How does diphenhydramine Hcl and dimenhydrinate work?
Antihistamines generally, and Diphenydramine Hcl specifically, act by antagonizing histamine at the site of the H1 histamine receptor. Antihistamines dry up the secretion of the nose, throat, and eyes. They relieve itch and will help you go to sleep. Dimenhydrinate depresses the middle-ear function, but the way in which it actually prevents nausea, vomiting, or dizziness is not known. However, these drugs are not just antihistamines. They have a significant amount of anticholinergic activity. What does this mean? There’s a chemical in the nervous system called acetylcholine, which is one of a set of substances called neurotransmitters. These chemicals transmit signals from one neuron to another. Acetylcholine is present in many different parts of the brain. Notably, it’s present in areas thought to be associated with memory, and is the primary transmitter of the motor pathways leading off from the spinal cord. It plays a role in just about every system, however. Dramamine et al work to
