Allergies in Children

Published on May 21, 2019

Children with allergies

Allergies are very common in children. It is estimated that
up to 40% of children in Australia and New Zealand will be affected by
allergies at some point in their lives. The most common allergic conditions are
food allergies, eczema (skin allergy), and hayfever1.

Why do children develop allergies?

Children with allergies have an immune system that is overactive. It has at some stage mistakenly identified something harmless, such as dust mites or pollen, as a threat. After exposure to this ‘threat,’ the body tries to defend itself by producing antibodies and substances such as histamine. It’s the excessive production of histamine that causes the symptoms of allergies.

How do I know if my child has allergies?

Allergy symptoms are different for every child. Symptoms in
children can be unpredictable and each allergic reaction can differ in
severity. An initial mild reaction does not mean that all future reactions will
also be mild.

Allergy symptoms from airborne allergens

Allergies caused by airborne allergens such as mould spores, animal dander, dust mites and pollen are very common. They are known as allergic rhinitis and these types of allergies usually develop during childhood and may start to diminish later in life.

Typical symptoms of allergies caused by airborne allergens can include:

Sneezing

Itchy nose

Itchy throat

Blocked nose

Runny nose

Coughing

Itchy, watery and/or red eyes – known as allergic conjunctivitis

Puffy blue tinged skin around the eyes – sometimes known as “allergic shiners”

Allergy symptoms from food, medicine, or insect venom

Children
with allergies to food, medicine or insect venom may experience the following
symptoms:

Remove soft
toys from the bedroom or at least wash them in very hot water weekly. Consider
replacing carpet with hard flooring like wood, tiles, or linoleum if possible.

Antihistamines

Give your child a suitable antihistamine to help relieve the symptoms of hayfever allergies.

Telfast Oral Liquid is an oral liquid antihistamine that is recommended for children between the ages of 2 and 11 for hayfever, and provides fast‐acting non‐drowsy relief from sneezing, a runny and itchy nose, itchy and watery eyes and an itchy throat. It is gluten and lactose free and comes in a raspberry flavour that children will love.

Contact your healthcare professional if you have any questions or concerns, your child becomes worse, or if your child’s hayfever symptoms are interfering with school or their day to day activities after two days of taking antihistamines.

Purchase now from selected retailers

The liability of the Company or of SANOFI shall not be incurred by a third party site that can be accessed via the Site. We do not have any way of controlling the content of such third party sites which remain entirely independent of the Company. Moreover, the existence of a link between the Site and a third party site does not under any circumstances mean that the Company approves the content of that site in any way whatsoever and in particular the use that may be made of it.

Contact Us

If you’d like to know which product might be suitable for your needs, or if you have questions relating to any of our products, please fill in the form below. We’d love to hear from you. To speak with a team member or report an adverse event, please call 1800 818 806 within Australia.

Thank you for your submission. A representative will be in contact shortly.

Yes! I want to receive future offers, communications and product information from Telfast.