By Kathryn Garcia staff reporter
There are several times during the year that allergies are present, said Dr. Steve Apaliski, an allergist for Allergy and Asthma Centers of the Metroplex. During the fall, there is ragweed in the air, Apaliski said. In January and February, mountain cedar causes some allergies, and in the spring, pollen is the main problem. "The springtime is by far the most intense season for those with allergies," he said. "The higher the pollen, the more symptoms present." Melissa Whorton, a freshman premajor, said her allergies are more problematic during the spring semester. "I have watery eyes and sneezing all the time during this season," Whorton said. "It makes it to where you feel awful, and you want to sleep all the time." Apaliski said when people first come in for a visit with an allergist, doctors evaluate their symptoms, what time of year they get them and the severity of the allergy in order to figure out what those people are allergic to. There are, then, three different ways to approach a treatment, Apaliski said. "One, a strategy is created to avoid what you are allergic to," he said. "If it's cats, then don't have cats at home. If it's pollen, keep the car window rolled up." "Two, we can block the symptoms with medicine, and three, nasal spray can prevent the allergy." Josh Igeleke, a freshman marketing major, said he uses Claritin D to help him breathe. "I'm from the desert, and I'm not used to all these trees," he said. Whorton visits an allergist in her native state of Georgia, where she is given shots for her allergies, and while at TCU, she takes Zyrtec. Medicines such as Zyrtec and Claritin D are prescription antihistamines that block the histamines in the body that cause allergic reactions, Apaliski said. The advertising of prescription medicines has become commonplace on television and in magazines, he said.
Jared Franklin, a senior political science major, said he gets watery eyes when TCU employees mow the lawns because of his allergy to grass and trees. To alleviate his allergies, Jared said he uses an over-the-counter medicine. "Advil Cold & Sinus deals with my headaches and sinus in my nasal cavities," he said. David Goodlow, a staff pharmacist with Albertson's Food and Drug, said prescription medicines only differ slightly from over-the-counter medicines. "They're all the same chemically," he said. "There's a difference in dose. It's much stronger (behind the counter)." Apaliski said, "They all work, but the chief problem with over-the-counter is the tremendous amount of sedation, especially for a student. They'll have trouble studying." Goodlow said the over-the-counter medicine business is booming because of brand names making more than just pain relievers. "There are hundreds on the market, which is a lot more than there used to be," he said. "Like Tylenol, they used to sell just a pain reliever and fever reducer. Now, there's Tylenol Cold and Sinus and Tylenol Flu and Cold."
Nasal sprays fight allergic reactions by decreasing the inflammation of the nasal cavities, making it easier to breathe, he said. In this case, prescription sprays are better than over-the-counter brands because a person can become addicted to brands such as Afrin. "The nose gets hooked on it and builds up a tolerance to it," he said. "It's difficult for a person to stop using it. It normally wears off in 10 to 12 hours, and then, the addiction grows. It's definitely the worst way to treat allergies." Apaliski said he advises people to visit an allergist if they experience allergies on a day-to-day basis.
Staff reporter Reagan Duplisea contributed to this report.
Kathryn Garcia |
"Many times, people will come in and
ask for a specific medicine they saw advertised, like Allegra, Zyrtec or
Claritin," he said. "They're just trying to sell a product, and
from what I've seen, they do that very successfully."
Another way to fight symptoms is by using a nasal spray,
like Flonase or Nasacort, Apaliski said.| The TCU Daily Skiff © 1998, 1999 Credits |