By Dr. K. P. Loknath Kumar, General Physician
With the onset of winter comes the fun of playing in the snow, but on the other, you have things such as winter allergies, which can be quite nasty. What if there was something that one could do so as to control it?
How to keep a lid on the allergies
The good news is that there is not just one, but a number of things which can be done in order to control winter allergy. Also, these things can be so simple. Some of the easy and effective practises include the following:
• Making good use of a saline spray helps prevent a winter allergy from coming about. Squirting saline spray into one’s nostrils prior to going to bed is not complicated and is indeed useful as it cleanses the nasal passages, making sure that one would not have to breathe in the irritants for hours on end while sleeping.
• Calling a pest control service may mean spending a significant amount of money, but it is true that this amount will pay off rapidly by the way of the time spent down with avoidable allergies. Cockroaches may not be thought of much, but they can be the cause for allergies. Cockroach allergens are present in almost two thirds of houses and if a person is susceptible to allergies already, they can only make the situation worse!
• Vacuuming one’s house on a weekly basis, at the very least, is important. This is especially true if one happens to have a large amount of carpeting in the house. Carpets can be catchment reserves for allergens. In an ideal case, there would be no carpeting and if one’s problems with allergies are very bad, this is a good idea to consider, as removing carpets will have its benefits.
• Many people buy and overuse a humidifier to avoid the air getting too dry indoors. This is not the right thing to do. While it is important to use one, as breathing dry air can lead to the nasal passages flaring up at the slightest threat of an allergen, overusing one can lead to a growth of mould, the last thing one wants. So, it is a good idea to keep the levels of humidity a little under 40%.
• Dogs are wonderful pets, but in winter, getting someone else to bathe and groom them makes sense. This massively cuts the risk of allergies. After all, doesn’t everyone wish to go through winter without these avertable allergies?