One of the symptoms some people with allergies experience is some degree of depression.

There are two general causes for this:

1. A symptom of the allergy itself
2. A side-effect of allergy medication.

Here is one description of the effects of using allergy medication:

I took some [allergy medications] last night after being off them for a week and a half and having a fabulous week emotionally, and within an hour of taking them my mood completely tanked. I got cranky real fast for no noticeable reason, my libido went from a full, sparking charge to absolutely nothing, I even had trouble convincing myself to get out of bed this morning. Prior to quitting my meds, I've been fighting for years to control mild to not-so-mild depression. I've also been on allergy meds for years. Connected?

-Jennifer Szczublewski

So what is worse, the allergy symptoms or the allergy relief medication side-effects?

Perhaps this is for each individual to answer for themselves, depending on the severity of the symptoms, how well the allergy medication controls the symptoms, and the degree of the side effects.

In general though, the less medication of any sort, the better, all other things being equal.

I'm suspicious of medication that controls only the symptoms, while ignoring the underlying cause.

Here's a better idea: find out what your allergens are and then avoid them as much as possible.

In the case of food allergies, this is entirely practical. In the case of dust or mold, you need complete control over your environment - well worth the effort.

For a pollen allergy of course, it is pretty hard to control, but even that can be mitigated a HEPA filter.

Allergy relief medication may seem like an easy answer, and incrementally cheap compared to, lets say, moving house to avoid a mold problem, but in the long run, the cost of depression is hardly worth it.

Internal Links

• Allergy Symptoms
• Allergies and Mood
• Allergies and the Dysfunctional Family
• Antioxidants and Allergies

External Links

• Jennifer Szczublewski article - about

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