Following is an announcement regarding a new drug to treat hay fever. After that are my comments. Be warned, they are rather blunt.
The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced October 23 the approval of Omnaris (ciclesonide) nasal spray, a new drug for the treatment of nasal symptoms associated with seasonal and perennial allergic rhinitis, commonly known as hay fever, in adults and children 12 years of age and older.
Although the precise way Omnaris works is unknown, the drug is a corticosteroid. Corticosteroids are hormone-like drugs that suppress the immune response.
Allergic rhinitis is the medical term for the inflamed, runny nose that’s the main symptom of allergies. Seasonal allergic rhinitis is the most common allergic disease. About 35 million Americans suffer from this condition. The ailment’s classic symptoms are watery nasal discharge, and fits of sneezing, and itching that can affect not just the nose but the roof of the mouth, throat and the Eustachian tubes which connect the middle ear to the back of the throat.
The safety and efficacy of Omnaris nasal spray were studied in four randomized placebo controlled clinical trials ranging in duration from two weeks to a year. The studies assessed how well Omnaris treated symptoms (runny nose, nasal itching, sneezing, and nasal congestion) in patients with hay fever. The results of these trials showed that patients treated with Omnaris nasal spray had an 8-10 percent greater reduction in nasal symptoms compared to placebo. The difference between Omnaris nasal spray and placebo was significant.
The most common side effects in clinical studies were headache, nosebleeds, and inflammation of the nose and throat linings.
Omnaris is manufactured by ALTANA Pharma US, Inc. of Florham Park, NJ.
This is simply more modern medical madness. What a double standard it is for the FDA to say herbal medicines with, in some cases, thosands of years of proven effectiveness and safety cannot make claims as to their therapeutic value while a brand new product from their friends in the drug companies (and this isn’t paranoia just good reasonaing based on public observation of how well they look after one another’s interests) can become an approved drug for consumption by adults and children as young as 12 years old.
Even in the FDA’s press release they state that no one even knows how this drug works! Mind you, that’s actually the norm when it comes to pharmaceuticals. Behind the charade of scientific certainty and credibility there is remarkably little known about how most drugs actually work. Little wonder so many of them cause so many problems.
This drug is a corticosteroid. Never, ever mess with those. It is true that hay fever reflects immune function that is misguided and hyperactive but no one in their right mind should deliberately suppress their immune system. That is begging for trouble. These are drugs prescribed by the ignorant, stupid desperate and lazy for the ignorant, stupid, desperate and lazy. The biggest winners are the drug companies and their hangers-on.
The FDA approved this drug based on data from 4 measly trials of no more than 1 year in duration and as little as 2 weeks. This is pathetic. They are happy to experiment now on the general population with a best expectation of improvement of 8 to 10 percent. Give me a break.
The facts are that you would be infinitely better off to sack your drug pushing doctor and consult a natural therapist or naturopathic physician. There are ways to deal effectively with hay fever that do not include drugs and the dangers they carry. Stop being ignorant, stupid, desperate or lazy because they lie on the path to being sicker and sicker and too soon quite dead. There is an alternate path. It’s your choice.