Preventing Back to School Bugs
It is no surprise that allergies and common sickness are spread like wildfire every year as we transition into the fall months. Between the ever changing weather and heading back to school, it seems that something is always “going around”. What might be surprising, however, is how many small changes around your home can greatly affect your family’s health! Here are a few easy things to try to make this back-to-school transition a bit easier.
- Control dust mites
- Reducing your humidity level is a great way to make your home less welcoming to these pests. Dust mites thrive in warm and humid settings so it is recommended to keep 50 percent humidity or lower by running the air conditioning as well as a dehumidifier. This can be especially effective in bedrooms and living areas with upholstered furniture and drapes. Because these allergens settle onto fabrics and dust rather than staying in the air, making a habit of vacuuming carpets and rugs, dusting blinds, and washing drapes more often will also help keep dust mites under control. Using high heat to both wash and dry bedding is another easy tweak that can help ensure your home is a clean and comfortable environment free of dust mites.
- Reduce pet dander and shedding
- While we love the furry members of our family and the impact they have on our lives, sometimes, our immune systems are not quite as smitten. Making sure our pets are bathed and groomed consistently can limit the amount of shedding around the house and washing their favorite furniture and toys can make sure our homes are a little healthier for the whole family, fur babies included. Even if you are not allergic to your pets themselves, they can easily carry dust mites, pollen, and even mold spores in their fur. For this reason, restricting pets from certain areas in the home, such as bedrooms, can be beneficial for reduced exposure to allergens that they may carry as well.
- Avoid mold spores
- Our kitchens and bathrooms are two areas that are most important to keep clean and can simultaneously become a breeding ground for mold spores. Limiting the amount of time that the shower is running, cleaning bath toys often, and quickly fixing any leaks and damp areas around your roof, walls, and plumbing can instantly help reduce mold growth and improve cleanliness. There are also specific mold-killing products that can be a quick swap to keep away growth in these rooms that often contain higher moisture levels.
- Wash high traffic areas often
- Because the average person’s hands carry over 3,000 different bacteria, disinfecting common touch points can prove to be essential in preventing common viruses and diseases. Some such surfaces would include door knobs, drawer and cabinet handles, and light switches, which can be easily overlooked when we clean our homes. Other high traffic areas include tables, chairs, counters, and sinks – all of which are important to clean and disinfect regularly.
- Put your aesthetic to work
- Typically as soon as the leaves start changing the candles start burning which can either help purify your home or quickly give off additional toxins to circulate in the air. Some things to look for in clean candles include soy or beeswax instead of paraffin wax and wood, hemp, or 100% cotton wicks in place of metal core wicks. Certain fragrances can also carry toxins into your home so swapping to naturally scented candles can help keep the cozy fall aesthetic in a safer way.
- Another option is substituting candles entirely for diffusing essential oils. While Tea Tree, Peppermint, and Ylang Ylang have amazing benefits for us, you will want to be careful with these oils if you have pets, as they can be toxic for them. Thankfully, there are still plenty of safe options! Orange Blood, Cardamom, and Frankincense oils help set a snuggly fall mood, and other oils such as lavender and eucalyptus can combat allergies.
- Limit bringing the outdoors in with you
- Keeping doors and windows closed will help avoid pollen coming into your home. Although pollen is an essential part of the reproductive cycle, it is also one of the biggest culprits of seasonal allergies for over 25 million people. When mixed with the humid air outside you get the perfect recipe for major allergies. By keeping your doors and windows closed as much as possible you can help keep these effects at bay. Removing shoes and jackets at the door will also limit the amount of allergens you bring in as well.
On average we spend about two-thirds of our lives in our homes so creating a safe atmosphere is essential, and thankfully, easily attainable. Despite allergies and common sickness being unavoidable, a few quick changes can ensure that our homes stay safe and comfortable during these busy months.