Tips to Help Manage Your Seasonal Allergies

When you live in the Twin Cities, chances are you look forward to spring's arrival after months of dealing with cold, dreary winter weather. If you have seasonal allergies, however, those can put a damper on spring's much-anticipated sunnier, warmer days. 

Luckily, it's not too difficult to manage seasonal allergy symptoms when you take a multi-pronged approach. Here are some tips to help you control your allergies outdoors and inside your home.

Shower After Spending Time Outdoors

Pollen granules are incredibly lightweight and can easily stick to your clothing, shoes, and even your hair and skin when you're outdoors. When you enter your home, you carry those stuck-on granules with you, and if you don't get them off, they'll exacerbate your allergies.

To control the amount of pollen you bring indoors:

●        Remove your clothing and shoes when you come inside your house.

●        Toss your clothes in the wash and, ideally, keep your shoes just outside your door.

●        Hop in the shower to get those tiny pollen granules out of your hair and off your skin. If you do this daily, chances are you'll notice an improvement in your allergy symptoms.

Get Your Indoor Air Quality Tested

Asthma and allergy control begins in your living space, and it's not uncommon for people to stay indoors when pollen counts are high. But if you have other underlying issues like pet dander, dust mites, and even VOC, these can all exasperate pre-existing conditions.

The EPA recommends that you mitigate how much contact you have with outdoor and indoor allergens and make sure that indoor areas have good air quality and are ventilated.

While it may seem like your air quality is good, the truth is it can have two to five times more pollution than the outside, so at-home testing is recommended.

Not only will an air quality test let you know about allergen triggers, but it can also narrow down if you're dealing with asbestos, radon, and mold, all of which can increase symptoms and make issues worse if left with prolonged exposure.

Get Your Air Ducts Cleaned

If you haven't historically made a habit of removing your clothes and shoes and showering after you've been outdoors, you've likely brought tons of pollen inside your home. And while some of that pollen may settle in your living spaces, much of it can end up inside your air vents.

Each time your HVAC system kicks on, it may be recirculating those pollen granules into the air you breathe, which can cause your allergies to continually act up.

You can easily solve this issue by scheduling a professional duct cleaning appointment. Pro duct cleaning specialists use various specialized cleaning tools and techniques to rid your ductwork of dust, debris, and allergens that naturally accumulate over time.

Check out Can Duct Cleaning Help Control Spring Allergies? for more info on how getting your air ducts cleaned can help improve your symptoms.

Use an Air Purification System

If there are allergens inside your house, there's a good chance many of those allergens are floating around in the air you breathe.

Although your HVAC filter can trap some of those allergens, it can only trap the ones that come into contact with it. The other particles floating around in your indoor air will continue exacerbating your allergy symptoms until they're removed.

How do you remove airborne allergens effectively? With an air purification system. Depending on your needs and budget, you may want to opt for portable air purifiers first to see if they work for you. Or, you can have a whole-house air purification system professionally installed into your HVAC system, which will filter allergens from every room in your home.

For tips on choosing the right system for your home, check out Air Purification Systems: Which Type Is Best for Your Home?

Protect Your Living Space

Allergies can cause all kinds of symptoms, so to rest and breathe easier, a few steps you can take to keep yourself protected include:

●        Run the air conditioner and keep windows closed.

●        Swap out your ceiling fan with an air conditioner because it can harbor a build-up of dust and allergens.

●        Purchase zippered covers for the mattress, box springs, and pillows.

●        Invest in blinds instead of fabric curtains and switch to hardwood or laminate from carpet.

●        Implement a stringent cleaning regimen, use microfiber clothes, clean bedding at least once a week, and stay on top of dusting to pick up any excess particulates.

Boost Your Indoor Air Quality and Keep Allergies at Bay With Dust Doctors

If you or any members of your household live with seasonal allergies, let our team at Dust Doctors help you clean up your indoor air and get those symptoms under control!

We specialize in comprehensive duct cleaning, air purification system installation, and HVAC cleaning and maintenance for homeowners in Little Canada, MN, and the surrounding Minneapolis/St. Paul metro.

To get started or learn more, feel free to call us today at 651-319-9777 or request a free service quote online, and we'll be in touch!