Asthma and nasal allergies often go hand in hand. In other words, people with asthma often have nasal allergies as well, and vice versa. Having one of these diseases puts you at high risk for the other, as does having parents who have either asthma or alleriges.

Both conditions affect different sections of your airways, so the methods for treating them are somewhat similar. For instance, inhaled steroids can be used effectively for both asthma and nasal allergies.

However, steroids tend to be most effective when they are inhaled into the affected part of your body. So nasal steroid sprays tend to work well for nasal allergies, and steroids inhaled through the mouth into the lungs using an inhaler device work best for asthma. But having to take 2 different medications isn’t much fun.

So, when the pharmaceutical company Merck developed an “all in one” type drug called Singulair, many people who had both asthma and allergies, were thrilled. Here was a little pill that could help relieve the symptoms of BOTH asthma and allergies! Singulair is an oral medicine called a leukotriene modifier. But how effective is it really?

A recent study attempted to figure that out, as well as to look at the effectiveness of a combination asthma drug called Advair. Advair contains both an inhaled steroid and a type of drug called a long-acting bronchodilator and is most commonly used in more severe cases of asthma. Researchers looked at different combination treatments involving the combo drug Advair, Singulair and combinations with both, as follows:

• Advair alone
• Singulair alone
• Advair with Singulair
• Advair with a nasal steroid spray

Here are the highlights of the study:

• Involved 660 people age 15 years and older who had both persistent asthma and seasonal allergies
• People treated with Advair only had significant improvement in peak flow readings, while those treated with Singulari did not
• They also had more symptom-free days and used their rescue inhalers less
• Those treated with Advair and the nasal spray saw significant improvement in daytime nasal symptoms.

This study focused mainly on asthma outcomes in people with both asthma and allergies, and not allergy outcomes. So, it was not reported as to whether Singulair was an effective medication in treating seasonal allergies. Past studies have shown that, though.

So what does this research mean to you, if you have both asthma and allergies. Well, mainly it points up the fact that physicians need to find the right combination of drugs to treat you effectively. If you’re not achieving complete asthma control AND complete nasal allergies control, it might be time to talk with your doctor about a change in treatment.