Pollen Allergy

Tom98

Hi Guys,

Recently (2-3 weeks) I have been getting very bad mucus build up on the bike and I have chocked on it, especially while racing. (sorry for details!!) It has been getting progessivly worse and I can barly do 15 mins on the bike before it becoming unbarable. I have been to the doctor as he has given me some antihistamine but all they do is make me mega dizzy and drowsy, they did keep the symtoms at bay for 30 more mins!

Has anyone got any suggestions of what to do about this and anyone know if it is even a pollen alergy? I had a virus at the start of April, I seemed to have recoverd but it may have made a resurgance.

Thanks Tom

Anonymous

Try loratadine (such as clarityn), they are non drowsy...

bexley5200

had hayfeaver for 15 years or so nothing rearly worked for me,do not get it now

ut_och_cykla

If the antihistamines worked then get some others that dont make you drowsy as Nap suggests. if theyy didnt really work then get back to your docs and get more help. Could be the virus has left you over sensitive. There are nose sprays and such that might help more than tablets or it could be you have a sinus infection after your virus. Get well soon.!

neeb

Firstly, you should be able to get tested for pollen allergy, which will tell you if that is the problem and also what type of pollen you are sensitive to (grass, tree pollen etc).

I used to have really bad hayfever when I was younger (grass pollen, always from late May / early June until the end of July), fortunately it has gradually disappeared as I have got older, also I think there is less grass pollen where I am living now.

The drug that really worked for me was something called beconase. I took this nearly every summer from my early teens until my late thirties, and I still sometimes take it for a week or two during the height of the grass pollen season. It acts directly on the cells in your nasal lining that produce mucus and takes a few days to start working, so you have to take it strictly regularly for at least a week or two for it to be worthwhile. In my case it almost completely stopped the problem, or made it very manageable, and it doesn't have any significant side effects such as drowsiness. Unlike antihistamines it won't prevent the other non-nasal symptoms however such as itchy eyes - the trick with them is just to learn never to touch them, rubbing always makes it worse!

The excess mucus may not be due to allergy - exercise makes you produce more mucus anyway. You may just have to learn a technique to deal with it - some people blow it out one nostril, I just snort it all the way back, swallow. and recycle...

Headhuunter

Apparently nettle tea dries out mucus in your body, sinuses etc. Certainly works for me but I don't suffer anywhere near as badly as you do by the sounds of it.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/3021052.stm

mrc1

Flixonase nasal spray (behind the counter in boots etc) does the trick for me. I use it during the summer and it really helps.

With hayfever, tablets will have a limited effect if you have one very specific symptom as they are designed to work across a range of symptoms. Ie if your eyes run use eye drops if your nose runs use nasal spray etc. Give it a try and see how it goes.

bhickey

The non drowsy antihistamines are the ones to take (Boots own is fairly cheap and comparable to the brands) but to have proper effect should be taken daily (whether you are exhibiting symptoms or not) during the peak months (probably May through Sept) since this builds up some resistance and helps prevent really bad symptoms. I've been doing this for years and rarely get hay fever symptons now. Eye drops and nose sprays are good topical treatments if the symptoms are particularly bad in those areas. The alternative is to encase your head inside a strong polythene bag - although this may impinge on your ability to ride and, ultimately, distance covered.....