The immune system of an infant can differentiate between invaders and supporters. At only minutes old, he or she will initiate action from his or her appropriate body systems. Toxic substances may, unfortunately, also come to include common substances which most of us tolerate with reasonable comfort.
Common allergy symptoms are pretty much the same for an infant as they are for an adult.
In most people, a severe allergic reaction will occur within only seconds or minutes after exposure to the allergen. However, there are a few reactions that can occur after several hours. This could happen if the allergen causes a reaction after it has been ingested. And in some extremely rare cases, reactions develop after 24 hours.
Penicillin and related antibiotics the most common drug allergy causes. Some of the other allergy-causing drugs include, sulfa drugs, anticonvulsants, insulin preparations and iodinated (drugs containing iodine) X-ray contrast dyes, which can cause allergy-like anaphylactoid reactions.
Most medicinal side effects are due to something other than an allergic reaction. For instance, aspirin can trigger asthma or cause non-allergic hives. Some drug reactions are idiosyncratic, meaning that the reaction is an unusual and unpredictable effect of the medication. Often a person will mistake an uncomfortable, but not serious, side effect of a medicine with a true drug allergy, which can be life threatening.
Symptoms of drug allergies include, anaphylaxis, or severe allergic reaction, hives (type of skin rash), itching of the skin or eyes, other types of skin rashes, swelling of the lips, tongue, or face and wheezing.
People born with allergies will be suffering from them for their entire lives. This is because, similar to its closely related counterpart, asthma; allergies have no long-term cure.
Allergies are classified according to the types of symptoms, types of triggers or the location of the symptoms on the sufferer’s body. Some of the most common allergies are food and drug allergies, latex allergies, insect allergies, eye allergies, skin allergies and indoor and outdoor allergies (often referred to as hay fever, seasonal, perennial or nasal allergies).
There are many different types of medications available to the allergy sufferer, however. Over-the-counter and prescription drugs can be easily obtained in order to help the patient get some relief from some of the common symptoms of allergies like a runny nose, itchy and watery eyes, cough and congestion. Allergy drugs come in many shapes and sizes, including combination medicines, corticosteroids, antihistamines, decongestants and others. There are even some types of shots given to reduce allergy symptoms that are said to actually increase one’s ability to tolerate allergens gradually over a period of time.
Antihistamines have been used for many years and can usually be taken as a liquid medicine, in pill form, nasal spray or eye drops. Over-the-counter nasal sprays can be used to treat seasonal or year-round allergy symptoms, and antihistamine eye drops can relieve itchy eyes.
When one is exposed to an allergen, like ragweed pollen, it has the ability to trigger the immune system into action. A mast cell within the immune system releases a substance called histamine. This substance will attach itself to certain receptors in blood vessels and force them to enlarge. Histamine binds to other receptors as well, which will bring about swelling, itching, redness and changes in secretions. Antihistamines serve to prevent these symptoms from occurring by blocking histamine receptors.