Carefully take jackets and over-shirts off, try not to rustle the fabric too much, hold them by the shoulders and fold the outside (where the pollen will be attached) to the inside so the pollen won't come off inside the house. Take the outer garments to the clothes dryer and run them on the air dry setting for 10 minutes or so, to get the pollen off. Do not put these items in the coat closet or sweater drawer while they've got pollen on them. If you have housemates, they need to do this too if at all possible. If that's not happening, negotiate for allergen free rooms and insist no one come in from outside unless they've changed their clothes and wiped face and hands first.
Wearing a hat or scarf will keep the pollen from getting in your hair. The bigger the hat, scarf and sunglasses the more they protect you from exposure. When you come inside, run them through the dryer with your jacket etc or wipe them with a damp cloth before you get too far inside your home. If you shake them off before you come in, keep in mind that you'll get some of that pollen back on you and some will whoosh inside behind you as you come through the door.
Consider having a small hand held vacuum near the door to vacuum your clothes off, doing so safely. If you don't have a bathroom near the entry, have some pre-moistened wipes nearby to wipe your hands and face, etc.
Always take shoes off at the door, allergies or no. Just imagine all the really nasty molecules collecting on your shoes and coming in your home.
Keep the entryways dusted, wiped and vacuumed during the allergy seasons. A lot of pollen comes in on clothes and on the air as the door opens. Negotiate for someone else to take care of the dusting and vacuuming while you are not home. Keep in mind that it will take a couple hours for the dust kicked up by the cleaning to settle again.
Moist air holds less pollutants since as the moisture settles out it takes the pollutants with it. Running a humidifier may help, running an air purifier may help, but if your room is cluttered the air will not circulate and these devices will be much less effective.
In order to have good indoor air quality you need to address all three of these topics... the source of the pollutants, cleaning the air you have, bringing in fresh clean air.
1) minimize the source of the pollutants, ie: dust, fabric fibers, etc can be kept to a minimum if you have leather, wicker or wooden furniture and less carpeting - for pollen and outdoor pollutants, keep windows closed and change clothes and shower or at least wipe pollen etc off your exposed skin when coming in - to minimize mold spores you must keep moisture sources dry by running a dehumidifier in basements, exhaust fans in bathrooms and kitchens, leave all sinks, shower and tub dry.
2) to clean the air you have, consider this, moist air holds less pollutants because as the moisture settles out it takes the pollutants with it. (that is why your bathroom walls get streaky after a while) Air purifiers and humidifiers require air to circulate in order to be effective. If your room is cluttered the air is not circulating completely. Also, there are many houseplants that remove toxins from the air, This website had good info http://www.extension.umn.edu/yardandgarden/ygbriefs/h110indoorair.html and this website has some good info as well http://www.thegoodairlady.com/cleaning_the_dirty_air_inside_your_home_with_air_purifiers_000169.html.
3) must have clean, fresh air coming in so maintain air conditioners and air exchangers and change filters when they get dirty. If you have windows that face a busy street do not open them unless it is to blow air out. The particles from car exhaust and from rubber tires on the asphalt are minuscule, smaller even than what our lungs are designed to eliminate. These particles fluff out around the road for many yards and settle slowly since they are so small. If you notice black dust/dirt on the windowsills on the road side wipe them up with a very wet cloth to get it all up. Don't kick them back into the air. Vacuuming may not be a good idea since the particles may be smaller even than what the HEPA filter in you vac can hold.
If you suffer from breathing based allergies you don't need me to tell you how awful it is. It must be a group effort to keep the outdoor pollutants outdoors. Surely your housemates are on board with these suggestions and the entire household will be healthier for it. Breathe easy, my babies and I'll blog again soon on general health and safety ideas to work into your household routines.
Always take shoes off at the door, allergies or no. Just imagine all the really nasty molecules collecting on your shoes and coming in your home.
Keep the entryways dusted, wiped and vacuumed during the allergy seasons. A lot of pollen comes in on clothes and on the air as the door opens. Negotiate for someone else to take care of the dusting and vacuuming while you are not home. Keep in mind that it will take a couple hours for the dust kicked up by the cleaning to settle again.
Moist air holds less pollutants since as the moisture settles out it takes the pollutants with it. Running a humidifier may help, running an air purifier may help, but if your room is cluttered the air will not circulate and these devices will be much less effective.
In order to have good indoor air quality you need to address all three of these topics... the source of the pollutants, cleaning the air you have, bringing in fresh clean air.
1) minimize the source of the pollutants, ie: dust, fabric fibers, etc can be kept to a minimum if you have leather, wicker or wooden furniture and less carpeting - for pollen and outdoor pollutants, keep windows closed and change clothes and shower or at least wipe pollen etc off your exposed skin when coming in - to minimize mold spores you must keep moisture sources dry by running a dehumidifier in basements, exhaust fans in bathrooms and kitchens, leave all sinks, shower and tub dry.
2) to clean the air you have, consider this, moist air holds less pollutants because as the moisture settles out it takes the pollutants with it. (that is why your bathroom walls get streaky after a while) Air purifiers and humidifiers require air to circulate in order to be effective. If your room is cluttered the air is not circulating completely. Also, there are many houseplants that remove toxins from the air, This website had good info http://www.extension.umn.edu/yardandgarden/ygbriefs/h110indoorair.html and this website has some good info as well http://www.thegoodairlady.com/cleaning_the_dirty_air_inside_your_home_with_air_purifiers_000169.html.
3) must have clean, fresh air coming in so maintain air conditioners and air exchangers and change filters when they get dirty. If you have windows that face a busy street do not open them unless it is to blow air out. The particles from car exhaust and from rubber tires on the asphalt are minuscule, smaller even than what our lungs are designed to eliminate. These particles fluff out around the road for many yards and settle slowly since they are so small. If you notice black dust/dirt on the windowsills on the road side wipe them up with a very wet cloth to get it all up. Don't kick them back into the air. Vacuuming may not be a good idea since the particles may be smaller even than what the HEPA filter in you vac can hold.
If you suffer from breathing based allergies you don't need me to tell you how awful it is. It must be a group effort to keep the outdoor pollutants outdoors. Surely your housemates are on board with these suggestions and the entire household will be healthier for it. Breathe easy, my babies and I'll blog again soon on general health and safety ideas to work into your household routines.
