Please keep in mind J Lucas that if you do have any drug allergies, medical conditions, or are taking any other medications that you should run anything you try by a healthcare professional that knows your medical history. I worry that we could miss an interaction if we don't have the answers to these questions. And, we would also need to know what you had tried before to know what might not be worth trying. It would also be helpful to know what triggers your allergies (dust, mold, pollen, pet dander, etc). We would also want to know what your most troublesome symptoms were (congestion/aches or sneezing/itching/watery eyes or both groups of symptoms). I presume by chronic allergies you mean that they occur year round.
I did a bit of hunting and here is what I came up with. If I made an error, someone please correct me.
The corticosteroid nasal sprays (Flonase, Nasonex are newest - all are by prescription) are generally more effective than oral antihistamine tablets or capsules (some OTC, some by prescription) for seasonal allergies. For year round problems, the situation is reversed: oral antihistamines are generally most effective. Astelin, which kwakster928 mentioned, is a prescription antihistamine nasal spray. Claritin (loratadine) is the only 2nd generation antihistamine available over the counter. The first generation antihistamines generally lead to drowsiness, while the second generation is much less likely to make you drowsy. Most people just can't take the side effects of the 1st generation antihistamines. There are alot of other options out there, so if OTC Claritin doesn't work for you, I would really urge you to see a doctor and try a prescription drug.
When I was dinking around I found this interesting tidbit on UpToDate.... "licorice ingestion prolongs QT-intervals and may potentially have additive drug antihistamine effects." So licorice = good for those with allergies. And, licorice = bad for those on QT prolonging drugs or with pre-existing arrythmias. Who would have thought!
