safest anti-histamine for long term use?

[kanucme]

what would the safest anti-histamine be for long term use, 2-3 times a week to help with histamine reaction from opiates?

hydroxyzine works fantastic for me but I dont want to develop TD, would benadryl or loratadine be suitable for long term use? I know this is kinda being hyper vigilant but I'm just looking for any info on this subject

 

[The Chemist]

I've been taking benadryl for around 4 years (off and on, sometimes daily--to a months time or more) and noticed no ill effects.

 

[Johnsonville]

Benedryl FTW I've used it for I guess 2 years fairly regularly and it still does its job quite well. Also Cemetidine (Tagamet), its a little more pricey but as far as potentiating goes, this works the best IMHO.

 

[Anon54]

is benadryl (diphenhydramine) better than promethazine?
is it more sedating IYO?
does it have a worse hangover IYO?

dont bother with doxylamine. it basically does nothing compared to prometh (im surprized it otc here in australia because its quit strong sedative)

pharmacist told me its better for allergies than doxylamine. its was more sedating. 75mg max reccomended dose & its a weak antipsychotic.

I read somwhere that it promethazine potentiates opiates better than dph & doxyl

for allergies/itchiness alone choose levocetrazine (zyzal) . levocetirizine is the active enantiomer of cetirizine (zyrtec). Studies show Zyzal is the best antihistamine for allergies with minimal side effects. its a 3rd generation antihistamine. (has less side effects than the 1st & 2nd generation ones. (the 2nd generation ones can cuz restlessness
the sedative ones are the 1st generation.
Claratin (loratadine), zytec are the 2nd generation.
another 3rd generation antihistamine is aurious which is the metabolite of claratin.
teh 2nd generaltion only have mild sedative properties but the 3rd generation have the least.

if ya not looking to potentiate ya opiates take the 1st generation ones. For itchiness/allergies go with desloratadine (aurious) or Zyzal (levocetrazine) as they have the least side effects.

 

[justin518]

I take xyzal daily and it works great for me

 

[paranoid android]

Hydroxyzine won't cause TD since it does not effect the dopamine receptors at all i don't think. It is a very safe anti-histamine and it can be used on a regular basis.

 

[Anon54]

as for long term use. the pharmacist told me its safe to take foe all the allergy season.
thats like 3 months right.
antihistamines wont hurt ya very much but it can actually make ya slighyly moody beleive it or not.
it also reduces the severaty of asthma

 

[Jabberwocky]

Histamine blockade might be involved in metabolic syndrome (weight gain, high lipids, insulin resistance). I'd go with a third generation AH as advised by anon54 and still try to use it only when I need to but some people with year round allergens do need AHs all year long and they are not particularly unsafe in the scheme of things. Most people have no problems at all other than sedation from hydroxine, diphen, etc

 

[NeighborhoodThreat]

As has already been mentioned, the newer-generation antihistamines have less long-term side effects and are safe for long term use.

That being said, if you're alright with the long-term side effects, hydroxyzine, diphenhydramine and promethazine are all safe for long-term use, provided you're using them at the recommended dosages.

I know some people who take 25 - 50mg of diphenhydramine daily every spring because its the only antihistamine that works for their hay fever.

 

[kanucme]

Hydroxyzine won't cause TD since it does not effect the dopamine receptors at all i don't think. It is a very safe anti-histamine and it can be used on a regular basis.

are you sure about it not causing tardive dyskinesia? I have read quite a few places that it can after long term use, its just not clear if thats in obscene amounts or recommended dosage

 

[kokaino]

Most are safe to use for long term, but promethazine. I single promethazine out because it is an antipsychotic (albeit a very weak antipsychotic, but still...) and has been known to have caused neuroleptic malignant syndrome and it's caused seizures aswell.

Seroquel is an antipsychotic with antihistaminic properties, but it's obviously too much to be used as an antihistamine.

 

[freedomchild]

I would call the pharmacy -- but I did ask about this because I had an allergic reaction to a med for 3 months and had to take lots and lots of antihistamine -- they told me, I THINK, that they are safe because they are like something the body produces. Bendedryl is what I was taking to relieve the face swelling. Prilosec is also one that I took to relieve my eyes criss-crossing during that time.

 

[the_void]

are you sure about it not causing tardive dyskinesia? I have read quite a few places that it can after long term use, its just not clear if thats in obscene amounts or recommended dosage

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/7103423

here's at least one example linking it to TD. I'm sure you can find many more but I am a bit tired...

i can see how people might start using obscene amounts, as tolerance builds FAST to this stuff. really i was only impressed by it the first time i used it...

I recall in stahl's psychopharmacology that it states that dopamine antagonism causes an increase in acetylcholine, which is associated with TD. Hydroxyzine has really low affinity for mACH, so maybe that is a contributing factor in why it has sometimes been linked with TD?

it is indeed a weak dopamine antagonist. my tweaker buddies loved this stuff, they claimed it reduced their 'meth itch.' more likely, its weak dopamine antagonist effects (in combinaton with the mild anxyolitic/sedative effects) made them realize crystal wasn't coming out of their pores and made them less interested in picking at themselves...