Who can use antihistamines

Most people are able to take antihistamines. However, antihistamines are not recommended in certain circumstances, which are explained below.

Health conditions

A number of health conditions can be made worse by taking antihistamines, or they can cause the antihistamines to react unpredictably. Before taking antihistamines, seek advice from your GP or pharmacist if you have:

• asthma


• diabetes (type 1 diabetes and type 2 diabetes)


• high blood pressure


• epilepsy


• glaucoma – an eye condition that’s associated with a build-up of fluid inside the eyes


• an enlarged prostate gland


• heart disease


• liver disease


• kidney disease


• a bladder obstruction, such as a bladder stone


• an overactive thyroid gland


• a blockage in your stomach or intestines

Pregnancy and breastfeeding

As a general rule, avoid taking any medication during pregnancy unless there’s a clear clinical need. Always check with your GP, pharmacist or midwife before taking any medication.

If you’re pregnant and feel that you need antihistamines, or you’re advised to take them by your GP, loratadine or chlorphenamine are the antihistamines that considered the safest to use.

However, chlorphenamine is a first-generation antihistamine, so it may make you feel drowsy.

If you can’t take loratadine or chlorphenamine, your GP may recommend another oral antihistamine called cetirizine. Cetirizine is also considered safe to use during pregnancy.

Antihistamine eye drops and nasal sprays should be used with caution during pregnancy. Some people are allergic to antihistamine eye drops. Seek advice from your GP before using antihistamine eye drops or nasal sprays.

Most antihistamines will pass into breast milk. While this isn’t thought to be particularly harmful, it’s recommended as a precaution that you don’t breastfeed while taking antihistamines.

Children

Some antihistamines, such as alimemazine and promethazine, aren’t suitable for children under two years old. Therefore seek advice from your GP if your child is under two years old and you think that they require treatment with antihistamines.

Before giving your child any form of medication, always read the patient information leaflet for advice about whether the medication is suitable for them.

Antibiotics:Antibiotics are medicines that can be used to treat infections caused by micro-organisms, usually bacteria or fungi. For example, amoxicillin, streptomycin and erythromycin.
Antifungal:Antifungal medicine is used to treat fungal infections. For example, clotrimazole, ketoconazole.
Dose:Dose is a measured quantity of a medicine to be taken at any one time, such as a specified amount of medication.
Drowsiness:Drowsiness is when someone feels extremely tired and uncontrollably near to sleep.
Heart:The heart is a muscular organ that pumps blood around the body.
Kidney:Kidneys are a pair of bean-shaped organs located at the back of the abdomen, which remove waste and extra fluid from the blood and pass them out of the body as urine.
Liver:The liver is the largest organ in the body. Its main jobs are to secrete bile (to help digestion), detoxify the blood and change food into energy.

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Who can use antihistamines

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Interactions with other medicines

First-generation antihistamines

Avoid drinking alcohol when taking first-generation antihistamines because this will make the feeling of drowsiness worse.

The same is true for other types of medication that are known to have a sedating effect, such as:

• sleeping tablets


• benzodiazepines, which are often used to treat anxiety disorders


• tricyclic antidepressants, which are used to treat a range of mental health conditions, such as depression and obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), as well as a number of chronic pain conditions

Seek advice from your GP or pharmacist before taking a first-generation antihistamine if you’re taking any of the medications listed above.

You shouldn’t take a first generation antihistamine if you’re also taking a type of antidepressant known as a monoamine oxidase inhibitor (MAOI). This is because the combination of the two substances can have unpredictable effects.

Second-generation antihistamines

Most second-generation antihistamines do not have important interactions when they’re taken with other medications. However, the exceptions to this are:

• rupatadine – this can cause unpredictable effects if taken with some types of antibiotics or grapefruit juice


• mizolastine – this can cause unpredictable effects if taken with nifedipine (used to treat high blood pressure), cimetidine (used to treat heartburn) and ciclosporin (which is often used to treat people who’ve had an organ transplant)

Cough and cold medicines

Many cough and cold medicines that are available over the counter at pharmacies contain a mixture of different medications, such as paracetamol, decongestants and antihistamines.

Don’t take cough and cold medicines if you have recently taken other antihistamine medication because there’s a risk of taking an excess dose of antihistamine.

These types of cough and cold medicines aren’t recommended for children who are under six years old because the risks of treatment are thought to outweigh any benefits.

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Interactions with other medicines

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