If your asthma attacks are triggered by allergens, you may be able to guard your wellbeing against them with nothing more than a few oral drops. This is according to an exciting new study which potentially offers allergy sufferers an alternative treatment to traditional allergy injections.
Published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, the study scientifically reviewed more than 60 published studies on the use of oral allergy drops, in more than 5,000 European patients. The researchers at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine argue that their findings prove that oral allergy drops are an effective option in treating allergy symptoms, as typically caused by pollens, dust mites, pet dander and moulds.
Allergy immunotherapy or injections have been the state-of-the-art treatment for allergies during the last 70 years, but this new discovery could mean great things for the wellness of millions of asthma and allergy sufferers, especially those who hate getting stuck with a needle. Allergy immunotherapy works by giving you small injections of the exact allergens you’re allergic to over time, so that you reduce and potentially eliminate your allergic responses.
However, oral allergy drops have been hailed as the potential new wave of the future. Similar to injections, allergy drops work by giving you small doses of the allergen, but instead of having an injection in your arm, the allergen is taken underneath your tongue. This approach may be especially appealing to children, teenagers and adults who dislike going to the doctor’s office, as the drops can be taken at home.
However, the researchers did caution that, before you make a decision to go ahead with this treatment, you need to weigh up the pros and cons. Though no life-threatening reactions to oral allergy drops have been reported, there are some side effects associated with them, such as itchiness of the mouth. The drops are currently only available in Europe, as well as some other countries abroad. This may or may not be the best course of effective allergy care and treatment for you, so, as always, consult your doctor or an allergist for your personal recommendations on how to proceed.
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