Get Informed: Allergies
Allergies: Overview
Allergies are disorders of the immune system that result in the body reacting to normally harmless substances known as allergens. Although some people may develop life-threatening allergic reactions (anaphylaxis) to particular foods or medicines, the most common allergies - such as hay fever (seasonal rhinitis) and contact dermatitis usually cause mild but often bothersome symptoms such as itchy eyes, runny nose and rashes.
- Last Text Update:
- 2009-Nov-04 10:31 AM
- Last Data Update:
- 2009-Oct-02 9:51 PM
1 in 9 Americans have Allergies
iGuard is currently monitoring more than 176,940 patients with Allergies from around the United States as shown on the heat map below. These figures suggest that roughly 30.6 million Americans have Allergies with women being 3 times more likely to be affected than men.
< 21
21-39
40-59
60+
Age (Years)
Medications used for Allergies
Drugs commonly taken by iGuard.org users for Allergies are listed below, together with the percentage of patients that take each drug.
|
Commonly Used Medication Name* (Hover mouse over name to see medication class) |
% of Patients | Average Risk Rating | Has Generic Available |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tylenol | 28% |
|
Yes |
| Zyrtec | 14% |
|
Yes |
| Singulair | 9% |
|
No |
| Proair HFA | 8% |
|
Yes |
| Claritin | 8% |
|
Yes |
| Allegra | 6% |
|
Yes |
| Benadryl | 6% |
|
Yes |
| Vitamin C | 5% |
|
No |
Less than 5%: Allegra D, Clarinex, Flonase, Mometasone Nasal, Pseudoephedrine, Vistaril
*This list is NOT EXHAUSTIVE - Only drugs used by a sufficiently large number of iGuard.org users are listed.
**Medications are sometimes known by different brand/generic names, depending upon how they are packaged or used.
Conditions Comments for Allergies
Question/Comment:
I have a constans nasal drip in to back of my throat and susequently trickles down into my stomache. Makes me very nauseaus and means I find it very difficult to eat anything at all. Dr. has given me ulcer treatment but I know for cetain it isn't that!! Could this be an allergy? please help. 46 year old female
46 year old Female
Posted: 2009-07-11 18:06:43
iGuard.org Answer/Reply:
Allergic rhinitis, or hay fever, can cause the nasal drip that may lead to other symptoms. There is testing that can be done to see if your symptoms are being caused by allergies. Make an appointment with your physician to discuss your concerns about your continuing symptoms.
Posted: 2009-07-12 22:31:45
Question/Comment:
I have small patches of skin that itch and swell into huge bumps, then blisters (one or two) appear and then it is an uncontrollable itch. I have had my house checked for bugs, changed laundry soap twice, changed body soap, well, I have changed everything around here to see if it is environmentally caused. Could it be my nerves? The only thing I have not stopped is drinking starbucks coffee, but I am going to do that this week and see if it relieves the itch. It leaves scars too. Oh, I also switched all my food to whole uncooked food for a week, I also quit eating soy product and that helped some, for a week and then it came back, which I don't know if it's related or not. I am under alot of pressure, could be nerves.
53 year old Female
Posted: 2009-07-09 14:08:46
iGuard.org Answer/Reply:
Stress is one of the known triggers to cause rashes and hives. The best way to manage the breakouts is to develop a good stress management plan. Over-the-counter products are available to help control the symptoms during a breakout, but do not start any new medication, topical or oral, before discussing it with your physician. Discuss your symptoms and concerns with your physician. He or she can also order allergy tests to ensure that there is not an environmental cause for your breakouts.
Posted: 2009-07-13 13:23:44
Question/Comment:
I had out of the blue started suffering from a drip in my thoat for about two years, and I had an allery test done which told me I was allergic to my cats, and dog and some kind of tree. He put me on Rhinocort Aqua, and wow, no more allergy. I have been on it for over a year. Just one squirt in each nostril, and the drip disappears. I refuse to get rid of the cats and dog.
36 year old Female
Posted: 2009-06-10 16:50:06
Question/Comment:
I have constant itching of eyelids and directly under eyes.........this causes swelling from rubbing to stop the itch......sometimes eyelids get scaly and dry........was wondering if certain vitamins could cause this condition......
71 year old Female
Posted: 2009-04-27 12:42:00
Question/Comment:
I have severe allergies and sensititivities to a lot of antibiotics as well as other medication. I would like to know what I can do to rid this problem from my body. It causes a major problem when trying to be treated by any physician.
59 year old female
61 year old Female
Posted: 2009-01-13 20:47:06
Answer/Reply:
The first thing I would recommend is getting to a good doctor who specializes in the treatment of allergies so you can have a good assessment. I see a Pulmonologist. You will likely get skin prick testing (not painful) and perhaps some blood work to assess your antibody levels, particularly you IgE level. This will help to determine more specifically what you are allergic to, how your immune system is doing, and how severe things are. You will probably also wind up doing a spirometry (lung function) test to check lung functioning and assess for asthma. Other tests such a lung x-ray may be called for. Once you have a better picture of what's going on, you can be given specific options for treatment. I would not recommend you try doing this on your own.
47 year old Male
Posted: 2009-04-11 02:28:04
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Patient Comments about
Allergies