h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Not that I suffer from hay fever, but I do suffer from countless adverts for remedies at this time of the year and wonder why, unlike our european neighbours we don't use hat fever vacines.

A cynic would say it is that the health service is so tied to large drug companies who sell these remedies which have a much higher profit margin than a vacine, that it doesn't promote a cheaper solution.

What do the rest of the word do?

CH

Hay Fever Vacceines? I didn't know such things existed. Perhaps that's the reason why those sufferers in he UK don't use them, well it's either that or a conspiracy funded by Antihistemine manufacturers.

*Puts on "Pop Singers Fear Of The Pollen Count - Divine Comedy"*

Vaccines work by teaching your body to respond more violently to things... sounds like a bad idea in case of what (as far as I'm aware) is an allergy kinda thing...

Of course, if anybody knows what they're talking about ('cause I certainly don't), I would be fascinated to hear where I'm going wrong

You can't vaccinate against hay fever, surely... it's not a disease, it's an allergy!

I found links to articles about a *potential* vaccine for hay fever here: http://unisci.com/stories/20021/0207025.htm and here: http://www.cosmiverse.com/science02080207.html

As these articles state, previous treatments have involved exposing sufferers to samples of allergens. Richard tried this treatment once and had a bad reaction to it. He never bothered again.

My mum suffers with hay fever and like to be vaccinated once a year (like the flu jab), but her Doctor is very reticent about giving it to her, each year warning her at length about the harmful effects that it has.

The treatment has been around since the 50s when it got bad press in the UK and almost stopped. A half danish friend of mine had to find a sympathetic Doctor to give it.

On the continent the treatment was refined and earlier problems

(all this from memory of some TC show many years back, so don't take as 100%)

So why don't you sufferers ask your doctor next year - too late this year as has to be done in spring

CH

I have a friend who was crippled by hay fever every year until he dicovered the injections.
He swears by them-though he may have stopped now as he has gone a bit yoghurt-weavy hippy on us in recent years...

All they ever did for me was give me a very sore arm

If they did one for dust/dustmites/dustmitecrap I'd be first in line. I think that's what I'm allergic to.

They probably do as the 'injection' actually is a course of de-sensitising jabs they can do it for nearly any protein I think, but the effects are limited.

@ Granny

As far as I know thats what it is.... desensitising. I got a series of ten shots about 5-6 years ago. It´s a ghastly method, because they first suck out a bit of your blood, mix it with the medicine and shoot it back in.

And all it did to me, was that it hurt like mad. And I still got hay fever. And then there´s these pills of anti-histamins that you can swallow. They make you tired and thats it.

So I am sticking with sneezing and red eyes.

If anyone has any decent remedy I´d be gald to hear about it.

194376

I use homeopathic hayfever tablets. They work wonders for me, no drowsiness at all, eye itching goes away almost totally and sneezing is radically reduced. But then, I don't get particularly bad hayfever, and they don't seem to work at all for some people... oh well. Oh, and they're lactose based, so some people get stomach aches from them.

I'd much rather take them, dry and powdery though they are, than have injections that may or may not work... I hate needles!

Is that preparation H? I tried that years ago, but it didn't work for me. Nor does nettle tea, although it can help a bit if I drink loads of it.

i tried the stuff that MaW uses and it didnt work on me....in fact it made my mouth itch! clarytin works best on me......but i tend to go to extrmes with ahyfever, either a little or completely incapacitated. i was so bad the other year tht i actually couldnt do anything. i was just standing in the street sneezing my way through box after box of tissues.....

i think it depends on where i am and what the whether is like when certain pollens come out....

I have to use a steroid nose spray, and it still doesn't always help. Luckily I don't get itchy eyes though, and something like piriton (sp?) will help in an emergency, but the effect wears off after taking a couple of tablets, and they stop working.

The has told me that I haven't got hay fever, I have non-allergic perenial rhinitus.

Yes Linda, it's preparation H. It's strange how it works for me and not for FABT or our mother. But then FABT's is worse than mine usually.

I hate Piriton. It just sends me off to sleep... works, but you can't do anything when you're on it. Better to sneeze and get some work done, I'd say. Although itchy eyes are so irritating that sometimes you just have to...

Ain't preparation H a Piles treatment?

CH

Combination H? I know it was something H...

Yep - combination H for Hay Feaver, Prearation H (made from Shark liver oil) for piles.

Don't get them mixed up

CH