Why Are There So Many Antihistamines? 🤧💊
Antihistamine drugs are everywhere! While you’re used to the anti-allergy effects of commercially successful drugs like Benadryl and Claritin, popular drugs for motion sickness, peptic ulcers, and even antipsychotics started their lives as antihistamines. It also turns out that important concepts in pharmacology, like the receptor theory, and agonist and antagonist pharmacology, owe their development in part to the story of antihistamines.
☠️NONE OF THE INFORMATION IN THIS VIDEO SHOULD BE USED AS MEDICAL ADVICE OR OPINION. IT IS FOR GENERAL EDUCATION AND ENTERTAINMENT☠️
🔗 L I N K S 🔗
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📚My favorite books docs.google.com/document/d/1w...
🔑 P A T R O N S 🔑
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Growth Hormone Tier: Dane M | Brendan P | Brandon K | Pia K | Joe B | Mindi F | Ansel K | Michael G | Brian B | Eileen H | Jonathan G | Waffles the Dog | Brian T | Brian H | Michael R | Karen S | Sarah B | Robin B | Jacob S | Hyeon-Seo | Drake W | Pranav M | Paul | Lucy F | Lucie C | Huynhy | elnombre91 | Alcedo | Magmania | Josef K | Kyle K | Dabrick B | Robert M | Kristal C | TierZoo | Unsalted Pecan | Marshall K | Eric L | Helena SB | Michelle J | Matthew B | Hailey H | Jack M | Jane G | Skasi | Jiggs
📜 S O U R C E S 📜
Full annotated script available for free on Patreon: / antihistamines-102208961
Blockbuster Drugs: the Rise and Decline of the Pharmaceutical Industry by Jie Jack Li amzn.to/3U4WnuM (affiliate link)
Ten Drugs by Thomas Hager amzn.to/4cFkZSj (affiliate link)
Histamine pharmacology: from Sir Henry Dale to the 21st century (2020) www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/arti...
Histamine receptors and antihistamines: from discovery to clinical applications (2014) pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24925...
Histamine and itch (2014) www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NB...
Frontiers in Clinical Drug Research - Anti-Allergy Agents (2018) www.google.com/books/edition/...
Allergy www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NB...
Allergic rhinitis www.nature.com/articles/s4157...
Inverse Agonism and Functional Selectivity (2018) www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/arti...
Histamine H1 Receptor www.sciencedirect.com/topics/...
Histamine and the antiallergic antihistamines: a history of their discoveries (1999) pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/10444...
Dale and Laidlaw isolate histamine (1910) www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/arti...
Dale and Richards experiment with histamine (1911) www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/arti...
Halpern discovers Phenergan www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/arti...
The Claritin Effect; Prescription for Profit (2001) www.nytimes.com/2001/03/11/ma...
As Blockbuster Claritin Goes Generic, Schering-Plough Pushes a Close Sibling (2002) www.wsj.com/articles/SB101674...
💻 C O N T A C T 💻
Business inquiries only: patkellyteaches [at] gmail.com
⌛T I M E S T A M P S ⌛
0:00 intro
0:34 The Discovery of Histamine
5:46 The First Antihistamines
12:33 The Rise of Non-Drowsy (Second Generation) H1 Antihistamines
19:34 Tagamet: the first blockbuster
#historyofmedicine #medicalhistory
Check out the description for sources and links to the books I read in preparation for this video!
I have to say this cause you talked about chlorpromazine It shows potent anti parasitic properties and has been used to treat amoebic and fungal infections of the brain
😂
Cost of drugs, FYI big pharma spends $5 on advertising/marketing for every $1 developing drugs.
You can also use em to see spiders and eldritch shadow beings
That happened to me when I overdosed on dimenhydrinate (dramamine)
Brutal! Unspeakable horrors
Oh, the hat man.
So weird that most people see spiders on anticholinergics (which is what caused that, the Muscarine receptor) not the histamine blockade) I mean, you give 10 people any other psychedelic psychoactive drug, theyll all have different visions, but not on atropine
I'm not a doctor or anything, but I think the delerient effects of antihistamines are from antagonism of the muscanaric acetocoline receptors, specifically the M1 receptor.
If cetirazine is non-drowzy then those first generation ones must have been a real knock out.
he was not joking when he said the first gen drugs made people pass out 😭
It probably didn't help that original Benadryl was 14% alcohol 🫠
Chloritramaton (spelling may be off) knocks me out for 2 days.
Yep it really depends on your own personal body chemistry... my father rarely took anything for allergies but when he did he could take multiple doses of benadryl and it didn't seem to phase him period, on the other hand me, my sister, and mother could take 1 dose and be haze and more less out of it for a couple days. They actually gave it too my mother after a surgery even though they were expressly told not to under any circumstances.... as a result they briefly thought she had had a stroke until I came back from having lunch and recognized her symptoms.... after I pressed them on if they had given her benadryl and initially denied it but finally admitted that to me and later it came out the doctor on duty had not read her charts and her doctor had left for the day after the surgery....
@@Kathywake23 Four hours for me, but it's great of getting me to sleep and eliminating stuffiness. Second generation antihistamines don't work for me.
Hey, pharmacist here. Just wanted to let you know that I LOVE your videos on all the medications so far. I absolutely love the pharmacology segments too. Keep up the amazing work!!
Thank you, I will! There are a couple other pharmacists who watch the videos, and I always enjoy hearing from you all on pharma topics
I love how in modern medicine, each step builds off one another.
That's how we went from using sticks and stones to having lasers and space stations. Science and technology progression is always moving forward
@jamesgoddard8375 it's beautiful when stuff comes together like this.
“If I have seen further it is by standing on the shoulders of giants”
Physics is like that. Even the revolutions of relativity and quantum had a long road from precursors to complete understand…a 5+ decades process for each.
all of human knowledge is like this
Not a single mention of the Benadryl Hat Man
You must understand, I am an old man and do not know internet trends
@@PatKellyTeaches fair enough, but I'm genuinely interested to hear if there has been any literature or research into the symptoms that result in hallucinations and how the drug has been abused by young people looking for a cheap, legal recreational drug
@@DavidJamesHenrylmfao. Cheap legal and what kids believe to be recreational drug* I’m prob in the top 1%ers of lab rats who’ve put some ridiculous shit in their bodies. More research chemicals than I can count. But you could not PAY me to take benadryl at anything close to a recreational dose. I know kids are dumb cause I was one, but man if you’re putting anything in your body without rudimentary understanding of what it is, how it works and what to expect, you’re a special kind of thinker :)
I still can't believe this channel hasn't really taken off yet. Such good videos!
Astonishing
I'm genuinely surprised he doesn't get 500k/video
Looks like his channel is doing pretty well!!
great content to watch while staying indoors at the peak of pollen allergy season :)
'Tis the season
It’s funny how cetirizine is marketed as “non-drowsy”, since even 5mg leaves me too tired to move, although I can still think clearly. IIRC about 1 in 10 patients reacts the same way, it’s not few. Loratadine and fexofenadine I’ve had better luck with. A friend of mine tells me fexofenadine is the only one approved by the FAA for pilots, which might be saying something. Also I’m glad to see you’re learning about the hatman today. Memes aside, it’s interesting stuff. Diphenhydramine overdose (whether unintentional or recreational) seems to have a lot in common with sleep paralysis, where it’s hard to tell the difference between what’s really happening and what you’re afraid might happen. (I’ll pass!)
I've tried all 3 and never had any drowsiness, I guess different people are different huh.
In Japan they have an OTC daytime allergy medicine called Alergion (アルジオン). It uses epinastine as its active ingredient. It is the only non drowsy allergy medicine I have ever tried that works and doesn’t have weird side effects (at least for me). In America the only medicine I see with epinastine is eye drops. I wonder why it’s not used here in the US as an oral antihistamine.
@@hanspecans Don't know but the overwhelming odds favor something to do with $$$$.
Why would they give pilots anti histamines when they have levoamphetamine
@@hanspecansJapan has always been more open to using Amphetamine and Ephedrine based drugs as Japan has been using plant based Ephedrine like drugs for a very long time and also I bet Japan has much more of these plants available to make ephedrine based drugs out of
I'm so thankful for the discovery of diphenhydramine. Im allergic to a plethora of foods. And it has saves my life on multiple occasions, especially when I was 45 minutes or more away from a hospital. Food allergies suck, especially when you develop them later in life. When I was a kid, I didn't have any allergies. I developed all of them as a teenager. Now I can't eat some of my favorite foods. Peanut butter used to be my go-to food when I was hungry but couldn't really figure out what I wanted to eat, but now I can't eat it. And I can't eat almonds either. I can't even pick up walnuts, if I do my hands swell turn red and get extremely itchy. Those were some of my favorite foods as a kid.
real, i recently got them as an adult and "natural flavors" means "randomly added cherries" way too many times but my friend benadryl got me
Claritin/loratadine's trip is wild...I remember when it was a dollar a pill...now I can buy a year's supply (365 pills) for under $12 😳
Geez how many do you take at a time!!!
@@sandrinakeffufal6008 One a day for the whole year, presumably. Wish I could get fexofendadine for that cheap.
Costco baby! I also get the year's supply of generic zyrtec for $15 on sale. 😂
@@playgroundchooser I just looked the other day, generic claritin is on sale... 8.45$ for a year's supply 🤣
@@sandrinakeffufal6008 just one a day
Antihistamines are also anticholinergic, which is linked with an increased risk of dementia with long-term use. There is less risk with some of the newer antihistamines - Claritin, Alavert, Zyrtec.
Too bad that 2nd and 3rd generation antihistamines are worthless. The anticholinergic activity can help dry out the nasal passages. So much so, that Japanese allergy medicine has a 1st generation antihistamine, a decongestant, and a separate anticholinergic like belladonna. Very helpful in allergy season.
I think most of this was at least mentioned indirectly in the video. Second generation antihistamines are a lot worse at crossing the bbb (and they are less anticholinergic too i believe, at least compared to most first generation antihistamines)
@@RepChris - and most second and third generation antihistamines are worthless. Thank the gods that chlorpheniramine is still available.
I wanted to ask about this, since I'd seen someone assert on reddit that Benadryl was linked to an increased risk of dementia, so thank you for sharing!
Thank youu🎉 u a real one for stating this, I was waiting for someone to say this
How good is this man at making videos? He makes me consider paying money to see him talk about thorazine
Chlorpromazin also shows potent anti parasitic properties and has been used to treat amoebic and fungal infections of the brain
That drug has a funny side effect.
Thank you for going over the difference between intrinsic effects and affinity - I was trying to explain the difference between methadone and buprenorphine, and why buprenorphine isn't STRONG than methadone, in its effect but is much stronger in it's receptor binding. In fact it's affinity for the opioids receptor is almost unparalleled by any opioid, but it's efficacy is much less than most of them
Thanks for the feedback. I wondered if the mini pharmacology lesson was too much of a tangent, but I'm glad it landed!
@@PatKellyTeaches I thought it was very useful, especially the analogy of the pipe. Wonderful video as always! Would you consider doing a video on biologic therapy (such as DMARDs)?
@@sereces1584 those are interesting - one lesser used dmard ? Idk if it actually qualifies as one or not, was minocycline, an antibiotic of the tetracycline class; at one point it was being used, in smaller doses (60 mg I think) for RA
Perfect timing :) Was just chatting with a friend about these the other day!
Brilliant. I had no idea of the amazing history of a drug I rely on every spring. Thank you.
As a kid, spring allergies made it impossible for me to get through a school day. Thankfully, I discovered Benedryl which helped me sleep through most of it.
I've been on some antihistamines for mental health care. One was originally for allergies, but now commonly used to treat MS, and off label use is common for antidepressant intolerant individuals like myself. It worked for a bit, but found some better answers and solutions. Mostly getting on fibromyalgia meds helped with energy and pain, which improved my mental health. Crazy how some of these meds end up being used for something completely different. Edit: I misremembered. The antihistamine I was on for a while was used for anxiety and panic attack disorders. The off label med for depression was originally an antiviral.
May I ask what antihistamines you’re taking? I’m interested in how it’s used for mental health care. 😊
@@Phoenixhunter157Replying so I can see the response. I'm betting amitriptyline for now (although it's technically classified as a tricyclic antidepressant). Maybe doxepin too.
@@Phoenixhunter157 I am afraid I misspoke (my meds have changed a lot over the last decade and I've been on a lot of other kinds as well). Amantadine was the med I was on for treating my depression. It is an antiviral (although I believe it was ineffective for that) and commonly used for fatigue in people with MS. The idea for using it for my depression was to help with chronic fatigue. It helped a bit but pain and untreated ADHD ultimately were the factors that ways driving my depression. Hydroxyzine is the med I was confusing it with and it is commonly used for anxiety and panic attack disorders. Amitriptyline is what I'm currently on for fibromyalgia. It is an antidepressant, but I'm on such a low dose, the negative side effects I normally get from antidepressants (increased SI) is not present. It is the first line treatment for fibromyalgia and can help with nerve pain, migraines and sleep.
@@RestInPropofol is amitryptiline also an antihistamine? I had never heard that? Edit: looked it up . I had no idea. Interesting . Doxepin I’ve heard but not the other.
Benadryl has shown to cause MS.
Pat. You are a captivating teacher. I wish I had you in my chemistry classes in college.
these drug history videos are so cool! i love learning more about how the things i put in my body were made!
This is such an informative video. Awesome job! 👏🏻
I've experienced doxylamine as a calmative...unfortunately it was after mistaking paracetamol with doxylamine for normal paracetamol. Before a lecture. I wrote half a page of gibberish then passed out.
Love love love these pharma history videos, so interesting!
I've been so excited for your next video! I really enjoy your content, thank you for your hard work! This was very interesting.
That means a ton, thank you!
Great video! Antihistamines have one of my favorite histories in pharmacology/medicine, they feel like unsung heroes for all that's come from them, from anti-allergy medications to antipsychotics to antidepressants.
I agree. I thought this was going to be a simple story, but the unexpected tangents made it fun to reseach
It’s so funny because I’m a pharm tech and I’m always asking questions…me and my pharmacist were just talking about histamines yesterday
I, not "me".
My pharmacist and I
same! working on my BA in biochem and love talking to my pharmacists about drugs
This is an amazing and educational video, I learned a bunch.
I am in nursing school at the moment and am shocked by how much this helped me learn! Thank you so much for making this video, hope to see more coverage of other drug classes in the future 🙏 excited to look through all of your other stuff
Great distillation of what was clearly a ton of research on your end, told as a fascinating story. Thank you.
Wow, just discovered your channel with this video. I love your content and it’s exactly what I’ve been looking for! Keep up the great work! ❤
great research. keep up the good work
Very interesting, I've taken almost every medication you listed that's still on the market and I recently noticed that most of my bodily issues are related to histamine response, kinda spooky that the algorithm knew I wanted to see this. First video of yours I've caught, very entertaining and informative, and peeping your video catalog looks like I'm gonna enjoy subscribing.
Look into MCAS ( Mast Cell Activation Syndrome) I basically overdose myself on antihistamines daily to feel better!
Can't wait to watch this! I was actually prescribed an antihistamine about a year ago, not for allergies, but as an appetite stimulant because I was very underweight and had trouble gaining. It's worked shockingly well, and it's crazy to think that something which is formulated to act against, well, histamine, can impact so many other seemingly unrelated things. I'll edit this and add more thoughts once I've finished the video, of course. :D
Which antihistamine were your prescribed?
@@sandrinakeffufal6008probably cyproheptadine
Which anti histamine?
@@bloodspartan300 possibly cyproheptadine
It's really a consequence of evolution that the body reuses the same structures for so many different functions. Evolution works with what it has and it is a master of reuse and adaptation.
Where have you been.. I've searched for this content my entire life❤❤❤
Thank you! Amazing breakdown.
I am a Zambian Pharmacist and i have been been practicing for 6 years and currently onto my masters of health supply chain mgnt. I just wish I found the channel earlier in grad school, my interests would have been heavily skewed towards either clinical pharmacy, biopharmacy, or pharmaceutical chemistry masters. Because of this channel I feel its never too late to go back to my first love, drug science,. Such rich content...keep it up.
1st gen H1 anti-histamines like benedryl are also anti-cholinergics and anti-emetics.
Cannabis is way better for anti emetic applications imo there’s nothing that touches the anti emetic potential vs side effects of cannabis
@@nothanks9503 Ok, but that wasnt the point of the post.
ohhh this explains why my previous anxiety medication (that didn’t work at all, lmao) was an antihistamine. i was curious as to how that worked but i couldn’t find an answer that made a lot of sense until now. very cool stuff, love your channel!
Your videos are excellent. Keep up the good work.
I have Mast Cell Activation Syndrome, this is very helpful to me! Could you talk about MCAS?
commenting under to demonstrate algorithmic interest! also mcas here & would love to see such a video, this helped tie a lot of my personal research + continued education as an allied health professional
Amazing! Great video, thanks!
Fascinating! I recently had a severe allergic reaction (hives, international inflammation, swelling- the works!). Doctor prescribed a high dose of antihistamines for four days and the calming of my symptoms really was remarkable
Awesome vid sir!
If you make a series about medicine history I promise you I’ll watch all of them multiple times. I always wanted to take an elective in either college or Pharmacy school about medicine history.
I've a ton of most most of the mdecines listed some times at 2 or 3 of their types becuase I'm disabled and sickly... Like bendryal I take befoee y remicide infustion to smooth it and two algra and 1 zrtac for hives and incheness from dry wet sensitive skin. So yeah great episode and most wouldn't believe how powerful these simple over the counter drugs can be.
Great video, man! I’ve been taking Allegra, Claritin and all sorts of antihistamines since I can remember Nowadays the only way I can go by is mixing montelukast with loratadine
great video, im glad the algo served me this today. the mention of anti histamines leading to anti psychotics reminded me of something. I take a low dose of abilify/aripiprazole (an anti psychotic) as an adjuct therapy for depression, and I've noticed that it improves my sleep (earlier average sleep/wake time by a couple hours). I had heard before that antipsychotics affect the histamine system so I figured that could be why, but this has inspired me to dig into the research and see if I can find any more specific information.
Aripiprazole doesn't affect the histamine system that much compared to some other antipsychotics like chlorpromazine (I mean it's the OG), olanzapine/zyprexa, clozapine, and quetiapine/seroquel (this is obviously not the full list). With that being said, it can still have an effect depending on the individual.
Aripiprazole is more for depression than anything else
@@RestInPropofol I actually use a low dose of quetiapine to help me sleep.
I’ve been subscribed for a few months now. Your content is always super impressive - thank you! I’ve liked, commented and subscribed, but how else can we help your channel get out there more, because it deserves it!
Thank you for the kind words and for spending so much time with my videos. I always appreciate when people share my videos with friends and fellow science nerds 😎
Again, a masterful presentation... As we are on the receptor model, what will come after this series? beta blockers and ace inhibitors? Also, a separate series on the development of the receptor theory would be suuuper suuper nice.
Could you make a playlist with all your videos. Somehow KZhead forces me to other channels after one video ends. Great channel - your videos are much better organized and structured than an average med school lecture
It does not matter how slowly you go as long as you do not stop.
Thanks for telling this interesting history and use cases of anti-histamines. I am not from the US and I don't have any allergies. But my GP once prescribed anti-histamines for when I couldn't sleep well (ceterizine in that case). Worked like a charm for me and it's cheap in my country at least.
Ah, Seldane. I was prescribed that and another drug in a single visit. My skepticism about prescription drugs even at age 15 may have saved my life, as I declined to take it. The warnings about potential heart attack emerged 3 weeks later. The prescribing doctor had been so smug and dismissive of my concerns. The healthiest thing to come of the medical industry is the distrust that it fosters.
Your videos are gold!
George was a faculty member at the University of Cincinnati in chemical engineering where he developed Benadryl. He also became a substantial donor to University of Cincinnati and a number of Cincinnati arts organizations.
Good to hear that patent roytalty money got put back into the community
@@PatKellyTeaches it also means that the Official first name of the dph hat man is George
Love your videos. Thank you
Fascinating. Good video
Oh man, memory unlocked, I DISTINCTLY remember a Claritin marketing blitz in the late 90s when I was 10 or so. It has to be my earliest memory of drug commercials that are still floating around in my memory. It was crazy and EVERYWHERE obviously since I was just a little kid, didn't have allergies, and the "Ask your doctor if Claritin is right for you" is a blinking neon light in my mind.
I would love to see a video on ranitidine and why it was removed from the market. I know the general reason, but I’m sure there’s a lot more to explore and explain.
Thanks for posting.
All I gotta say is, if you want a party drug, just mix caffeine and alcohol while you're on Claritin. You'll recall tidbits of the evening, but no idea what order they occurred, nor who was present.
One of my treatments for cyclic vomiting disorder and nausea and vomiting from migraines is an antihistamine. They're useful as antiemetics from non-motion sickness causes as well.
Fascinating!
Would love for you to cover the so-called 3rd generation H1 antihistamines (active metabolites and enantiomers such as desloratadine and levocetirizine). Also the potential long-term cognitive effects possible with some antihistamines due to their interactions with muscarinic acetylcholine receptors.
I would love if you made a video at some point of how drugs go from "Ask your doctor if it's right for you" to over the counter.
Used to be on bupropion, chlorpromazine, and zolpidem. My doctor kept the bupropion for ADHD, but now I am on fluoxetine and taking promethazine to aid sleep.
Holy crap. What an awesome video. I wonder if the rise of EoE is actually connected to histamine. I'm still piecing it all together - trying to make educated decisions for myself.
As someone for whom, an antipsychotic that works as an antihistamine that in turn works as the only sleeping aid effective for me - we really underestimate the human brain, let alone the human biology. The human biology by itself is mind blowing but by the time, we understand the brain biological processes - things quickly go to another level. This is possibly coz we are still trying to understand it & despite the blood-brain barrier, the way the brain's biological processes of various neurotransmitters & receptors controlling the body's biological processes is some next level adaption. Also reminds me of why CoVid-19 was so deadly since it used a mechanism used by Ace-inhibitors & would overwhelmed the cardiovascular system due to how Acetylcholine's effects on cardiovascular/pulmonary systems are delicate and can cause death.
If you have circles around your eyes, the only thing that will fix it is makeup or antihistemine. Technically things that lower your histamine level (like sleeping more, if you have problems with that) will also do it, but I'm talking external cures for constant circles under the eyes. You'll need to take a week off of using it every month, maybe every other month, to not build up an immunity though. I got rid of my raccoon eyes for a while by using over the counter antihistamines - too much of a hastle. I ended up getting a faint tint on my glasses instead.
Awesome video!
Love your videos. If you are in need of video ideas, I think you would do an amazing job on a video about the history and future of immune therapies for cancer treatment, it’s some fascinating history. The book “The Breakthrough” by Graeber covers it really well, but not in video format.
Waaaaay to few likes and views. You are the king of historia medicinae
After you revealed that loratadine was claritin I was SHOOK. I can't believe that's the explanation for all those advertisements I saw as a kid
Benadryll can cause anticholinergic delirium in the elderly or even young people if taken in too high of a dose - it is a full-on psychosis that is very scary. It is also an antidote to acute dystonia from anti-psychotics.
Those statements are both correct. There are a variety of drugs that are often overlooked as potential causes of various aspects of psychosis. Those with cyclopentanophenanthrene skeletons are among them and include steroids and even digoxin.
I love ur videos so much ❤❤
As someone who has little luck with Loratadine medications but success with Desloratadine (which apparently just metabolizes into Loratadine anyways?) I was hoping this video would be able to uncover that difference. Well, that wasnt in there, but it was still cool!
I’d love a video like this about muscle relaxers.
Hey this is not my stamine, it’s his stamine.
Thank you, now give it back
Some people are finding that anti histamines help with one type of Long Covid
That kinda makes sense since anti-histamines essentially dull the immune system in specific areas like the longue and most of the disease symptoms we experience are caused by the immune system and not the infection itself. Though I don't know if that's actually what's happening here it could be something else.
Piriton helped me alot with my long covid. Had long covid for 1 year and 5 months. Been fully recovered since April last year
What about a video on the endocannabinoid system? How our bodies work with cannabis plants, and how not every animal has one (bees don't have one, dogs do!)
Rodger Adams
Sometimes the drowsy effects of 1st gen antihistamines are desirable. Night Nurse contains Promethazine because of the strong drowsy effects. I take Sumatriptan for migraines, which is a serotonin receptor agonist, and has some unpleasant side effects. I find the antihistamine Chlorpheniramine helps with those side effects.
the scariest thing about benadryl is that it’s an agonist for opioids so people abuse it alongside opioids and end up just trashing their brains.
Benadryl (diphenhydramine) has no affinity for Mu (opioid) receptors. They just provide additive sedation and reduce nausea associated with opioids which makes people mix them.
Become ungovernable. Spread mininformation online
Benadryl is definitely NOT an opioid agonist. There are some OTC meds that are antihistamines that can “potentiate” the effects of opioids if timed exactly right, but I’m not sharing that info here. Benadryl is cheap, causes drowsiness if injected IV, and tricks the abuser into thinking the heroin is higher quality than it actually is. So heroin is often cut with benadryl. No one’s brain is trashed from opioids. Just their thoughts and behaviors. That’s alcohol, the legal drug, that is a neurotoxin and trashes the brain.
Benadryl isn't an opioid, it's an antihistamine with some anticholinergic properties at high doses. Anticholinergics that can pass the blood-brain barrier can cause delirium and temporary psychosis in high doses. Drugs like Claritin (which is an inactive prodrug to Aerius, hence the identical effects) are called second-generation antihistamines because they do not enter the CNS and therefore do not cause the side effects of first-generation antihistamines like drowsiness and nausea suppression at low doses and delirium at high doses. Benadryl is considered nonaddictive because psychosis is a horrible experience, and almost nobody would want to try again. It's still on pharmacy shelves because it's faster acting than the "non-drowsy" alternatives which must be metabolised first. Also, in some cases (airplane or train travel comes to mind), the drowsiness and nausea suppression are desirable effects.
@@Deeplycloseted435Yeah I definitely read pages of research that showed opiates can be potentiated by antihistamines as in a lower dose is required to achieve the same effect I forget exactly how it works but it’s a case of true potentiation from what I remember
Diphenhydramine (Benadryl) is also quite a potent sleep aid, and a somewhat risky one given it is ALSO a diuretic!
@patrick kelly Hello! This is so timely for me! I swear it was just yesterday that i was wondering how antihistamines work. And you come aling with the answer!! Bless you and all you do! The antibiotic series is amazing! I cant subscribe right now. But once i can, i really want to see the story about Neosporin (did i spell that right?) You work very diligently and it shows. Thanks Patrick! I cant wait to see what you do next!!
I to suffer from allergies. Awesome work!!
Wow, that ad at 22:14 doesn't play around. "For prompt control of the agitated, belligerent senile".
There were so may other Thorazine ads that go hard. Unfortunately they weren't public domain so I couldn't use them
@@PatKellyTeaches the one with the Illuminati eye slaps tho "When the patient lashes out against them"
The early history of psychosis and schizophrenia treatment is kinda insane, the book The Protest Psychosis outlines a lot of it but drug companies essentially tried to marker early anti-psychotics as a solution to the Civil Rights movement in the US.
As a med student these videos are great for the history
Talk about MCAS next please!
Benadryl can also be helpful as a sleep aid.
Yes, it's also sold as Sleep Ezz
I occasionally take hidroxizine to sleep
Sadly, it makes me more awake
Not for all of us. I found out I was allergic to benadryl when I had chicken pox as a kid. I have no idea if it helped anything at all, because I was too busy hallucinating for several days straight. And they definitely weren't the fun kind of hallucinations.
@@Deadhousep1antssame, it only works to help me sleep if i take it with gabapentin. otherwise i stay up for hours with horrible restless leg
I used to take a heavy antihistamine (cyproheptadine) to help gain weight and increase appetite. eventually i went off it since it made me incredibly sleepy and not fully "there" when i was awake. antihistamines are wacky
Benadryl in Europe is actually a different compound from the one in the US however the actual active ingredient in benadryl gets used as a sleep medication here.
Well done Patrick, well done indeed! Thank you with a like and a subscribe too…
Please tell me you're going to talk about how proton pump inhibitors (antacids) are also antihistamines.
i havent watched yet, but benadryl misuse as a teenager triggered my epilepsy. i never made the connection until i found out in epilepsy monitoring they would be giving me benadryl to induce seizures
When a dentist saw how anxious I was, he gave me a thorizine pill to take before my next appointment. Knowing it was an antipsychotic, I was shocked. And it didn't help my anxiety one jot, in case your are curious. I mentioned this to a psychiatrist and he laughed at me, not believing me that I correctly remembered being given a thorazine, since it was so inappropriate. So it is interesting to hear that it was initially developed for anxiety prior to surgery. I'm looking forward to the next episode.
really interesting, thanks for sharing
That's spooky, I was just reading about a lot of this yesterday morning. Mostly because I've started gaining weight like crazy and I couldn't figure out why. I finally realized it all started when I started taking allergy meds, so I googled "antihistamine and appetite" and found some very interesting studies about unexplained weight gain in people who are taking antihistamine medications, like allergy meds or antipsychotics. I said, wait... antipsychotics? I'm taking Zyrtec. Are those two things related to each other? And I read, and then heard from you, that yes, they are. Oh yeah. By the by, if you're on antihistamine for long periods of time, expect some weight gain.
I just had a med chem lecture on this topic but I'm gonna watch it anyway haha
It can make for a good application to real life!
wild how everything is connected. i wouldn't have thought allergy meds and dramamine & antacids were all related
Great video, thank you Doctor Greetings, Anthony
To be clear, I don't believe he has claimed to be a "doctor" of any sort. If I'm wrong, hopefully he will comment.
I am not a doctor. I have an MS in Exercise Physiology and have taken classes in pharmacology, but am *definitely* not a doctor.