Seeking Info on Treating Allergies in Preschool Children

Both of my children have allergies. My daughter has seasonal and my son has seasonal and food allergies. They both break out with eczema when they have a reaction. They both take a very small dose of AllerX every day. It's an antihistamine. This keeps them in check most of the year. During the spring and fall pollen seasons they still get runny noses for a few days but nothing like it was before they were taking medicine. Our pediatric allergist also prescribed Nasonex but said to start giving it two weeks before pollen season and continue for a few weeks into it. We also have a prescription steroid cream for the eczema that we use sparingly only after a breakout. It clears up their skin within two days so we never have to use it long.

My 3 1/2 year old daughter has been taking zyrtec for almost a year now. We only give it to her every day when her allergies are the worst for her (Spring/Summer). Then in the Fall they usually go away and we stop giving it to her. But it has been a life saver for us. We also give her a prescription dehistine cough medicine at night during this time. We have not used a nasal spray because her allergies seem to be more in the cough, sneezing and runny eye category as opposed to nasal stuffiness. Hope this helps!

My whole family uses Mannatech's products. It is basically fresh freeze dried fruits and veggies in a powder form. It has CHANGED our lives!! We used to be a the doctors office all the time... now we only for for well checks for the kids and I never go. It has made my allergies go away and kept us extremely healthy. You can go to their website for more info or contact me.

I hope that helps!!

Hi J. -
I have a 2 year old who we just found out DOES have a peanut allergy so we carry an epi pen around with us now just in case and it's a whole new world where food is concerned - but at least we know. So, b/c of this appointment we also found out she is probably prone to bad seasonal allergies as well and sure enough she has been having trouble just as I do with seasonal allergies, sneezing, runny nose, minor cough. As you said it's not so awful that it really impacts her but is is annoying. So we went back to the pediatrician and they gave us Zyrtec. I knew she was not feeling "great" so i gave her some before bed last week and then she goes to a 2 year old preschool twice a week. I took her to school the next morning so I was not with her for about 5 hours....when i picked her up they said our normally happy, sweet, helpful little girl had hit another child - of course she is 2 and i understand some of this will happen - but she has never acted out like this before and the teachers were very shocked as well. I don't know if the zyrtec had anything to do with her acting different or not - but I have not given her anything since then as I want to make sure when/if i do I am with her all day to see if her behavior changes at all.

I have not been back to the Dr. since this, but I will definately speak with our Pediatrician about this the next time we are in. I have spoken with a friend who had her daughter on something similar for seasonal coughing/allergies, etc... and she said her daughter was a different person when she was on it... So, I'm anxious to hear if you get any further feedback from other mom's. Let me know if you can if you hear any more about Zyrtec.

Best of luck!
N.

Our son has been fighting allergies since he was very small like 6 mo old. He would even weeze in his sleep so they know it was allergies. My husband and I both have allergies, so we weren't surprised.

However he is not on prescription. He is on Clariton Clariton now. His Dr even reccommeded he try this medicine 1st. Which is once a day, which is so much better than every 4 hours like we use to do. He is 3 and he don't mind its grape flavor. I would be hesitte about the steriods too. They put me on them once and it messed me up. I think you are smart to look into other alterntives. Also have you been to a allergy Dr, that could help. Our son don't have allergies all the time, but definately in Spring and fall they get real bad.

My son was put on Nasonex as well just this past month and he is 2 years old. It does seem to help. We tryed Zyrtec and it did not seem to help. I too am leary of the steroid. My doctor said to try it through allergy season then stop it and see how he does. I may try Claritin like the other lady suggested. His nose just runnes constantly but like your child it does not seem to affect his life.

My daughter has been on Zyrtec for seasonal allergies for 3 years. She had severe sinus infections and I went with zyrtec because her symptoms were so bad. She also takes Flonase seasonaly. Zyrtec can slow you down a little bit more than something like Claritin. For mild seasonal allergies. I've found Claritin and saline nasal spray to be effective. Both are available without perscription. And Claritin's directions give dosage info for children as young as 2. As a disclaimer always check with your doctor because they know your medical history. Hope this helps.
R.

I have a 2 yr old with multiple food and enviromental allergies. We see a pediatric allergist-Dr Elisa Lange in Dallas. She is great at answering questions that you have an knowing the best way to treat allergies. I would strongly recomend that you talk to a pediatric allergist as your regular pedi doc may not be as educated in that area.

J.- looks like you have lots of alternative ideas here. My old pediatrician (like yours) pushed Zyrtec & Nasonex. And before Zyrtec it was Claritin, and before that it was some other drug. Not all kids respond to rx drugs the same. If that combo works for yours then using it seasonally or when your child needs it, fine - but if it doesn't and your dr doesn't seem to be listening, take my advise & get a second opinion from a different dr. My dd was over medicated for years & has growth delays (maybe from that or maybe from other causes). After I found a new pediatrician an told her that I felt that my child was over medicated - that I wanted to try something different - I found that all she really needed was a different type of antihistimine (Triaminic Allergy) - one that you can get over the counter, not a rx. And, instead of 5 or 10 mg all she needed was 1 mg - she only has to take it when she has "nose problems" as she calls it. No nasal spray, no steroids, nothing other than a little antihistimine/ decongestant (most of the time one 1/2 dose will stop it cold for the whole day)

Hi J.,

I have been working with patients to eliminate allergies. Using Applied Kinesiology, we can test your son and determine his allergies. After that we can use a cold therapeutic laser to eliminate his allergies. It has great results and it is totally healthy! Also, there are no side effects! Let me know if you are interested.

Dr. Sandra S.

J.,

Please go see www.drkimberlyjones.com I responded to Sunny as well. It is all natural and pain free. She has helped me overcome my allergies. I was born miserable with them. Please seek her out. I think you have every reason to be concerned about daily steroid use. Follow your heart and check her out. She changed my life. Read the testimonials.

My daughter has been on Zyrtec and Duradryl for over 2 years.(she is 3) We don't keep her on it 24/7 but for almost a year we did because she couldn't function without it. Strictly because her nose and eyes couldn't take it. She is perfectly fine. I tried EVERYTHING else before we kept her on it but it didn't seem to work. Unfortunately we live in a part of the country that doesn't give us musch to work with as far as staying out of allergy season. I hope you find something that makes you comfortable as well as your son!!! Good luck!!!

I just looked at the NAET info on Google. Be sure and read this one:
http://www.chirobase.org/06DD/naet.html

It's not complimentary but has some good points.

My 2 1/2 year-old's pediatrician gave us a sample of Nasonex and Zyrtec to try out. She said to choose ONE that worked, not both. So we went with the Zyrtec. The results were so good my husband got himself a prescription as well. But it is expensive.

J.,
Have you tried NAET. It's a technique that is used without medications. I have used this technique to treat my daughter's eczema problem, and it has worked. She is now being treated for environmental (grass, weeds, etc). Google NAET and read about it. It's the way to go if you want to do it naturally.
Good luck and let me know if you need additional info on this.