I felt I needed to blog about this because my credit card bill came and I was appalled at how much it was even when I haven't shopped in ages. The bill was in the hundreds and most of them had the same listing. Our family doctor.
The twins have been coughing for a month! It started off with a little bit of a cold and a cough. Then it got better and then it got worse. It got more phlegmy and those noses threatened to run out from under them. First I didn't take them to the doctor and just treated them at home. Afterall, we have 2 doctors in the family and they're ok for coughs and colds. The problem was our home brew of medicines didn't seem to do the trick.
It was Piriton for the runny nose and a Mucosolvon/Ventolin mixture for the cough.
So it was off to the doctor. She said, up the Piriton, continue the mixture and add on something else called Astmafen.
The kids seemed to get better when they were in school which was contrary to popular belief that they were getting more sick in school. And on the weekend, the congestion made the both of them hack up chunks of phlegm and their noses were red from the constant wiping.
So, it was off to the doctor again. This time there was suspicion that something at home was acting as the antagonist. The doctor looked at the Jordan with her rash round her neck and Evan with his rash on the back of his knees, listened to their chests and looked into their throats before pronouncing that they had Allergic Rhinitis. This meant there was dust and stuff in the air that was irritating the heck out of them and the mucous was produced to try and clear it and the cough was there to try to expel the muscous from the body.
This time the bill was even more. More expensive medicines. Sher blogged about it before so I knew about it and was extremely hesitant. But by this point, we'd gone through 3 different anti-histamines and 3 cough mixtures to no avail. Thankfully, it worked. This "magic" powder called Singulair which was like $3.50 per packet and we needed 24 of them! Even then, finally, the twins could breathe, the drippy nose wasn't as bad.
So the regime evolved from
Morning- Piriton and Bisolvon
Afternoon- Piriton and Bisolvon
Night- Piriton and Bisolvon
to
Morning- Piriton, Bisolvon and Asmafen
Afternoon- Piriton and Bisolvon
Night- Piriton, Bisolvon and Asmafen
to
Morning- Zyrtec and Rhinathiol
Afternoon- Rhinathiol
Night- Piriton, Rhinathiol and Singulair
to now
Evan
Morning- Zyrtec, Rhinathiol, Ventolin
Afternoon- Rhinathiol and Ventolin
Night-Piriton, Singulair, Rhinathiol and Ventolin
Jordan
Night- Singulair and Piriton
All this makes my heart ache. And I have to listen to all the disapproving insinuations from the all-knowing-used to be perfect parent-elders that I am a bad mother for keeping my children on medication for so long and don't I know that taking so much medication is bad for their system.
But that wasn't the end of it. The doctor warned us that the twins would spend their lives reacting to allergens this way and they had atopic eczema that would flair up everytime they were in contact with something their body didn't like. It's a nice idea to have an internal alert system but poor them! To minimise the occasions that their allergy induced eczema would flair up, I would have to change all their shower products. I'd been chided for spending money ordering organic shower washes online for the kids when supermarket brand ones ought to do. But apparently the supermarket ones that I eventually and reluctantly switched to on our austerity drive was what was exacerbating the problem to the point that Evan scratched himself into such a frenzy, he had bleedy knees and Jordan was scratching her belly in her sleep, all the time. At first, I thought it was funny because she looked like Homer Simpson scratching her oh-so-rounded belly. But when it didn't stop and it was incessant scratching, I knew something had to be done. So, obediently, I changed their entire shower series to shower washes that cost as much as my skin care range.
The snarky of the older generation scoff at how we pamper the children and shelter them so much that they need expensive shower products and lotions. How we obviously have too much money taking the kids to the doctor every week and spending hundreds of dollars on treatments when they don't work and when simply feeding warm water from a soup spoon does the trick as well. They regale tales of how in their day, life was simpler and medicine and treatment was much simpler. What irritates me is that, they forget that they live also in this day and life isn't simpler. Our air isn't clean. It's filled with pollutants. Our food is chock a block with unnatural preservatives and sometimes even poisonous ones. And there is traffic. We live by the main road. We live beside a house that's been in construction for close to 2 years and all the corresponding dust that comes from that.
It is no surprise that my kids are ill and have allergies and it is times like that when it is clear in my mind that we have gotta get out of here, before the air here, kills us. Both literally and metaphorically.
Technorati Tags: babies, sick, allergies
Friday, March 27, 2009
Itchy and Scratchy
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
90% of allergic rhinitis in Sgp are due to dust-mite allergy. The suffers are allergic to the excrement of these microscopic dust mites. Dust mites flourish in climates like Sgp because the heat & humidity seem to be optimal for their survival & proliferation.
ReplyDeleteHouse dust is predominantly composed of shed dead human skin (yes, it is! If one has furry pets, these pets would then be a significant contribution to the house dust). Which is why even if a room is air-conditioned 24/7 and the windows never opened, dust would still accumulate as long as people live in it. The more people that occupy & sleep in a room, the more time that they spend in it, the dustier it gets.
The dead human skin is what these dust mites feed off of. So it makes sense for these dust mites to favor places where shed human skin can be found in highest concentrations, i.e. our pillowcases, bolster-cases & bedsheets.
There are specially treated bed-linens that are 'impervious' to dust-mites, which means that even if they're lurking in those inaccessible & unwashable recesses of the fillings of the pillows & mattresses, they have limited access to the allergic person. These special sheets can be purchased from specialized stores which your GP can probably find out for you. These sheets go UNDER the normal sheets and have only to be washed/changed once in several months or so, but the normal sheets are generally recommended to be laundered about once a week, in hot water (which will kill the mites) and sun-dried (which also help kill the mites).
Bedrooms & surfaces are supposed to be wiped with damp cloths or wet-mopped. Sweeping or vacuuming is discouraged unless the vacuum has a 'HEPA' (high-efficiency particulate) filter. All other vacuums do not filter out the dust mites and only result in redistributing them all around the room--which is worse! Curtains are dust-traps (unless one is gungho enough to launder them monthly! haha...). May do better to get blinds that can be wiped down. Soft-toys should be launderable. Thankfully in Sgp there isn't the practice of or need for wall-to-wall carpeting, which are also dust-traps.
On the other hand in temperate climates where carpeting makes practical sense in the cold winters, dust-mites are not an issue because they don't thrive in the cooler and drier climes. Many Sgp-reans who used to suffer from allergic rhinitis seem to be magically 'cured' when they move to a temperate climate. The same happened to my now 24-yr-old stepson as well as my 8-yr-old.
The people who grow up here though, have 'hay fever', which is allergic rhinitis to pollen, which is prevalent in Springtime. Hence hay-fever is also called 'seasonal' allergic rhinitis as opposed to dust-mite allergy which is called 'perennial' allergic rhinitis (i.e. year-round).
Eczema can be made worse by perspiration, which is not helped by the Sgp climate. Normally cotton fabrics are recommended because they are highly absorbent. Non-absorbent fabrics like nylon or polyester are discouraged. Some skins are also allergic to lanolin (the natural oil) in wool.
My stepdaughter uses only Dove soap as she finds most other soaps too dry or allergenic. I wonder if there are some hypoallergenic variety of cheaper baby products? Like from Johnson & Johnson, for e.g.? QV is a good brand.
My stepdaughter also has allergic conjunctivitis to hamsters & guinea pigs. So, contact with new animals also has to be looked into.
My stepson can't stand the fragrance in most clothing detergents, so I buy a special bottle of fragrance-free, hypoallergenic clothing-detergent for his own use. But it isn't more expensive than the regular brand.
YY.
Yeah, I agree with mariposa about dust mite allergy. I think you might find that if the kids tend to be better when they are in school, then maybe it's the soft furnishings at home that's the problem. Changing the sheets and pillowcases is probably not enough. You might have to invest in an industrial strength vacuum cleaner like the Rainbow. Or if you are particularly thorough, you can try those vacuum cleaners that have a steam function too so you can steam clean first.
ReplyDeleteMy girls have been having running nose/cough too, for like a month. Similar to your kids, with the eczema tendency and allergic respiratory reactions. Inherited bad genes.
ReplyDeleteI got the QV Kids Wash too for my 2nd daughter who had a bad flare-up of eczema 2 months ago. Got it at a skin clinic. She was prescribed some strong steroid cream too. So darn $$$!!
Oh btw, I think Cetaphil wash from pharmacies also equally good. My friend told me Johnson's baby products are quite harsh actually cos of the stuff like fragrance, colouring that they put inside. Miss those Johnson's fragrance on my girl!
Yes, Cetaphil is the other eczema-friendly brand whose name temporarily escaped my memory..
ReplyDeleteYY.
Damp-wiping & mopping is a cheaper alternative to high-end vacuum cleaners. I have been told by allergists that even 'steam' or 'Rainbow' vacuums are just hype (you may have to verify this info, wrt latest models), and the only vacuum that will trap dust mites are those with 'HEPA' (high-efficiency particulate-arresting) filter capabilities.
ReplyDeleteFrom this article, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HEPA, it would seem that there's even a functional difference between 'true HEPA' and 'HEPA-like'.
YY.
hi not sure if you wanna try California Baby products? there is a SAHM who does bulk purchases every month or so. i find her prices way lower than Moms Essential or anywhere else in the market. :-)
ReplyDeletehttp://www.thepinkcream.biz/
Mariposa,
ReplyDeleteThanks! We just went out and bought hypoallegnic mattresses. I think two years worth of milk and spit up on the mattress is just potent ground for mites. (Yurgh!) Will also keep in mind when we buy our new vacuum cleaner.
Sheri,
It's amazing how many kids in Sg have this Rhinitis thing! I think the eczema I can deal with. I just feel so sorry for the boy when he coughs through the night.
Tumbleweed,
My kids have been on California Baby shower wash. That's the expensive one that I get tsk-tsked for! But it hasn't seemed to arrest the problem.
Yes there IS statistical evidence that diseases related to environmental allergens (diseases such as asthma, eczema, allergic rhinitis) have increased over the decades. And it's not confined to Sgp. Typically people have blamed it on industrialization. Some paradoxically say it's due to the over-sanitization of modern homes (as opposed to the olden-day kampungs, i.e.).
ReplyDeleteIf you buy ANY new mattress, symptoms are bound to improve initially simply because the dust-mites have not moved in yet!!
But for permanent solution, there ARE mattresses on the market nowadays that are touted to be 'dust-mite-proof' (or words to that effect). I'm not sure if 'hypoallergenic' means the same thing--it's got to specifically mention dust-mites. (Probably people in temperate climes are allergic to other things, not so much dust-mites, hence hypoallergenic mattresses manufactured there may not tackle dust-mites specifically. I'm not sure if this is the case but just make sure you check it).
I presume 'dust-mite-proof' mattresses do the same trick as dust-mite-proof bed-sheets -- by providing a mite-impermeable barrier between the filling of the mattress (where mites cannot be laundered away) and the human user. If you're changing mattress, it makes sense also to change pillows/bolsters; either that or get mite-proof pillow- & bolster-cases. Baby-size pillows & bolsters may be launderable (like soft-toys); if so you may not need to buy new ones after all.
On the other hand I hesitate to label someone as having allergic rhinitis or asthma if the runny noses/chestiness have been for only a few weeks, it's the first occurrence of having these symptoms for this long a stretch and the episode does seem to have be initiated by a bout of flu with typical fever, runny nose, cough, sorethroat etc. A long drawn-out flu in itself can last that long. And can temporarily induce asthma-like or allergic-rhinitis-like symptoms that seem to temporarily require medications usually used for allergic rhinitis or asthma.
Typical cases of allergic rhinitis have runny noses that are worst in the mornings (it figures, after being exposed to the mite excrements during the long hours in bed!) and seem better over the rest of the day (rest of the house/school/workplace typically collect less shed human skin than bedding). The symptoms would persist for months & often years, requiring once-daily medication on a prolonged basis. Allergic rhinitis medications are designed to be safe to use over long periods.
YY.
To add, with proper allergen control (meaning: hot-water laundering, sun-drying, damp-cleaning and mite-proof bedding) symptoms can be reduced by 50%, thus reducing the dosages of long-term medications required to control symptoms. This is good news!
ReplyDeleteYY.
hey, X has atopic eczema too. The doctor has prescribed him Oilatum for the bath - nothing else becos all soaps are irritating to the skin, and even johnson's is bad - which can be bought off the shelf here. Maybe u can get your mum to get some whilst she's here?
ReplyDeleteHe also has this Doublebase cream that has to be applied as many times a day, and a steroid one.
I also felt v bad when the boy has scratched til his skin was bleeding. He also gets scratchy at bedtime, which makes it hard for him to fall asleep...
My neighbour's kid also had atopic eczema. It cleared up after she changed his milk powder (and bathwash). What milk are your kids taking?
ReplyDeleteHallo, my daughter has eczema since she is 3 mths old...
ReplyDeleteThe doctors recommended to use Oilatum for her bath & oilatum plus when the condition is worse.
And to moisturise her with Physiogel (when its bad). Cannot use oil on the skin as it will clog the pores & worsen the condition.
Also if u can, soak the twins in boiled bittergourd vines water for an hour. This is very effective but unfortunately its not easy to find bittergourd vines in the wet market.
Furthermore if u believe it TCM, can give the twins herbal tea occassionally. This helps to purge the toxins (will cause the eczema to flare up) but after the flare up, the relapse of the 2nd attack is slower.
Hope this helps, and i think for their cough.. If all medication fails, i think shd just stop it and let them drink loads of water with those salted limes.
Thanks Ru, Lysithea and K@ye for your suggestions.
ReplyDeleteThey sell Oilatum here but I think it's got the same constitution as QV so I shall try that first. Failing which...
Bittergourd vines... Erm... Should have told me last year! We had some growing in the backyard. I think they were cleared to make way for the long beans or whatever else our helpers have an interest in growing. :)
Milk... they're on a combination of breast milk and Friso 3. I'm told it might be the breast milk. I'll know soon enough as I wean them off. I don't think it's the Friso because the rash came before the Friso.
This is the first time I've heard of breast milk being linked to allergies! (Please explain: why the person attributed your breast-milk as a possible cause in your kids' case.) If anything, one of the advantages of breastfeeding is that it significantly reduces the incidence of allergies. Unless there's a specific item in your diet that the kids HAPPEN to be allergic to, and that which is excretable in the breast-milk (not everything we eat comes out in our breastmilk). But one does not develop an allergy unless one has been exposed to the specific item at a 'wrong' time in one's early immunological development. Usually it's the case where an infant is exposed to a certain food too early, when his immune system is not 'ready' to handle it as 'food' yet, thus triggering an over-exuberant defensive response to that item. Certain foods are known to be more 'allergenic' than others--i.e., they have been observed to have triggered more allergic responses than others.
ReplyDeleteYY.