Indoor Allergies and What You Can Do About Them

If you’re allergic to mold, breathing in mold spores causes your immune system to overreact. You will experience coughing, itchy eyes, or other symptoms that make you feel sick. A mold allergy can also be linked to asthma in some people.

There are many molds that grow in your home, but only certain kinds cause allergies. The most common of these include alternaria, aspergillus, cladosporium, and penicillium. They cause an overly sensitive immune system to produce histamine, triggering itchy/watery eyes, runny nose, and sneezing.

Mold thrives in moist, damp areas in your home. Eliminate dampness and moisture from surfaces and from the air. This is the best way to lessen you and your family’s exposure to airborne mold. Here are a few ways to help you do so:

• • Use a dehumidifier to lower humidity to less than 50%.
  • Clean up wet spots caused by leaky pipes, water seepage during rainstorms, and flood damage. Keep your kitchen and bathrooms clean and dry.
  • Adequate ventilation is key to keeping your house moisture free. Tight windows and door seals tend to trap moisture indoors, creating the conditions for mold to grow.

One of the most common types of indoor allergies is unfortunately pet allergies. Though they are adorable, fluffy, and full of love, some times people may end up finding out that they have a minor to severe allergy relating to their four legged friends.

Pet dander is the culprit in most of these unpleasant symptoms. The dead flakes of skin that dogs and cats shed daily is what causes these reactions. Pets also produce allergens from their saliva, urine, and feces. Cats cause allergies because of the Fel d 1 protein produced by their skin, saliva, and sebaceous glands.

In dogs, it’s the Can f 1 and Can f 2 protein that trigger allergic reactions. These microscopic pet allergens remain suspended in the air for long periods of time. They easily stick to furniture, bedding, and fabrics.

Dogs and cats aren’t the only pets that create allergens. Rodent pets such as hamsters, gerbils, mice, and guinea pigs do, too. The ones you don’t have to worry about don’t have fur, such as fish or reptiles.

Typical cat, dog, and pet allergy symptoms often include:

• • sneezing
  • runny nose
  • asthma-like wheezing
  • difficulty breathing

There are other more unpleasant symptoms that those suffering from pet related allergies could suffer as well. Pet allergy sufferers may also experience the following:

• • facial pressure and pain
  • frequent awakening at night
  • swollen, blue-colored skin under the eyes
  • Inflamed skin - causing raised red patches, eczema, and itchy skin

As you might have guessed, dust mites live in household dust. They are close relatives to ticks and spiders, but are too small to be seen without a microscope. However, you will know they are there if you experience dust mite allergy symptoms like:

• • sneezing
  • runny nose
  • asthmatic wheezing
  • breathing is difficult

It’s not the dust mites themselves that cause the allergy in people, but the feces and decaying bodies of the mites. Dust mites live on the skin cells shed by people, and thrive in warm, humid surroundings. The optimal environments for dust mites in your home include bedding, upholstered furniture, and carpeting.

To control dust mites, keep the humidity in your home low. That coupled with regular and thorough house cleaning, especially in the bedroom, is the key to controlling dust mites.

Pollen allergies are caused by outdoor and indoor allergens, including pollen. Symptoms occur when your immune system misidentifies pollen as harmful. This causes the release of histamines in your bloodstream, leading to the misery of hay fever.

Symptoms for pollen related allergies can include (but are not limited to):

• • Runny nose
  • Itchy eyes
  • Congestion
  • Sneezing
  • Sinus pressure

When you are dealing with indoor allergies, regardless of the degree to which you are affected by them, having a constant supply of clean air flowing through your ductwork is important. It can make a whole world

of difference in the way you breathe and live. One of the best ways you can get that is by installing an Air Health Haven Whole House Purifier in your home's ductwork!

The Air Health Haven Whole House Purifiers uses a modern UV germicidal lightbulb to constantly attack and neutralize more than 99% of organic airborne toxins, like germs, viruses, bacteria, and contaminants responsible for allergy related problems.