Asthma is a disease that affects quite a few in our population. If you are a mother with an asthmatic child, you will remember the heart wrenching agony you felt when the diagnosis was first given to you. You imagined a lifetime of wheezing and crises. However, this may not be so. Hygiene around the house plays a large role in ensuring that allergens which are substances that provoke allergies and could start up an asthmatic attack are on the low side and therefore your child healthy. Dust mites are small organisms that are not usually visible to the naked eyes found in fabric, feathers and wool. Thus they are usually resident in pillows, throws etc and feed on dead skin that human beings shed normally everyday. They love moisture and heat and thus can be found on beds as a result of the sweat from people. Though they do not fly, as beds are being made and they can fly across the room and cause allergic reactions on people who are prone or trigger an asthmatic attack in people with these conditions. How to hold this small but mighty organism at bay? Here are our top five tips • Remove dust. Try dusting with a damp napkin or an oiled duster. This ensures that the dust doesn’t get airborne to settle somewhere else. Worse still to settle inside the airways of an asthmatic. This is sure to provoke an attack. Try vacuuming instead of using a broom or brush. • Use allergen proof mattress covers. These covers are tightly woven; they trap and prevent the dust mites from escaping from the mattress to provoke the airways into spasm. • Wash beddings every week. This should also be done for stuffed toys. Ensure that this is done with hot water to kill the dust mites and remove allergens. And stuffed toys should be kept off beddings. • Limit the use of carpeting and other dust collecting items of furniture around the house like curtains and upholstered chairs. These are major reservoirs of dust mites. Scrub, polish and keep your floors clean; change curtains to horizontal blinds and reduce the population of these mites significantly. • Keep the moisture and humidity low and reduce clutter. These would reduce the breeding places of the mites. With simple hygiene tips, even diseases like asthma can be controlled. So join us as we do this.
Posted on: Thu, 05 Dec 2013 06:32:29 +0000