“My son was diagnosed with several food allergies – dairy, wheat, eggs and peanuts when he was 1-year-old. We have kept him completely away from these foods since then. He is now 3-years-old. He did very well until he was 2 years and 3 months. His sleep improved vastly. However 8 months ago his sleep became very poor again. He is extremely restless and he thrashes around a lot at night. We had some more allergy tests done and found that he has environmental allergies as well – trees, grass, ragweed and dust mites. We have taken all the dust mite precautions (encasings, dusting frequently, HEPA vacuum, Washing linens in extremely hot water, etc.), but his sleep has not improved.” Our pediatric allergist has recommended that we give him Children’s Claritin every day. I tried this for 6 weeks last spring and he slept like a dream. But I can’t get myself to continue this. The idea of giving him antihistamines every day -what do you think? Our allergist says Children’s Claritin is very safe – but how can one be sure of the long-term effects? He is happy during the day. How do allergies cause sleep disruption? I’ve tried everything – acupuncture, homeopathic medicine. It really pains me to see that my child is not sleeping well. Do you have any suggestions?”
The “non-sedating” class of anti-histamines has been in use for many years, and there is plenty of safety data on these. In addition, since these became “over-the-counter”, millions more have started using them. I think there is enough experience with these medications that I am not worried about long term use in kids. Since you have tried just about everything, go with what has worked. Children with allergies, like yours, have an increased risk of developing asthma, and there was a study a few years back that showed using one of these anti-histamines long-term, could reduce this risk significantly in these children.
2 more suggestions:
- Your child developed these food allergies (egg whites, dairy, peanuts) before he should have started eating these foods. So, it is likely that he developed these allergies because he was getting them through your breast milk. With your NEXT child, I would highly recommend that you keep these out of your diet, especially peanuts.
- I have many patients like your son whose chronic allergy symptoms have improved dramatically after taking the fruit and vegetable supplement called Juice Plus. One of the benefits of eating a variety of fruits and veggies is a healthy, regulated immune system. Allergies, like your son’s, are the result of an “out of balance” immune system. Click here for more JP information.
Dr. Jim