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Preventing Allergic Asthma Starts In Your Home

consumerreports.org

Spring is often associated with the flare up of allergies but during the holiday season, people can experience intense asthma symptoms. According to experts, there are ways to solve this problem instead of just treating the symptoms. 

Robin Wilson, an interior designer who suffers from allergic asthma and Dr. Beth Corn, an allergist, are working to help people suffering from allergies year round. But especially during the holiday season.

Wilson said there are simple ways to make the holiday season better for you and any friends or family staying in your home.

“There are some simple tips and the first thing is that if you don’t have a vacuum with a HEPA filter, try to get one,” Wilson said. “It will prevent the dust from spewing back into your place and it’s the season to change your AC or your heater filter. If you could do that every three months, that would be a great idea. Dryer sheets act like an electro-static cloth and they can clean all the dust of the surface of your furniture.”

The decorations that have been sitting in your garage all year most likely have a thick layer of dust on the box you stored them in. Wilson said it’s a good idea to use that dryer sheet to clean any dust before bringing it into the house.

“But I also want to bring up one other thing,” Wilson said. “Guest bedrooms, your bedroom, you spend one-third of your life sleeping - make your bedrooms a sanctuary. I have something called the rule of threes, and the first question I ask before I tell you that is when is the last time you washed or replaced your pillow?”

The rule of threes includes using a different pillow cover or replacing it every three weeks, according to Wilson. Every three months you need to wash your pillow and if you don’t do any of that, at least replace your pillow every three years.

Allergies may seem like a small health concern, but allergist Beth Corn said she sees a big difference in the patients that she helps.

“I’m an allergist and I treat a lot of asthmatic patients,” Corn said. “I love treating asthmatic patients because you can really help them and make them better. Once I treated my first asthmatic I knew that this was my lifetime calling. So here I am.”