Anti-histamines

[DoeStewart]

Hello everyone, just a quick question. I have severe reactions to insect bites to such an extent that I need to cover myself in jungle formula extra strength and have an emergency supply of antibiotics at home. The GP has also prescribed Fexofenadine 180mg to take each day. I know we need to take supplements/vitamins away from Levo but wondered if this applied to antihistamines? I take my Levo early morning. Thank you in advance.

[Jaydee1507 Administrator]

Absolutely the timing of other meds around Levo applies to antihistamines. Levo needs to be taken alone on an empty stomach an hour away from food, caffeine containing drinks and other meds. Some meds that affect absorption are better off taken 4 hours away from Levo like iron or a PPI.

If this causes difficulty you could consider moving your Levo to a bed time dose which suits many members.

[DoeStewart in reply to Jaydee1507]

Thank you for your reply and advice.

[Lindsey13]

I was EXACTLY the same for 34 years. Had a reduction of thyroxine since Feb this year and have had NO reactions at all. I live in Italy and honestly, the fear of mosquito bites has been real until this year. (However, I now also have high cholesterol and symptoms of “under” with a TSH 200% higher then normal)

[DoeStewart in reply to Lindsey13]

Apparentley the bites are becoming more common due to the no mow policy of our council which isn't just for May but for the whole of the summer. GP said it allows the mosquitoes and other insects to breed in huge numbers thereby leading to more bites.

[DelicateInput in reply to DoeStewart]

PawPaw which is just the mashed pulp of the papaya fruit, is excellent for clearing up mosquito bites. It will relieve the bite or any sort of cut in a day or so. I have seen it on sale in the past year or two or it can be bought from Amazon, usually for about £7. However, I have bought it in Australia, where I first used it, for £2.

I use Fexofenadine 180mg for various allergies including hay fever caused by tree pollen. I find the 180 mg more effective than two tablets taken apart of 120mg. I was advised by NHS allergy clinic to take Fexofenadine every day all year but when I did this it stopped working. I had a long break and tried again and it has helped.

[DoeStewart in reply to DelicateInput]

Yes I've been advised to take the fenofexadine every day all year too and to seek medical help straight away if bitten. We have just come back from Greece, I must admit I was quite concerned about getting bitten there but took my antibiotics with me and all was OK. I did get a couple of bites but they didn't amount to anything more than the bites my husband got so obviously the fenofexadine is doing what the GP hoped and making the reactions less severe. Never heard of pawpaw but will have a look on line. Thank you for your reply.

[DelicateInput in reply to DoeStewart]

If it is specifically mosquitoes that trouble you, it helps to take garlic tablets including the non-smell ones. These repel mosquitoes which seem to be attracted to certain people who smell sweet. I take them for other things including an abnormally high red blood count. I am pleased to note that my last blood test showed a reduction since taking them, whereas there had been a slow steady increase for several years. Garlic thins the blood which helps you cope in hot weather. The blood thickens in cold climates and thins in hot ones which is likely why some people living in the UK are unable to withstand hot weather.

I got mercifully bitten one year (2013), with about thirty mosquito bites on each leg, all over my shoulders, neck, arms. It took a year for the bites to go down and the instant they did I suddenly got rheumatoid arthritis overnight. I suspect it was a reaction to the bites. I had tried every medicament available. Subsequently, I got very badly bitten in Kuala Lumpur en route to Australia and bought stuff in Kuala Lumpur to no avail. On arrival in Australia, I used pawpaw and the bites had gone in a day.

[DoeStewart in reply to DelicateInput]

I get bitten by everything and anything even in the UK, horse flies are one of the worst for me. I am covered in Deet as per Drs advice and that does tend to repel them although not good for you I'm sure. It is mostly my legs that I have the problem, I end up with cellulitis. I try and wear long linen trousers in the evenings while abroad. The garlic tablets obviously work the same on humans as they do on dogs then, they are recommended to repel fleas and ticks. Do you use pawpaw ointment or cream?

[DelicateInput in reply to DoeStewart]

It is like an ointment or gel, slightly yellowish. It is just mashed papaya. You could possibly buy a papaya and mash the fruit up and apply to the bites. I had a stomach ulcer/gastritis and I ate papaya first thing in the morning for two weeks and the symptoms (diarrhoea) which had been going on for almost years cleared up. PawPaw was available in a pack of three tubes for about £5 but in the UK it is £7 for one tube.

It is mainly mosquitoes that bother me and that is usually abroad. I do get bites from flies but not that often. However, one insect biting me at the moment is the processionary moth which affects oak trees in Surrey. It has a painful sting. I could feel one bite on my hip as I went downstairs and it penetrated my hip. It itches and all you can see is a little pimple which starts to bleed, so not really much of an allergic reaction.

[Batty1 in reply to DoeStewart]

No mow? Whats the reason you can’t mow? Standing water and damp areas are a mosquito’s best friend.

[DoeStewart in reply to Batty1]

Our council signed up to no mow May, nothing is cut except golf courses/football pitches etc.. for the whole month. We can obviously mow our own gardens. However for the last 2 years no mow May is now no mow summer. Its supposedly for the environment but actually it's to save money. The GP told me they have never seen so many people with insect bites and put most of them down to the council not mowing anywhere so the bugs are breeding in huge numbers. When I visited the walk in centre to get treatment for the bites the prescribing nurse said she had been giving antibiotics out in big numbers for insect bites . So, the council save money, the NHS spend more money on treating people. 🤔

[Batty1 in reply to DoeStewart]

I say every time you go to the doctors with bug bites charge your home owners association for lost wages and costs… utterly the most ridiculous thing I have ever read and shocked anyone would actually listen to these self righteous lunatics.

[DoeStewart in reply to Batty1]

Totally agree, it's absolute lunacy as far as I'm concerned but to be honest so are lots of council decisions. Most of Wales is now a 20mph zone, regardless of whether its a built up area, near a school or hospital etc. Nothing to do with driving to the conditions of the road - just 20 mph. I live on the wirral, we are adopting the same policy, no consultations just impose it on everyone. I have lived in my house for 39 years and seen 1 accident on a main road where it was the pedestrians fault as the sun was in their eyes and they stepped out into the road. We now have a crossing on that road - no.further accidents. It is becoming like a dictatorship, the top and bottom of it is the council doesn't want people in cars, just on bikes. I have no idea how I will carry the weekly shop on a bike or how a nurse will get to and from work when the public transport stops running and they live 20 miles away - cycle?? Sorry, rant over 😡

[Batty1 in reply to DoeStewart]

I would purchase a battery powered lawnmower thats charged by solar and I would mow my lawn …. Its not healthy to walk in high grasses in your yard it has to many critters and insects that can pose a health issue as your finding out first hand with mosquitoes….. Have you considered getting a prescription from your doctor stating your increase reaction to mosquitoes require that your lawn be cut bi-weekly to help cut down on your allergic reaction.

[DoeStewart in reply to Batty1]

I can mow my own lawn thats not a problem but everywhere else in my neighbourhood has long grasses so every time I leave the house to take my dog for a walk I have to cover myself in Deet. The local park looks like a jungle, the weeds are growing at the sides of the pavements and are at least a foot high. The council will start its mowing back up in a week or two but summer will have passed and hopefully not as many bugs will be about then. It's the same every year now and I dread spring as I know that will be the end of the mowing .

[Batty1 in reply to DoeStewart]

I feel bad for you don’t know a solution sadly.

[DoeStewart in reply to Batty1]

I've had some good suggestions from people on the forum so will definitely give some of them a try. Thank you for your concern.

[Bearo in reply to DoeStewart]

Mosquitoes need standing water to breed, not long grass.

The idea of No Mow May is to allow our pollinator insects, whose populations have declined ,a chance to find seed heads and dandelions before they get cut.

Of course some councils have extended the no mowing season to save money as their budgets have been slashed by central government.

[DoeStewart in reply to Bearo]

It's not just mosquitoes that I get bitten by at home it's normally horse flies or basically anything else that bites people. I understand helping the pollinator insects, we don't have overgrown fields of wild flowers and seed heads, we have grass thats 2ft long, the type of weed grass that shoots out arrowe heads that burrow into the dogs feet and have to be removed by a vet. The pavement slabs are lifting due to weeds growing in the cracks and when it rains the water isn't reaching the drains as the gutters are overgrown?? I understand central government are cutting funding to councils but I liken it to looking after the basics, leaving things in this state will lead to more money having to be spent to fix the problems caused by pavements lifting, drains being blocked etc... All I know is what I've been advised of by the GP and the prescribing nurse at local walk in center, no mow Summers have led to a large increase in people with bites - I just wish I wasn't one of them. I don't think me having to spray myself with Deet every day in summer is any good for my health either.

[arTistapple]

Another possible route is taking a homeopathic remedy called Staphisagria, a small dose of 6c per day. If this works for you (unfortunately it won’t help everyone) it means no more exposure to all these other medications. Take the remedy daily under the tongue, let it melt, no eating or drinking 10 minutes before and after taking it. Take it most especially during the season. It can be taken more than once per day but mostly no reason to do this after a few days. After a while you might find you do not even need to use it at all. I found when my hypothyroidism was at its worst and still undiagnosed I got horrible bites, pus, swelling etc. Even yet I have one old bite that erupts and sheds skin, then dies down again.

[DoeStewart in reply to arTistapple]

Thank you for your recommendation, I will try the homeopathic remedy you have suggested. Do you think it would be worth taking it during the winter months ? Does it build up in the system so that when the spring/summer months come round you already have a resilience?

[arTistapple in reply to DoeStewart]

Lore is homeopathic remedies do not build up in the system. Resilience to bites only takes about one week. So taking it is only necessary for a week before ‘exposure/season’, say three times a day and then continuing but reducing to one time per day till the end of the season. Homeopathic remedies are reported to change something in the human body so it no longer is vulnerable to the problem. It can take a few seasons though. As it is dissolved in the mouth and through saliva glands it’s less likely to affect thyroid hormones but in any case you can just go by the usual rules for thyroid hormones if in doubt. It’s also quite cheap. Helios Pharmacy.

[DoeStewart in reply to arTistapple]

Thank you for the guidance, very much appreciated

[Arkenstone]

Dear Doe Stewart, have you tried Vinegar? In South East Asia the traditional practitioners often suggested applying Vinegar on bites. Works like a charm. It made me wonder if taking Apple Cider Vinegar in a slightly higher dose during these months will help reduce our reaction?

All the best.

[DoeStewart in reply to Arkenstone]

Thank you for your reply, you may be right about the apple cider vinegar, not something I've ever tried to be honest. The fenofexadine is obviously altering the way I react to the bites so it does make you wonder whether the apple cider vinegar would do the same thing. I hate having to civer myself in Deet and take this extra medication so anything natural would be a bonus. I ended up at the walk in centre the next day last time I was bitten as I had cellulitis, legs were bright red right up to the knees, that was from 2 bites whilst watching a cricket match. My husband says I am his deterrent as while he's with me then he never gets bitten 😂

[Bertwills]

Like you I react really badly to insect bites. During the recent heatwave my back was on fire with many bites. Problem of sleeping with the windows open.

I also swell hugely when bitten by horse flies. I discovered that immediately taking a double dose of anti histamine and 2 ibuprofen works really well to dampen the reaction. Also I discovered, in desperation, that ibuprofen gel reduces the swelling better than any antihistamine cream. It’s not intended for broken skin but just on the swollen area it’s miraculous for me.

Obviously I’m not a doctor and these suggestions are just what I have found effective for me. Experiment for yourself, they may work for you & cause no harm.

[DoeStewart in reply to Bertwills]

Thanks for your reply. Funnily enough, when I went to the walk in center the nurse I saw told me to try voltarol cream on the bites as its anti-inflamitary so takes the swelling down and stops the itching. I had been using hydrocortisone cream but that hadn't stopped the itching at all. Good idea about double antihistamine and ibuprofen - thats worth a try. I too have open windows in the bedroom, can't stand sleeping without fresh air in the room - it's a catch 22 situation isn't it. The after sun lotion is definitely worth getting, you reminded me that I used to buy after sun many years ago that contained an insect repellant but again a natural repellant such as mint would be much nicer. The older I get the reaction to the bites is getting worse so am happy to try anything that has worked for other people, thank you again for your suggestions.

[Bertwills]

ps I have also used an after sun lotion from Green People who make organic toiletries which includes mint that repels mosquitoes. It obviously can be used without having spent the day on the beach! It’s very moisturising & nicer to use than many insect repellents.

[DoeStewart in reply to Bertwills]

Have ordered the aftersun from Green People - thank you.

[Bertwills]

hope it helps, at least the cooler weather will reduce the insect numbers🤞

[DoeStewart in reply to Bertwills]

Yes and the council are cutting the grass down so hopefully not as many biting bugs.

[snow22]

I use Medicare insect repellent has no deet and has eucalyptus and lemon. I’ve been told lemon alone should help. It Smells better than deet. Also Moskito guard has no deet. Ice on bite and cold showers stop the burn/itching too.

[DoeStewart in reply to snow22]

Thank you for your reply. It was GP who advised me to start using Jungle Formula extra strength(deet). I have tried lots of natural formulas in the past but unfortunately have yet to find one that works, as you can imagine I am loathe to leave off the Deet and try a natural product as I will end up in the walk in center again. Even though I have emergency pack of antibiotics the GP has to me that I must seek medical help as soon as possible. I may end up with a type of Epi-pen. I always try and cool the bite down as soon as possible- hydrocortisone doesn't stop the itch either or any other bite cream I have tried in the past. I think I need to wear a bee keepers outfit next summer.