Cozumel Mexico and Sudafed

[bqualls]

Yes, loratadine is a fine antihistamine- but the million dollar question is whether a very effective nasal decongestant , pseudoephedrine, will land you in the hoosegow.
Does anybody have current info regarding the regulations to which BRT refers?

 

[Saltyhawg]

Flonase is fluticasone...a nasal steroid spray. It is very effective but takes time to become so. I would recommend starting it at least a week before the trip. The side effects are not nearly as serious or as likely as pseudoephedrine (hypertension, cardiac arrhythmia, insomnia, tremor) though still uncommon. I use either or both without any untoward effects.

There are also some good combination products that contain ceterizine (Zyrtec), fexofenadine (Allegra) and loratidine (Claritin) plus pseudoephedrine. A three pronged approach wouldn't be bad for people with very bad allergy issues and bad anatomical issues as well.

 

[JohnN]

Flonase is fluticasone...a nasal steroid spray. It is very effective but takes time to become so. I would recommend starting it at least a week before the trip. The side effects are not nearly as serious or as likely as pseudoephedrine (hypertension, cardiac arrhythmia, insomnia, tremor) though still uncommon. I use either or both without any untoward effects.

There are also some good combination products that contain ceterizine (Zyrtec), fexofenadine (Allegra) and loratidine (Claritin) plus pseudoephedrine. A three pronged approach wouldn't be bad for people with very bad allergy issues and bad anatomical issues as well.

You forgot Montelukast (Singular) when Singular first came out, it was (and still is) crazy expensive, now the generic is pretty cheap. It does take 2-3 weeks to build up to effective levels, but it in conjunction with one or more antihistamines works very very well l (and just for the record, I take Claritin (loratadine), Flonase (fluticasone), Singular (Montelukast) with Olopatadine (antihistamine eye drops) and the occasional hit from the Albuterol inhaler. One of the few negatives for living with a grass pollen allergy in the Willamette valley

 

[Saltyhawg]

You forgot Montelukast (Singular) when Singular first came out, it was (and still is) crazy expensive, now the generic is pretty cheap. It does take 2-3 weeks to build up to effective levels, but it in conjunction with one or more antihistamines works very very well l (and just for the record, I take Claritin (loratadine), Flonase (fluticasone), Singular (Montelukast) with Olopatadine (antihistamine eye drops) and the occasional hit from the Albuterol inhaler. One of the few negatives for living with a grass pollen allergy in the Willamette valley

Absolutely! Montelukast is another option that can be combined with the above meds.

If the problem is allergy induced, a short steroid taper can also be a huge help. Usually I leave my allergy problem behind when I travel to dive. The short term steroid can often assure me the first couple of days of my trip are devoid of worries about not being able to equalize.