that Luffa. Is it likely to be available in high street shops like Holland & B etc. or do you think it will have to be ordered?

hi gloworm - luffa still working - thanks for the recommendation

available in most health shops, not sure about H&B. can prob get online too.

good to hear shrub

where's your shop gloworm?

ireland...sorry

are you in UK, what town?

if you can't find it in holland and barrat www.nutricentre.co.uk should have it (part of tesco)though i've found their search facility a bit hit and miss. try looking under suppliers a-z then bioforce and scroll through until you find 'luffa tincture'.

london...but I'm always on the hunt for good health shops!

When my dd was a baby she had all sorts of food allergies and intolerances (she's still allergic to egg and a very sensitive - in terms of reactions to food/products- child). Today I gave her some lovely pineapple and the poor child was covered in a rash in a minute! Anyway, health shops were my saviour as they did all sorts of egg free/dairy free foods and snacks so I used to hunt them out quite a bit . Actually, that makes me sound a bit mad but I did find them useful especially as I had never bothered to go into one before then!

nightmare, if you want any more advice just ask.

thanks gloworm...if I ever come across to the emerald isle I'll come and check your shop out