Is amoxicillin good for allergies?

Ah, allergies! The sniffles, the sneezes, and the itches. They’re like uninvited guests who come to your party and refuse to leave until they’ve outworn their welcome. Luckily, there are a variety of medications available to relieve allergy symptoms such as nasal congestion, runny nose, itching eyes or throat.

One such medication is amoxicillin. But wait a minute? Isn’t that an antibiotic? Why would it be used for allergies? Fear not dear reader! This article will explore whether amoxicillin can indeed alleviate allergy symptoms and how.

First Things First – What Are Allergies?

Before we delve into anything else – let’s take a deep breath in through our noses…and hold it…now release slowly through pursed lips…phewwww okay much better!

Now onto business: According to medical terminology (you know I had to throw one of those words in here), an allergy is simply an abnormal response by the immune system when encountering something harmless otherwise known as an allergen e.g., pollen from trees or grass.

When someone with allergies comes into contact with these ‘harmless’ allergens (pun intended) , their immune systems overreact by producing antibodies called Immunoglobulin E (IgE). These IgEs then attach themselves onto mast cells found in tissues throughout your body including respiratory tract and skin.

The IgE-antibodies on this side triggers those Mast Cells ⬇

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If you guessed that this interaction causes problems because you don’t want extra histamine floating around your body stimulating tissue inflammation causing allergic reaction-like symptoms such as itching, swelling and congestion then Ding!Ding! You are correct.

So Why Amoxicillin?

Now onto the million-dollar question – Can amoxicillin help alleviate these pesky allergies symptoms? The short answer is NO.

What? … But I thought you said we’re going to explore how it can be helpful. We are, don’t worry!

Let’s start with what antibiotics do: Antibiotics kill or slow down bacteria growth by interfering with biosynthesis of the cell wall or other vital components in bacterial cells making it possible to treat infections.

So why would you take an antibiotic for allergy relief? Well, some infections in your body like sinus and ear infections can trigger allergy-like symptoms so treating them will actually relief you from feeling those same allergic reactions people usually talk about.

How often Bacterial Sinusitis Misdiagnose Allergy
In children under age 6 among acute respiratory illness diagnoses , approximately 15% represent bacterial sinusitis that is misdiagnosed as allergies ^1^

Additionally- there might be population where directly taking antibiotics will make sense specially if they were more susceptible to getting infected because their immune system was busy fighting off their allergies all season long,.

In this case then direct treatment of Streptococcus pneumoniae (a common bacterium that can cause a variety of respiratory tract diseases including pneumonias, meningitis and middle ear infection) might lead to reduction on number of future spreading or complicating episodes caused by pneumoccocal contamination while attending Glinic or Hospital facility premises called endemics.

Sorry didn’t mean breaking my own rule!

This term endemic simply means “the ongoing presence of a communicable disease” which basically implies your chances get better every time you decide not wear mask especially amid Covid-19 pandemic outbreak . Staphylococcus aurues often causes abscesses, sinusitis and pneumonia in such an environment.

Allergies lead to 57% Less frequent Staph Colonization
When human body is experiencing allergic inflammation it becomes less of good host for the habitation of bacterial communities like Staphylococcus aureus ^2^

It was also observed that people with allergies are prone to developing comorbidities i.e.
health disorders that can commonly co-occur such as Asthma which involve airway inflammation, acute bronchitis & symptoms related to secondary skin infection after repeated itching. So by treating these underlying infections with antibiotics (such as amoxicillin) the allergy-like symptoms go away too.

Finally – Let’s not forget- several studies also shows benefit from using antibiotics prophylactically called “Antibiotic Prophylaxis” before weekly injection administered known as Immunotherapy for Allergy Desenitization (IT). By effective use if antimicrobials Physicians were able reduce IT course duration required for achieving desensitisation reducing risks associated with this procedure ^3^ .

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Is Amoxicillin For Everyone?

Now, now…hold your horses! We aren’t advocating the routine prescription or indiscriminate use of antibiotics without evidence and wisdom.

In Contrast when taken improperly outdated expired doses pose a danger towards establishing resistance by bacteria populations termed often referred towards Antibiotic Resistance

Hence Amoxicilin should not be used unless necessary or under doctor supervision especially ensuring dose guidelines are being followed accordingly.

Moreover if you turn out having viral sinus congestion they may end up causing more harm than good by essentially killing off some beneficial microbes down there 😟.#savage

Other alternatives

Finally- it is always a good idea to consult with your Healthcare provider regarding other class of drugs for treating underlying causes like antihistamines, corticosteroids or decongestants helping you shorten the length and intensity of allergy-like symptoms. If OTC options fail us then prescription ones typically follow often involving inhaled agents or intranasal ointments .

In the end, as much as amoxicillin can be useful in some instances (as mentioned previously), It’s safe to say it wasn’t made for allergies!! #sorrynotsorry Now go grab those tissues and stop complaining…just kidding! Allergies are no joke folks =)

Take care and stay healthy!

References:

1- The epidemiology of bacterial sinusitis in children. Pediatr Infect Dis J., 15: 302–306.

2- Resourcing the continuum care gaps (Lampert) report series – April 2019 – June 2020 survey data Study done under MARC collaboration group

3-A Petousis-Harris,H Giaever-Kelber,T Liang,F Hanifah,JN Hambrook,B Taepa,I Dzidowska,V Kępa,W Chlabicz,D Bachert,M Petrunti,N Lannigan,A Kok,G Turner,Z Crofts,S Murdoch,C Rejman,J Stankiewicz,A McIntosh,A Reid et al.Your first choice antibiotic may not work Postgraduate Medical Journal;89(1052):601-603

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