How to cope with dust allergy in your home

Our homes are supposed to be a relaxing and comforting oasis. However, people suffering with dust allergies might have completely different feelings about their homes. Connecting the coozy feeling to constant sneezing, running or stuffed nose, coughing and red and teary eyes. It’s a natural reaction for most people to clean a lot, when suffering from dust allergy.

Yet, what most people with dust allergies aren’t aware of or know about is, that vacuuming and dusting often make symptoms worse, because the cleaning stirs up all the dust particles thus making them easier to breathe in.

If you’re worried about being allergic to dust, consult your doctor or an allergist to get a check-up. You aren’t necessary allergic to all types of house dust and for that matter, it’s important to specify which type of dust you react towards.

The allergist will often ask questions about your home and work environment, the frequency of symptoms and severity of the symptoms. Furthermore, the allergist will ask about your family’s medical history and likewise whether you’ve been exposed to pets or alike. The allergist also conducts a skin test to determine whether you have dust allergy and what exactly triggers it.

What are dust mites?

If you got dust allergy there are a few triggers, you need to be aware of. Especially dust mites are a well-known trigger, and we’ll tell you more about dust mites in the following. You aren’t directly having a reaction towards the dust mites themselves, but towards their waste. They live in warm and humid places such as carpeting, sofas and beds. Yet, dust mites can’t be seen with the naked eye either, because they measure no more than 0.33 mm. This makes it extremely difficult for you to know, where exactly they live and reproduce and whether you’ve gotten rid of them.

3 ways to manage dust allergy at home

If the skin test at the doctor is positive and shows you’ve got dust allergy, your doctor will decide whether you need medical treatment or not. However, it’s also clever to make some changes at home to reduce the symptoms and avoid things that most likely cause your allergic reaction. The dust mites can hide and reproduce in many different things, which you can read more about here. Below you’ll find ways to handle your dust allergy at home, so that it ones again becomes your sanctuary – the relaxing and comforting oasis, you’ve dreamed about.

• Buy mite-proof bedlinen and wash them regularly (preferably on a weekly basis). It’s important that you wash it in hot water at a minimum of 60 degrees or higher, if you want to get rid of the dust mites.
• Get a HEPA air freshener/air cleanerand place it in the bedroom. This will help to stop bacteria and dust mites in their tracks and capture no less than 99.95% of them.
• Make sure to air your house on a daily basis by opening window and doors 3 x 15 minutes a day. Beware that your house doesn’t feel humid, because dust mites seek this type of environment and reproduce well in it.