Spring Cleaning Tips to Prevent Spring Allergies

Now is the time to let spring into your home after a long winter’s nap … and let out the toxins, allergens and irritants that have been hibernating. All this indoor air pollution can trigger asthma and allergies. Therefore, a good spring cleaning is just what the doctor ordered. So when is the best time to start? In March or April, before the pollen is released from trees. You should open the windows and doors, to ventilate the house, so make sure you start prior to the beginning of spring pollen season. Here are a few simple tips to help clean up those hidden hazards lurking in your home, and potentially reduce spring allergy symptoms.

Wipe Out Mold

April showers bring May flowers—as well as mold, since this ugly fungus thrives in moist environments. And yes, it grew during the winter, too, handily fed by unvented bathrooms and your humidifier set to counteract drying indoor heat. Mold can be a potent trigger of asthma as well as typical hay fever symptoms—sneezing and itchy, watery eyes. Even if you’re not allergic, there’s nothing wrong with getting rid of mold. It doesn’t smell good and a high concentration might predispose adverse symptoms. Eliminating mold means removing its moisture source and cleaning it up with a commercial product or a solution of 1 cup of bleach in 1 gallon of water.

Formaldehyde is a gas often required to manufacture pressed-wood furniture, carpets and permanent-press fabrics used for drapery, and these products emit the gas back into your home’s air. It’s a volatile organic compound associated with adverse symptoms. So, even if you’re not allergic, you can have irritation of the mucus membrane that leads to sneezing and coughing or post-nasal drainage. Now is a great time to reduce exposure by throwing open the windows, bringing out the fans, and airing out areas where the gas accumulates—like your living room.

That arsenal of cleaning supplies under your kitchen sink may kill germs, but many of them also fill the air with fumes that trigger headaches, skin rashes, eye irritation, coughing and wheezing. There are two healthy alternatives to chemical cleaners. The first is a hypoallergenic dusting cloth, which uses static electricity to hold dust particles and won’t disperse dust into the air. The second is a steam mop that uses only water. Because of the steam’s low moisture and high temperature, it kills mold, bacteria and viruses.

Your warm, comfy bed may have uninvited guests—dust mites that feed on dead skin cells. They intensify asthma and allergy symptoms, and can cause a sneezy, runny, itchy nose even if you don’t have allergies. To banish these bugs, you should follow a four-pronged attack: Encase your mattress, box spring and pillows in dust-mite-proof covers; vacuum the bedroom floor and all upholstered furniture weekly; wash bedding weekly in hot water; and decrease your home’s humidity to 50 percent. If your child is allergic, wash stuffed animals on a regular basis.

To schedule an appointment with an NCH Medical Group Allergist, visit nchmedicalgroup.com or call NCH HealthConnection at 847.618.4YOU.