When it gets cold outside, you must take steps to avoid problems with indoor and winter allergies. You can reduce the impact of carpets and allergies during the winter, and you should work with a doctor if you believe you have undiagnosed allergies. Use these tips to prepare your home for the allergy season. Also, find a doctor who can help you when you have extreme allergy problems.
Get Tested
Premier Allergy offers allergy testing for patients. You may be allergic to pollen, or you may be allergic to specific allergens in the air. Plus, you must consult with a doctor who can explain why the environment might cause problems for you.
You may have asthma or chronic bronchitis, and these conditions might be exacerbated by the winter season. You may need to take preventative measures including an oral steroid, a secondary inhaler, or a primary inhaler you use when you feel shortness of breath. You may discover you have other allergies that must be addressed.
For example, you may cause problems with your lungs and throat if you are eating foods that cause allergy issues. Take the medication you have been prescribed, and contact your doctor when you feel the medication is not working.
Cover Your Mattress
Your mattress can harbor allergens that you never see. Because the mattress is collecting allergens, you will breathe in those allergens every night. You might wake up feeling worse than you did when you went to bed. If you continue to sleep on a dirty mattress, you will continue to feel worse until you cannot breathe or need to go to the doctor.
A basic plastic mattress cover will prevent dust, dirt, and allergens from sitting on the bed. Plus, you can brush the mattress cover clean when you change your sheets as recommended by Premier Allergy.
Wash Your Sheets Often
You should wash your sheets every few days to avoid dust and dirt that stick to the sheets. You can switch out your sheets with a clean set, and you can strip the bed every third day or so for the best results. You must do the same thing with your pillowcases, and you may consider washing your pillows. Pillows that have not been washed might harbor more allergens than your mattress.
Keep A Humidifier Or Dehumidifier In Your Home
If your home gets very dry in the winter, you should use a humidifier to get a little moisture in the air. Mites and dust will float around the house with ease when the air is dry. Plus, you may feel a tickle in your throat that will never go away.
If your home is extremely humid, you must use a dehumidifier to remove mold and mildew from the house. The spores from mold and mildew will cause more allergy issues. Plus, you will never stop coughing because those spores are always floating in the air.
Change Your Air Filters
The filters for your HVAC unit must be changed before the winter season. You can get a special filter that removes dust, dirt, and other winter allergens before the air pass through your vents. You should change your filters every three months, and you may want to change them again during the winter if the filter gets extremely dirty.
Some homeowners might prefer a permanent filter that can be washed. These filters will keep your home in good condition, and you will avoid issues with allergies that start because dust is constantly blowing in your face.
You should clean the vents in the house to remove all dust and dirt that might have collected. However, you may need to take the next step by working with an air duct cleaner.
Get Your Air Ducts Cleaned
You must get your air ducts cleaned by a professional who knows how to remove the vents and inspect the ducts. You may have a cockroach or animal droppings in the ducts. These droppings will cause your allergies to flare up, and you may need to call an exterminator to get these pests out of your house.
Someone who is accustomed to dealing with allergies can feel animal dander in the air, and you should call the inspector the moment you think there is a problem.
Clean Pet Dander In The House
Your rugs and carpeting must be vacuumed often to remove pet dander. Your pets are a precious part of the family, but you must remove their hair and dander. You should vacuum more than once a week, and you should wipe down your furniture to remove all dander and hair that has collected. You can smell the dander in the air, and you will notice the difference when you have cleaned the house.
Wash Your Clothes Faithfully
You should wash your clothes faithfully. You have gone to great lengths to keep the house clean, but there is no guarantee that your clothes are not harboring dust, dirt, pet hair, and dander. You may need to take your clothes to the dry cleaner if they cannot be washed normally. Plus, you should not allow your clothes to sit around before they are cleaned.
You should check the lint collector on your dryer because you can remove all the lint that contains pet dander and hair. You will keep the dryer a bit cleaner, and you should sweep out the interior of the dryer to avoid any dust or dirt from sticking to the drum.
Conclusion
When you are dealing with winter allergies, you should take every step above to keep your home as clean and fresh as possible. You might need to hire a professional to clean your house, or you could clean the house religiously to prevent allergy problems. Cover your mattress, clean your bedding regularly, and keep your clothes free of pet dander. You can change your air filters, and you should contact an HVAC technician when you need help cleaning your air ducts. Your attention to detail will be rewarded the next time you visit the doctor for a follow-up.
A professional writer with over a decade of incessant writing skills. Her topics of interest and expertise range from health, nutrition and psychology.