A Healthy Home

Posted: 31 August 2009 by Metricon Homes

Tags: carpet, maintenance

Here are some tips from Asthma Victoria on how you can make your home a healthier place. More than two million Australians have asthma and the number is increasing. Although asthma cannot be cured, it can be managed. There can be many triggers for people with asthma within the family home, but you can take precautions to minimise them.

Dust Mites
Dust Mites can trigger asthma in some people and can be found all around the home, including in beds, furniture, carpet and soft furnishings. To removed dust mites around your home, you could vacuum carpets and soft furnishings regularly and thoroughly with a hepa filter and make sure you clean the dust compartment. Ducted vacuum systems are a benefit because they don’t circulate dust around the room while you vacuum and the collection point is outside. Choose carpets that have short pile (can be either wool or synthetic) and make sure your polished floorboards are damp dusted since dry dusting spreads the dust around the room. Bed covers, pillows and doonas with dust mite covers should be washed every three months and make sure you wash your bedding sheets, pillowcases and quilt covers in a hot wash (greater than 55°C).

Heating
If dust mites triggers your asthma it would be better to choose heating that does not move dust around such as Slab Heating, Hot Water Heaters, Convection (hydronic) and Wall Panels and avoid ducted or fan forced heaters. Slow combustion heaters and gas heaters can be used with people with asthma but there needs to be good ventilation and they should be flued correctly to prevent the build up of carbon monoxide. If these heaters have a fan attached they can also be a problem with dust mite allergies. Asthma can be triggered by kerosene heaters and wood fires also give off fumes that can trigger asthma such as nitrogen dioxide and sulphur dioxide.

Cigarette Smoke
Cigarette smoke has 4000 harmful chemicals and can trigger asthma, as well as increase asthma symptoms and frequency of attacks. Smoking may make it more difficult to keep your asthma under control and asthma medication may be less effective if you smoke.

Pets
Allergens are found in the sweat, saliva, hair, urine and dander (dead skin flakes) of pets. Cats tend to produce a more severe allergic reaction than dogs but birds, rabbits, hamsters, guinea pigs, rats and mice can also trigger asthma. If someone with asthma comes into your home, it is important to remember that just by putting the pet outside will not reduce the trigger as pet dander still remains as part of the dust and on furniture. You can decrease the risk of triggering asthma if you have your pet live outside the house, and especially out of your bedroom, in comfortable and safe housing. Birds should be kept in an outside aviary. Ask a non-allergic friend or family member to brush the pet outside. This will remove any loose hair and allergens from the pet, reducing the amount shed indoors.

Much more information can be found on the Asthma Victoria website, www.asthma.org.au, where you will find a wide range of information sheets available for free download.