Our adrenal glands produce approximately the equivalent of 4mg/day prednisone. A low dose is slightly higher, around 5-15mg/day. A moderate dose is 0.5mg prednisone per kilogram of body weight per day. A high dose 1-3mg prednisone/kilogram body weight per day. A massive dose is 15-30mg prednisone/kilogram body weight per day.
SIDE EFFECTS
The side effects of prednisone are dependent upon dose and duration. Basically, prednisone speeds up the aging process, so the long term side effects are those typically associated with aging.
The adrenal glands make the equivalent of 4mg prednisone every day; pred use suppresses that production, which is why tapering off pred is so important. The adrenal glands need a chance to begin working again. Alternate-day therapy is preferred over daily, as it helps keep the side effects to a minimum and also helps prevent adrenal failure.
Some of the possible effects of long term and/or high dosage use of prednisone and other corticosteroids; some of these can be permanent:
- bone density loss (osteoporosis – which can cause compression and stress fractures)
- weight gain (and it’s not easy to lose)
- cataracts – glaucoma – exophthalmos (eyeball prominence)
- thinning of the skin, fragile skin – plethora (facial redness)
- violaceous striae (stretch marks)
- slow wound healing
- thinning of scalp hair
- increased body hair
- bruising – worsening of existing diabetes, or causing steroid-induced diabetes
- increased blood fat (hyperlipoproteinemia)
- negative balance of calcium, nitrogen and magnesium (catabolic state) – I should mention here that low blood levels of calcium (hypocalcemia) can result in tetany, which is extremely PAINFUL -been there, done that
- salt retention
-suppression of adrenal glands (which is why you must taper off, to give them a chance to start working again)
- menstrual abnormalities
- impotence in guys
- suppression of growth in children
- weak muscles – osteonecrosis of bone ends
- gastritis – peptic ulcer
- thrush – pancreatitis – hypertension
- congestive heart failure in pre-disposed individuals
- alterations in mood – psychosis (rare)
- convulsions (rare)
- increased susceptibility to infections – suppression of immune responses (part of the reason why it suppresses the hives)
- change in white blood cell population, with increase in neutrophils and decrease in in lymphocytes and monocytes
(source: ‘Coping with Prednisone’ by Eugenia Zukerman and Julie R. Ingelfinger, MD, page 64-65)
The long term side effects of pred are also cumulative, meaning that any future pred use will cause further permanent damage. People coming off prednisone often experience a rebound effect where their hives worsen, which sometimes results in them going back on it – and needing higher and higher doses to control their symptoms.
And following long term use and/or high doses, one can go through withdrawals – mainly quite painful muscle cramps and bone pain. It’s best to avoid corticosteroids if at all possible, except in extreme cases of CU, symptoms that cannot be controlled with other meds, or if you have life threatening symptoms (anaphylaxis). It can also be a problem in cases of mastocytosis, since masto destroys your good bone marrow, leading to osteoporosis. Taking pred on top of that may speed up the process.
I took a couple Aleves to get relief for a headache and my body broke out in hives. I did not think much about taking Aleve as I had never had a problem with it before. Little did I know that my hives condition would be greatly elevated by taking Aleve. An hour after taking the medication, my body became intensely itchy. Most of all the palms of my hand itched the most. They itched so bad that they became numb. No amount of scratching or ice could relieve the itch.
Then my whole face began to swell up. My lips protruded a half inch, my nose double in size and my eyes were almost swollen up. I felt like I was going to burst. This is just a warning to anyone who is having hives and considering to take Aleve. Do NOT do it. Even if you’ve never had a reaction to it before, like myself, you will have a horrible reaction.
I hope the photo below doesn’t scare you but that’s exactly what looked like hours after taking Aleve for my hives.
Benadryl is an over the counter (otc) antihistamine used commonly for treating allergy reactions such as hives. It is one of the strongest antihistamines and works for a majority of people suffering from hives breakouts. The scientific name for the active chemical in Benadryl is Diphenhydramine hydrochloride.
Hives is a skin reaction which produces red raised itchy bumps on your skin. When you introduce something into your body which your immune system sees as a threat, your cells will release histamines into your blood stream. Histamine causes your blood vessels to expand and release blood into the surrounding tissues. This release of blood is what causes the redness in your skin associated with hives.
An antihistamine such as Benadryl will suppress your immune system so that it does not release as much histamines which is causing your hives and other allergic reactions. One major side effect of Benadryl is that it will make you drowsy. Over time, the drowsiness will go away as your body gets used to the drug, but if you start taking Benadryl for the first time or after a long period without the drug, make sure you’re not doing anything which requires alertness.
If Benadryl doesn’t work for your hives, or you need an antihistamine drug which doesn’t cause drowsiness then consider taking Zyrtec or Claritin. You’ll find generic versions of Zyrtec in many pharmacies. You don’t want to rely on drugs for too long because of the long term effects on your body. If you discover that you’re getting frequent breakouts of hives, you should learn the causes of your hives. Eliminating the causes will reduce the likelihood of future hives breakouts.
In addition to drugs, you may try some home remedies for hives such as the ones we provide on our site. The first step to take if you’re having frequent hives breakouts is to seek the advice of a medical professional such as your family doctor or a dermatologist. At the least, they will be able to tell you what steps to take to cure your hives.
Watch the video below to learn what I did about my chronic hives.
You’re here because you’re seeking information on how to cure your itchy hives for good.
I started this website because I was affected with hives for 6 grueling months before I found
a cure and I want to help others in my situation.
A little over 3 years near the end of July I started feeling itchy bumps on my scalp.
I remember it was a Thursday night. The next morning I woke up and found red bumps all
over my body that itched like crazy.
I immediately went to a drug store and purchased some Benadryl and cortizone cream to
relieve the itching. The itching went down after taking Benadryl and applying the cortizone
but the read bumps were still there.
They looked like mosquito bites but some of them were REALLY large in diameter. I had
never had major itching problems before other than mosquito bites so I didn’t know what
the cause of these hives were.
I thought that they were either bed bugs, mites, or some type of viral infection. I went
online to research and found evidence from pictures that I had hives (a really bad case of it).
So the following week I scheduled an appointment with my family doctor. He took a look
and without doing any tests, he told me that I had an allergic reaction to something such
as food. He gave me a prescription for some Prednisone and Loratadine. These are oral steroids.
I took the medications for several weeks. I stayed away from foods such as shellfish and
beef for several weeks. I changed my laundry detergent, and my shampoo. My hives were
reduced by 40% but they still covered vast areas of my body. (They were even on the bottom
of my feet and on my palms.)
Once a week, my eyelids and mouth would even swell.
I went to the doctor again and all he did was suggest that I perform a blood test and skin test.
Before I decided to do that, I went away to another city for 10 days to see if it was something
in the air that I was allergic to.
I came back from my trip and still had the hives. So I took a blood test and came up with
nothing unusual.
After staying up late one night to learn more about hives, I ran across a product called Oxy Hives. At first, I thought it was just another scam product but after reading more
about treating hives using homeopathic medicines, I took the plunge and ordered two
bottles.
My relief came after just several days of using Oxy Hives. I’m glad I tried this product
out despite my scepticism, otherwise I’d be suffering from hives still. If you’re in the
same situation I was, I urge you to at least give this product a try.
