How do antihistamines stop sneezing and a runny nose?
Spring really turns me on — like a faucet. I tear and sneeze. To heck with balmy days: I wish it would freeze. Pollen and other irritants in the spring air set off this debilitating cycle of activity in the eyes, nose and breathing passage of millions. The invaders provoke a counteraction by the body’s “mast” cells, which fight back with various substances, one of which are histamines. Unfortunately, these hista-meanies, while defending us, also run amok, irritating nerve cells and blood vessels, attaching to them and causing the collateral damage of sneezing and tearing. Antihistamines prevent this attachment by blocking the “receptors” on the nerve and blood vessel cells. The histamines can no longer connect to them. Imagine histamines in a singles bar trying all of their pick- up lines on these sensitive cells. No dice. Antihistamines have protected them with blindfolds, earplugs and bags over their heads.
