How Well can help you manage your hay fever

Hay fever is a common illness which tends to peak between late March and September. It’s caused by being allergic to pollen. Whereas a cold lasts up to two weeks, hay fever can last between weeks and months.

Around 25% of people in the UK are affected by hay fever. Symptoms vary between people, but tend to include sneezing, coughing, a blocked or runny nose, itchy eyes and throat and a headache. If you have asthma, pollen can make this worse. Unfortunately, there isn’t a cure for hay fever, but there are a range of ways to prevent the worst of the problem. These include lifestyle changes as well as medicines you can get from your pharmacist or GP. To reduce your exposure and allergy to pollen, try:

• Wearing wraparound sunglasses to prevent pollen getting into your eyes
• Putting Vaseline around your nose to trap pollen
• Stay inside, and keep windows and doors shut where possible
• Avoid walking on cut grass
• Don’t keep cut flowers in the house

Allergy UK has more information about hay fever.

Hay fever medicine from your pharmacy

From your local pharmacy, you can buy medicines to help manage your hay fever, such as anti-histamine tablets, eyedrops or nasal sprays which work by reducing your body’s allergic reaction to pollen. Your pharmacist can give you advice on how to get the most out of your medicine.

For some people, antihistamines don’t work. If you find your symptoms persist or get worse, speak to your GP. They may prescribe you steroids to help manage your illness, or refer you for immunotherapy, This process involves you receiving small amounts of pollen in a tablet or injection to build up your immunity.

Never let hay fever get you down

To make sure you never miss a dose, why not get your repeat prescription delivered to your door? Well’s online prescription delivery service means you no longer have to worry about collecting your repeat prescription from a pharmacy.

You can either download the app or use the service through our website. Tell us which medicines you take, then we send the request to your GP for approval. Once it’s been approved, we ask you to pay for your prescription or provide proof of your exemption. Then our pharmacy team will dispense, check and send your medication in a discreet package.