Luckily I don’t suffer from hayfever but my wife does and she has noticed that on recent runs she is getting the itchy eyes and nose feeling. We live in the countryside, so whilst my wife is trying to stick to our local roads the grass verges currently look like something out of a jungle, thanks to the recent mix of rain and sun. My wife try’s to run early morning, thinking that pollen might be a bit lower at that time of day, but it still gets to her.
After a run my wife normally has to take a hayfever tablet but even the ‘non-drowsy’ variety wipe her out. I was therefore wondering if anyone has any tips or advice or have any hayfever suffers had any success with nasal sprays, dosed prior to a run?
I appreciate this isn’t a forum for medical advice, but was just wondering what works for others given the wide range of ‘over the counter’ options available. Thanks.
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Ant50
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Hello Ant, I sympathise with your wife, as I suffer too. I swear by allergy eye drops which I keep in the fridge. Use them before you go out, and again if needed after. Good luck! 😊😊😊
- check the weather forecast and pollen counts and if at all possible schedule your runs around those (there should be a UK website with pollen counts - does she know what she is allergic to?)
- if she's allergic to grass pollen (which is my worst), try and avoid those areas. Knowing exactly what you're allergic to can obviously help.
- try half a tablet or talk to your pharmacy - I have ear drops, nose drops, eye drops, asthma spray and tablets, I try and dose my tablets around the predicted pollen count - if I take them every day I can't function at work, if the pollen count is low, I don't take them
- if you have to take pills, taken them at the end of the afternoon, so they have time to knock you out and take advantage of it during the night to get a good night's sleep
- pollen is easily trapped in your hair, so keep your hair tied back or you can carry on with lots of symptoms even when you are back home - the same goes for laying your pollen ridden hair on your pillow at night, then you breathe it in
- I find a cap and sunglasses help - just as barriers to the pollen even though they are not 100% effective
- also check for air pollution, which can exacerbate hay fever
- above all get checked by an allergist - know your problem areas and then you can work around them
- desensitisation exists - it might be a solution for your wife
Wow thank you so much. Lots of great tips there. I find my wrap around sunglasses do a pretty good job keeping my eyes a bit more protected. I avoid areas where grass is freshly cut..drives my nose bonkers!
Thanks for all the suggestions. We do look at the pollen count but to be honest living in the countryside there always seems to be a high local pollen count due to something or other. The links you sent made interesting reading as I didn’t realise about different types of pollen at different times of the day. Likewise the advice about hair, hats and sunglasses all very useful. As you suggest next step might be to talk to a pharmacist and see what they recommend from all the different choices. Thanks for taking the time to answer in so much detail.
Just a sidenote, it may be that there is always some pollen or other, but your wife may or may not be allergic to all of them. Getting tested is helpful
Hi Ant50 , I'm allergic to a "lot" of pollen types and other stuff too, and over-the-counter treatments are no longer effective for me. However, non-prescription antihistamines come in various types, so if your wife reacts adversely to one type, another might work better. Same goes for nasal sprays and eye drops.
Also, I'd suggest she takes the medication before running, not after, as the point is to prevent the reaction, not manage the symptoms.
However, this is all based on my personal experience, and what works for me might not work for your wife. I think she should get advice from a pharmacist.
Hi, thanks for all the advice. Normally my wife does try to take a tablet before she runs but sometimes when she thinks that pollen levels won’t be too high she doesn’t bother and then usually ends up taking one afterwards. Definitely going to give nasal sprays and eye drops a go.
I use nasal spray and eye drops prior to a run at this time of year and take a daily cetirizine hydrochloride tablet which makes me feel less drowsy than other options. She might try sports sunglasses to keep pollen out of eyes and running early is definitely a good idea.
I know some people use vaseline or other proprietary products on their nostrils to trap pollen. It never seems to work for me.
Hayfever actually affects a great number of people, many of whom attribute their symptoms to summer colds and is virtually impossible to avoid. Autumn running definitely does have advantages over the hayfever season but this is such a beautiful time of year to be out in nature..........it soon passes.
Thanks for the advice. My wife hasn’t yet tried the nasal sprays, but given a few people have suggested them, she now plans to give them a go. Likewise we had heard of the Vaseline trick but hadn’t tried it, so will try it and see if it makes a difference. Will also invest in some running sunglasses as that’s a good idea.
I take antihistamines every day all year round as I’m very sneezy. I think you just get used to them after a while. I’m never drowsy. I also take cetrizine like IannodoTruffe. I’ve also heard of the Vaseline trick.
Thanks for the tips. Probably worth taking a daily tablet as you suggest to build up a level of ‘defence’ as opposed to just taking them occasionally, at least whilst the pollen count is high.
I use eye drops and if really bad a nasal spray too, both specifically for hay fever. Usually I use them first thing in the morning. If really bad will use the eye drops again later in the day. It takes them a couple of days for them to kick in for me which is a bit strange but…. Not keen on the tablets as they just seem to block my nose, then I get a sore throat! Hope she finds a solution as it is really miserable otherwise.
There are sprays like beconase, which prevent allergic reactions (when they work,!) And there are sprays which spray a coating onto the nasal lining to form a physical barrier against the allergens. I think there's one called nature-ease. Which obviously you use before you go out!There are a lot of alternatives to try, good luck!
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