OTC Allergy Medications

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The allergy medicines you can purchase over-the-counter these days are not meant to cure allergies; rather, their purpose is to relieve the symptoms of allergic reactions, such as congestion, runny nose, watery eyes and itchy rash on skin. Antihistamines, decongestants, combination drugs and corticosteroids are just some examples of these over-the-counter allergy drugs.

Antihistamines block histamines and prevent them from attaching to histamine reactors. Histamine causes stuffy or runny nose, itchy and redness of the eyes, and itchy rash on the skin. Antihistamines come in the form of pills, liquids, nasal spray or eye drops. Over-the-counter antihistamines include Allegra, Benadryl, Claritin, Chlor-Trimeton, Dimetane, Zyrtec, Tavist and Ocu-Hist. Antihistamines may cause drowsiness or grogginess, upset stomach, dry mouth, urinary retention, loss of appetite.

Decongestants relieve nasal congestion by shrinking swollen nasal tissues and blood vessels as a result of an allergic reaction. There are decongestants that come in the form liquids, nasal spray, pills or eye drops. Long-term usage of nasal sprays and eye drop decongestants is not recommended because they can actually aggravate the symptoms. Individuals who have high blood pressure or glaucoma should not use decongestants as it raises blood pressure. Other side effects include lightheadedness, insomnia, irritability, restlessness and irregular heartbeat. Some examples of decongestants are Sudafed, Neo-Synephrine, Afrin nasal sprays and Visine eye drops.