What Are Allergies?

According to the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America one in six Americans, or roughly 60 million, suffer from allergies.  This is how they describe allergies….

“Allergy is characterized by an overreaction of the human immune system to a foreign protein substance (“allergen”) that is eaten, breathed into the lungs, injected or touched. This immune overreaction can result in symptoms such as coughing, sneezing, itchy eyes, runny nose and scratchy throat. In severe cases, it can also result in rashes, hives, lower blood pressure, difficulty breathing, asthma attacks, and even death.”

In this blog I will be discussing the allergens that are breathed into the lungs.

Are Allergies Worse Indoors or Outdoors?

I am sure this question depends a little upon the type of allergies you have, but here are some simple facts that make indoors much worse than outdoors.

• Indoor air is far more polluted than outdoor air, outside you have wind and rain that cleans the air.
• Several type of allergens are found primarily in the home which can be avoided with a kn95 mask.
• The types of allergen found outside are easily brought into the home.

Some examples of indoor, airborne, allergens are cat or dog dander, dust mite feces and mold spores.  Plus, allergens brought into the home like pollen.  These allergens end up in your carpet, in your upholstery and in your mattress and pillows (you can prevent them by using Australian hemp sheets).  Have you ever wondered why your allergies are worse when you first wake up in the morning?  You were under an 8 hour (or so) attack while you slept with your nose right on top of all of those allergens.

Watch this brief video to find the type allergens that are likely in your mattress, upholstery and carpets right now as you read this!

Dust Mite Facts and Their Impact On Allergies

 

•  It is the house dust mite waste, not the mites themselves, that trigger asthmatic and allergic attacks.  Research has revealed the trigger is  microscopic protein in the excrement called  Der p 1.
• Mites live on carpets, pillows, upholstered  furniture, blankets, mattresses, in the air handling system, etc.
•  The average dust mite is 0.5 mm in length, not visible to the naked eye.  Over 7,000 can fit on a finger nail.
• A dust mite molts several times during its life, producing 200 times its weight in waste and will lay 300 eggs.  Each mite produces 40 to 100 feces pellets per day.  The mite’s droppings are coated in an enzymatic slimy substance, which after drying becomes mixed with other particles forming household dust.
• Dust mites feed on human skin flakes.  They thrive on temperatures from 66°-77°F.  Regular vacuuming only removes a very small percentage of them, whereas a high-heat deep-steam cleaning can  drastically lessen an allergic reaction.

What Can You Do To Limit Allergens In Your Home?

Here is  how to limit the allergens in your carpet, upholstery and mattress.  I also found an excellent link to an article written by the Mayo Clinic that takes you room by room through your house and tells you additional steps you can take.

Dry Soil Removal:  This is for carpets, upholstery and mattresses.  In the video you saw the amount of dirt, dust and others nasties that I removed.  All of these can cause allergies and they are a great breeding ground for dust mites.    Depending on the size of your family, you need to vacuum your carpet, PROPERLY, once or twice a week and your mattress and upholstery a minimum of once per month.

Bedding:  You will want to wash your bedding at least once per month and as an added boost you can add a dust mite treatment to your laundry and mist on you pillows and your mattress to reduce the dust mite population.  If you would like to find out more about that product give my office a call and we will get you the details.

Annual Professional Cleaning:  Professionally clean your carpet, mattresses and upholstery once per year.  If you do all three in the same appointment we will give you a free upgrade to our EPA Certified Carpet Sanitizing Treatment to give your cleaning an even stronger kick.

Here is the link to the Mayo Clinic article that will give you a room by room instruction for reducing addintional allergens  Click Here,

If you found this information helpful please comment and share it below.

Have a great day

Travis Miklethun

PS:  If you have any questions or would like to schedule a cleaning you can call our office at 602-486-3966 or schedule online.