I've tried to ignore the symptoms of seasonal allergies for as long as possible, but I think I'll have to start taking Allegra again...

...does anyone have any information about taking Allegra (or similar allergy meds) as it relates to LCing?

Since beginning this WOE/WOL in January, I have managed to stop taking all other meds. I've also been losing wieght at a nice, steady pace. I'm afraid that taking allergy meds might mess things up.

Any advice from the board?

Thanks!

Donald

Donald,
I am looking at the same problem, and asked about over the counter allergy meds over in the health forum...no replies yet.

I have found this link that lists all the ingredients to be found in different OTC allergy meds, it is very interesting. I have come to the conclusion it will be choose the lesser evil kind of thing.

http://www.angelfire.com/mi/FAST/medication.html

I've been mostly lucky. My allergies have so far been much reduced from last year. I have only had to take 2 Allegra so far. I didn't notice any affect on my LC progress. Before LCing, I used to wake up coughing every day, now I seldom do.

Actually, except for Dr. Schwarzbein's recommendation not to take prescription or over-the-counter drugs, I wasn't really concerned.

In past years, Allegra has been the only thing that kept me from having major cough-asthma attacks. So far this year, I have only had one close call (almost attack - I woke up with my coughing), and I took an Allegra and relaxed for a couple hours and the problem abated.

;-Deb

None of the antihistamines or decongestant type meds list weight gain as a side effect. Steroid type medications do though, including the inhaled types. Many pills do contain small amounts of cornstarch as a filler, or lactose as a carrier (ie, helps it get into the bloodstream) ... but the amounts are generally very, very small, often less than 1/10th of a gram per pill.

Decongestants have the lovely side effect of making your mucous membranes very dry .. ie, the lining of the nose and mouth. Be sure to drink lots of water. I found during my sinus cold last week, while I was taking Contac C and Claritin that even my coffee made me more dehydrated than usual, so I had less coffee and more water .

Just a caution for readers: do not take decongestant medication if you are also using a thermogenic weight loss aid with ephedra or ephedrine in it. Many OTC decongestants contain pseudoephedrine, and the two together are dangerous. Talk to the pharmacist to be sure.

Doreen

hi Kell,

I hunted around and found your other post .. it was hiding . I've moved it to the General Health forum here. Sorry about that, it's easy to miss posts when the board is so busy.

Doreen

I was on my way home from work after posting my allergy meds question when it hit me...GENERAL HEALTH ISSUES...

Duh!

Thanks for moving and informing me, Doreen! You too, DebPenny and kellcin!

Hope to be feeling better soon.

Donald

Although most OTC and scrip medications for allergies don't have an affect on carb consumption, it's quite possible they affect affect metabolism and very likely they will affect absorbtion/loss of vitamins and minerals and affect your hydration levels. If you can't stand it, the temporary relief from anti hists may be worth risking a possible temporary plateau.

Another possibility that should have no effect on LCing at all is called "Nasal Lavage". It is extremely useful in moderating sinusitis and sinus infection, but I find it also reduces allergies symptoms dramatically. There are a number of different methods and devices, but I find the best is the Grossan nasal irrigator, a special tip that snaps onto a Water Pik. You can get info at http://www.pharmacy-solutions.com/. They have a variety of other devices to accomplish the same thing. It takes a little getting used to, but well worth doing a few times a week to prevent symptoms.

My DH takes both Rynatan (a prescription allergy medication) and Flonase and has lost 30 lbs. since the beginning of January on low carb. Of course, YMMV but it hasn't seemed to have affected his weight loss at all. On a not-so-good note, his allergies seem much worse this year. He just had to go to the doctor today because his eyes are swelling almost shut and this is the third time it's happened in the past couple of weeks. I don't think his allergies are worse because of the low carb, it just seems like a particularly bad year for whatever it is he's allergic to this year.

Well, I'vebeen taking my prescription allegry meds (Allegra) for almost 2 weeks now...

...and it doesn't seem to affect my weight loss.

Thanks for the input everyone!

Donald

I've been on Claritin-D for 3 weeks and during that time I've lost about 7 lbs - which is about average for me!

Tracey

My husband has taken alegra for 2 years with great success!
He is also lcing and has no problem. He loses so fast some times
I get so jealous. I just tell my self men lose quicker. But , he was on claritan and it wasnt all that great. He loves the alegera! bye

That's good to hear as I take it daily!



Misty