Allergy is a condition that occurs when the immune system of your body is already weak, and the production of antibodies becomes lower. Your body will already react to a harmless substance that what we call allergen, it can be anything and most of them are pollen like fur and dust. Your body will also react to some food especially for eggs, seafood, milk, nuts, and chicken. There are different types of allergy reaction, and this includes food allergy, atopic dermatitis, allergic asthma, anaphylaxis, and hay fever.

There are a lot of symptoms that will tell you that you already have these diseases; some of these symptoms are itchy red bumps, sneezing, runny nose, swelling and shortness of breathing. These symptoms can cause cardiac arrest and respiratory diseases that may lead to death if not treated right away during the reaction. However, some medicines can relieve you and disappear physical symptoms. 

Most of these medicines are antihistamines, and it blocks the substance called histamine that is produced when the body detects something harmful. Histamine is the reason why you are experiencing symptoms of allergy. One of this antihistamine is Claritin, let us go ahead and learn more on how does Claritin works against allergic reactions. 

What is Claritin? 

Claritin is an antihistamine that is being taken orally to treat symptoms of allergy reactions like runny nose, swelling, watery eyes, hay fever, and severe itching. Your doctor gives you a prescription for this, but that depends on your condition. If you have a severe allergic reaction like anaphylaxis, the doctor may advise you to have epinephrine with you so that you can inject it to yourself when the reaction occurs. 

Claritin is an over the counter medicine so if you are self- treating this medication you have to read the leaflet available in the packaging to follow the instruction on how to take it. It is usually taken orally with water, but there are also chewable tablets available. The dosage will depend on your condition, so it is better to ask your doctor or a pharmacist about it. The price of Claritin is around $13.13, but you may avail discounts like Claritin coupon. Remember that before you take this medicine it is better to talk to a doctor and you have to tell them everything about your medical history and that includes your allergies. 

Side Effects and Precautions

There are no side effects for this kind of drug; however, if you have experienced any strange feeling, then you must contact your doctor right away. Upon taking the product, you may feel drowsiness; that is why it is not advisable when you are at work or when you are doing activities that involve machines like driving. If you experience severe reactions like rashes, swelling of face or tongue, dizziness and breathing problems while taking this drug, then you must seek assistance from your doctor. 

Before taking Claritin, you must tell your doctor everything about your medical history and allergies. This medicine may contain inactive ingredients which can cause complications. Especially for adults since they are very prone to the side effects.  For pregnant women, you must talk to professionals before taking this drug to avoid any complications. 

Overdose

Without a proper prescription from your doctor may cause you problem while taking this medication as an overdose. It happens when a toxic amount of medicine defeats your body. That is why it is essential to talk to a doctor before taking any medication. If you are overdose with this drug, you are going to feel trouble breathing, chest pain, dilated pupils, blue lips or fingers and abnormally high blood temperature. 

The symptoms will becomes worst instead of being treated. The best way you can do is to call a 911 right away and while waiting for a rescue anyone who knows basic first aid may perform CPR and if there is no one comfortable to do so, you can make the person calm, put on a blanket to the patient to keep them warm and loosen their clothes for breathing.

Takeaway

Allergy reaction is a serious matter that needs to be discussed and should not be taken for granted. If you do not know yet that you have allergies it is better to expose yourself to all possible allergen in that way you will already know what to do when you will have allergic reactions. 

However, if you already know that you have allergies then it is better to avoid them to be safe. For unpredictable situation, it is better to bring with you allergic relief medicines like antihistamines and EpiPen auto-injector. Talk to a doctor right away upon seeing symptoms no matter how small it is in that way you can discuss possible treatments and precautions you can avoid in the future. It is better to seek knowledge about these things so that you can protect yourself.