Top allergy expert reveals ultimate guide to managing hay fever - and why jabs are never the answer
Professor Adam Fox, one of the UK's leading allergy experts, sat down with Dr Daniel Gordon on his YouTube channel, The Health Perspective, to discuss what actually works when it comes to managing hay fever symptoms.
@drdanielgordon
I asked one of the UK's leading allergy specialists @dradamfox exactly what he recommends to patients who feel like nothing is working when it comes to Hay Fever. When to start treatment, what to prioritise, what actually makes a difference… he laid it all out. And honestly, I learnt more in this episode than I think I have known in a lifetime! If you're relying on antihistamines alone, or considering more drastic options, this is a must watch. Full episode on YouTube. #HayFever #TheHealthPerspective #AllergySeason #AdamFox #SpringAllergies #Pollen #NasalSpray #allergy
♬ original sound - Dr Daniel Gordon | GP - Dr Daniel Gordon | GP
Start by getting the right antihistamines
The first step, for people whose hay fever is a mild irritation, is to visit your pharmacy and ask for the right antihistamines.
'Make sure it's a long-acting, non-sedating antihistamine, because one of the common problems – and frustratingly sometimes this is the advice from the pharmacy – is to use a short-acting, sedating antihistamine, which can make you feel worse and doesn't really do that much for your hay fever,' explains Dr Fox.
'So, avoid Piriton – or chlorphenamine, which is the medical name – and go for cetirizine, loratadine or fexofenadine.'
If you know you're going to need antihistamines all season, Dr Fox recommends buying them in bulk from online pharmacists. 'It's really cheap compared to buying the colourful-packet, branded stuff.'
Pair with non-medical solutions
While antihistamines offer a medical solution for treating hay fever, Dr Fox also shares a few non-medical tips that will help to alleviate your allergy symptoms.
Salt water nasal sprays are surprisingly good – they just rinse all the allergen out and also have a bit of an anti-inflammatory effect.
Putting a bit of pollen balm or Vaseline around your nostrils will stop the pollen going up.
Washing your hair before bedtime will prevent the pollen that's collected in your hair from rubbing on your pillow and rubbing on your nose overnight.
Avoid drying your clothes outside on days when the pollen count is high.
'All of those things are only going to have a small effect, but if your hay fever is mild, you don't need to get more medical than that,' he advises.
Steroid nasal sprays are the next step
If, however, you've got proper hay fever symptoms and the antihistamines aren't doing the job, then the next step is a nasal steroid. For adults, these are over-the-counter; for kids, these are on prescription.
'They're very safe,' reassures Dr Fox. 'They've been around for a very long time and the dose is very small. It stays locally rather than being absorbed into your system. As long as you stick to the regular doses, you shouldn't have to worry about things like growth.'
'He also mentions that nasal steroids work better when you start using them before the season's kicked off.
'So if you know you've got hay fever and you know that every mid to late April your symptoms from the grass pollen season are going to kick off, then in late March/early April, start your regular nasal spray and that'll make a real difference.'
'There's no value in starting antihistamines in advance, you can just take those as and when you need them,' he adds.
If all else fails: double dose
According to Dr Fox, most people can treat hay fever if they start using their nasal steroid spray early, use it regularly throughout the season, and take extra doses of antihistamine when they suffer from breakthrough symptoms. If they have particular eye symptoms, they might also want to get eye drops.
If all of that isn't working together, he recommends having a chat with your pharmacist or doctor, because usually you can double up all of those medicines. 'Over-the-counter doses are pretty conservative because they're for over-the-counter use – you can certainly do better than that.'
There is, however, a small group of patients – probably around 15 per cent of hay fever sufferers – for whom, even though they're doing all of that, it's still a problem. 'That's when we'll start to talk to them about the other options,' says Dr Fox.
Steroid injections are never a solution
That said, no matter how bad your hay fever gets, you should never use steroid injections to alleviate your symptoms, warns Dr Fox.
'It's a hard position to take because there's no point pretending – they do work. And the way they work is that a huge dose of steroid gets injected into your bum and is very gradually and slowly released over the course of a couple of months.'
'The frustration is that people aren't properly counselled on what the longer term side effects are, and the longer term steroid risks of bone fractures, poor bone density, glaucoma, cataracts – things that aren't going to affect you just after the injection.
'And if you keep doing this year on year, your risk gets really, really significantly higher.'
'The truth is that most people are getting it because it's a quick fix, and they're not aware there are other ways of managing hay fever that will be harder work, but will have similar outcomes and not have any of those risks.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
BBC News
a minute ago
- BBC News
Birmingham nursing home downgraded to inadequate
A care home in Birmingham has been rated inadequate by inspectors after failing to meet expected safety standards. Fountain Nursing and Care Home, on Fountain Road, was placed into special measures following an inspection by the Care Quality Commission (CQC).Its rating was downgraded from good after the body found nine breaches of regulations, despite residents and family members "generally positive" about the found that one resident, known to be at risk of falls, had sustained a head injury after falling - but staff did not seek timely medical advice or report it properly. The home has been contacted by the BBC for comment. The care home, run by a company of the same name, provides personal and nursing care - with 26 people living there at the time of the inspection in May. Inspectors said they were "disappointed" that the quality of care had "deteriorated considerably" since the previous inspection in 2020. The breaches related to a raft of areas including person-centred care, dignity and respect, consent, risk management, nutrition and hydration, premises and equipment safety, staffing, and Lyndon, CQC deputy director of operations in Birmingham, said the quality of leadership at the home had declined. She said: "Our experience tells us when a service isn't well-led, they find it difficult to provide good care in the other areas we look at, which is what we found here."Staff and leaders didn't recognise or report safeguarding concerns to protect people from potential abuse or harm."We saw leaders also failed to provide sufficient guidance for staff to safely manage people's health conditions and risks. They didn't ensure staff were adequately trained and had the relevant skills and knowledge to provide safe found the manager of the service was approachable, listened to concerns and supported also said residents and their relatives knew how to give feedback and felt comfortable raising the report noted that leaders "didn't provide clear information and guidance for staff" on supporting people with known health also said staff did not manage residents' nutrition and hydration needs "effectively". Follow BBC Birmingham on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.
The Sun
31 minutes ago
- The Sun
Alert over bacteria outbreak that's left 500 sick and 14 hospitalised from eating tomatoes
AT least 500 people have fallen ill after eating tomatoes found to contain salmonella. Some 14 required hospital admission, including eight adults and six children, following a meal in Barbastro, Spain. 4 4 Most patients, who were attending Somontano Wine Festival earlier this month, have been discharged, but three continue to receive treatment, Food Safety News reports. They are said to be suffering with symptoms compatible with gastroenteritis - an infection that causes inflammation of the stomach and intestines. This can trigger sudden diarrhoea, projectile vomiting, nausea, cramps, a fever, a loss of appetite, dehydration, aching limbs and headaches, according to the NHS. Symptoms usually appear up to a day after becoming infected and last less than a week. Officials say around 500 people are known to have experienced mild to moderate side effects from August 4. "But this is just an estimate," Nuria Gayán Margelí, general directorate of public health for the Government of Aragon, said. "There will be people who are affected and have not sought medical attention, and others who have been treated for similar, unrelated symptoms." Food samples were tested following the outbreak to identify the cause. Salmonella was found in toasted bread with crushed tomatoes "that were used as the base for several tapas". It was not detected in any other dishes, including sausages, tortillas, potatoes, minced meat, béchamel sauce, cheesecake or roasted vegetables. What is salmonella, what are the symptoms and treatment? But some kitchen tools, including blender blades and brushes used to spread the tomato on bread, tested positive for the bacteria - as did stool samples from those who fell ill. A deep clean of the outlet and all equipment was carried out, and no worker can return until given the all-clear. All remaining tomatoes were disposed of. 4 Salmonella is a bacteria that can cause food poisoning, sometimes called salmonellosis. It lives in the guts of animals and humans and spreads through contaminated poo. Food can become tainted if it's grown in dirty water, handled with dirty hands, or touches surfaces exposed to animal waste. This contamination can occur at any stage, from farm to fork, including irrigation with contaminated water, poor hygiene during harvesting, or cross-contamination during packaging. That's how fresh produce like tomatoes, especially when eaten raw, can end up crawling with the bug. 4 Salmonella is also commonly found in raw eggs, undercooked chicken and unwashed salad leaves. It can affect anyone, but young children, people over the age of 65 and those with weakened immune systems are at greater risk of becoming seriously ill, according to the Food Standards Agency. The most common symptoms are: Diarrhoea Stomach pain Fever Headache Nausea Vomiting General tiredness These can last up to seven days, but a small number of people take weeks to fully recover, the NHS says. Rare complications include blood poisoning, abscesses and joint pain. Reactive arthritis can also occur, which can last for years and be difficult to treat, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says. Patients with a salmonella infection should drink plenty of water and contact their GP if symptoms are severe or they persist. The NHS adds: "In most cases, it is generally advised to wait until 48 hours after having diarrhoea or sickness before returning to work, school or nursery." Salmonella is not usually fatal. The UK recorded 57 deaths due to the infection in 2017 and 2018, according to data compiled by the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC). In 2019, there were 8,398 cases, down from 8,838 the year before. But they shot to 10-year high in 2024, soaring by almost a fifth in a single year to more than 10,000.
Daily Mail
31 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Get glass skin for less: This $64 TikTok skincare set hydrates, brightens, and smooths - and it's 40% off
Daily Mail journalists select and curate the products that feature on our site. If you make a purchase via links on this page we will earn commission - learn more They say you can't buy good skin — but we think we just found a way to. Calling all TikTok obsessed! TikTok shop is all the rage of late, with insane deals and even better one-of-a-kind offerings from the brands you love already, to the brands you have yet to discover. VGO Skincare Five-step Routine Glowing skin 24/7 — say less! Thanks to this incredible 5-Step Routine, you can take your skin from blah to beautiful in just a few days. Enjoy the toner, cleanser, Vitamin C serum, eye cream, and Snail Mucin moisturizer all for under $100 right now on TikTok Shop. $64.20 (was $107) Shop While pursuing the wildly popular e-commerce platform, we found a skincare routine set that is the definition of 'bang for your buck.' The VGO Skincare Five-Step Routine not only has a 4.7-star rating, but shoppers can not stop adding it to cart — and right now the set is 40 percent off on TikTok Shop. When it comes to finding the perfect skincare routine, there is so much to consider, and we know that skin is as fussy as it is unique to each person. Whether you have oily skin, dry skin, or highly sensitive skin, the VGO Skincare Five-Step Routine is ready to have your back, and here's how. The innovative and affordable routine includes five well-rounded products to target every area of the face, from your under eyes to your cheeks. So let us break down how to use this top-rated routine and the benefits of each step. First off is the Amino Acid Facial Cleanser. This daily cleanser is used to get your skin supple and hydrated. It uses a delicate formula of Niacinamide, Arginine, Salicylic acid, and more. Users love this step, with one saying: 'It deeply cleanses, hydrates, and nourishes the skin, leaving it refreshed!' Next is the VGO Facial Toner that goes hand in hand with the cleanser. Using a very similar formulation, the toner goes on next and continues the purification with an added Hyaluronic Acid component for ultra-hydration. Where your skin really starts to see a transformation is with steps 3-5! These steps are where shoppers truly begin to talk with the VGO Eye Repair Cream, Vitamin C Serum, and Snail Mucin Moisturizer. The Vitamin C Serum goes on directly after the toner, and for anyone not familiar with the power of Vitamin C, it deeply nourishes and works to reduce blemishes such as dark spots. Following up the serum is our favorite routine step, the Eye Repair Cream. This step reduces eye wrinkles and dark circles, and focuses on anti-aging. Users can not believe their skin after using VGO, with one saying: 'I love this brand and their products have helped me tremendously with skin care, thanks to these products, my face is much more hydrated and smooth!' The last step is perhaps the biggest seller of the bunch, the Snail Mucin Moisturizer. Users are obsessed with this step, with one saying: 'The moisturizer is the star of the set for me. It is rich and deeply hydrating without feeling heavy or greasy. My skin absorbs it quickly, and I've noticed a significant improvement in texture and elasticity.' Drawing from Korean Beauty practices, the daily hydrator utilizes 92 percent Snail Mucin to deeply hydrate the skin while simultaneously tightening it. We know skincare can get pricey to say the least, but believe us when we say you can not do much better than a full routine for $64.20... Check out the best-selling VGO Skincare Five-Step Routine on TikTok Shop ASAP while it is a huge 40 percent off.
