Lately I am swimming at 2 different pools. I am a late blooming, 45yo, fitness swimmer. I am up to doing about 3800 yds per workout. I find that I often have a very runny nose and sneezing fits that can last the entire day. I will take benedryl but it only seems to help a bit. I have tried to pay attention and think that one of the pools may be causing much more of a problem than the other.
As an experiment I tried takign a single benedryl (sp?) about a half hour before swimming. THis seems to be helping. So am I alergic to the water?
Is this common and what other suggestions if any?
Parents
Former Member
I'd like to offer some general observations, not meant as a personal recommendation to anyone in particular and certainly not meant to override what your own clinicians recommend. As mentioned by other posters, chlorine hypersensitivity is not a conventional IgE-mediated allergy. It is a classic irritant to the surfaces of the nose, eyes, skin and lining of the lungs and airways. Many instances of swimming-pool asthma are known, and the mechanism is the strong irritative effect of chlorine and it's daughter chemical chloramine, among other possible family members. Further,acidity above or below the range of pH 7.2 - 7.8 causes direct irritation, too.
The poster whose nose ran and sneezed after swimming, esp. backstroke where water entered nostrils abruptly exhibits classic "Nonallergic Rhinitis." It may be helpful to coat the inside of nostrils with Vaseline Petroleum Jelly before swimming to form a barrier against the chlorine compounds. In most cases an oral antihistamine like Claritin will not work. In general prescription steroid nasal sprays like Flonase tend to be very effective at prevention. The newer prescription spray Astelin works within one hour of use and therefore can be used "on demand" rather than daily. Interestingly, it is an antihistamine spray, yet it is very effective for the nonallergic conditions. It's main side effect is drowsiness in a minority of people.
Asthma is commonly triggered by swimming pools, usually indoor ones, due to the airborne chlorine compounds. It might be useful to use your quick relief inhaler for prevention and treatment should this happen. You should speak to your own doctor or allergist about this.
I'd like to offer some general observations, not meant as a personal recommendation to anyone in particular and certainly not meant to override what your own clinicians recommend. As mentioned by other posters, chlorine hypersensitivity is not a conventional IgE-mediated allergy. It is a classic irritant to the surfaces of the nose, eyes, skin and lining of the lungs and airways. Many instances of swimming-pool asthma are known, and the mechanism is the strong irritative effect of chlorine and it's daughter chemical chloramine, among other possible family members. Further,acidity above or below the range of pH 7.2 - 7.8 causes direct irritation, too.
The poster whose nose ran and sneezed after swimming, esp. backstroke where water entered nostrils abruptly exhibits classic "Nonallergic Rhinitis." It may be helpful to coat the inside of nostrils with Vaseline Petroleum Jelly before swimming to form a barrier against the chlorine compounds. In most cases an oral antihistamine like Claritin will not work. In general prescription steroid nasal sprays like Flonase tend to be very effective at prevention. The newer prescription spray Astelin works within one hour of use and therefore can be used "on demand" rather than daily. Interestingly, it is an antihistamine spray, yet it is very effective for the nonallergic conditions. It's main side effect is drowsiness in a minority of people.
Asthma is commonly triggered by swimming pools, usually indoor ones, due to the airborne chlorine compounds. It might be useful to use your quick relief inhaler for prevention and treatment should this happen. You should speak to your own doctor or allergist about this.
