A staggering 50 million Americans experience some sort of allergic reaction every year. Allergies are one of the leading causes of chronic illnesses in the US.
Several things can trigger a reaction, from pollen to dust. Generally, we've been told that we should take precautions while outside to protect ourselves from these allergies. However, triggers that make us reach for allergy relief medication are present in our homes too.
Read on to find out about the different types of allergy triggers that could be in your home:
1. Your Pets
While it might be heartbreaking to hear, your pet could very well be the reason your allergies act up when you're at home. Pets could trigger your allergies due to the skin they shed or the fur in their skin.
Cats and dogs are the most common pets, and they also tend to be the ones who trigger allergies most often.Pets also gather all sorts of pollen and spores when outside, which could be the reason your allergy is triggered.
The symptoms of an allergy from a pet include sneezing, asthma, runny nose, coughing, etc. Taking sleeping aids won't resolve these symptoms.
2. Carpets and Cloth Upholstery Around the House
Dust is one of the main triggers of allergies, and cloth upholstery around the house tend to collect and trap dust, leading to persistent allergic reactions.
These cloth items can include the carpet, curtains, drapes, and sheets. However, the largest impact usually comes from the carpet. Many homes have permanent carpeting, which cannot be cleaned without turning the whole house inside out.
As a result, the carpet rarely gets adequately cleaned, and it collects a considerable amount of dust, pollen, and other irritants inside.Other irritants such as pet hair can also get trapped, particularly in your bedsheets, thus making a good night's sleep a chore.
One way to resolve the issue is to get a HEPA filter for your vacuum and use it to clean the house thoroughly. The other is to talk to your local pharmacy and get allergy medication for your condition.
Another popular option is removing the carpeting entirely. That's because while the rest of the home can still be cleaned up, permanent carpeting is a significant hassle to deep-clean every week.
3. Mold and Humidity
You may consider mold a minor or rare issue, but mold happens to be present in 50% of all US homes. What's more? Nearly 25% of Americans have genes that make them allergic to mold. A mold allergy can lead to a need for strong headache medicine, along with allergy medication.
You may not even know that your home has mold, as it could be hidden in the basement or other dimly-lit areas of the house that you may not visit frequently. Your body may see mold spores as foreign bodies and trigger allergic reactions as a response.
The best way to take care of the mold issue is to get a professional to look through your house, assess the issue, and resolve it no matter what. That's because, along with your allergies, the mold can spread throughout the house and damage it.
Humidity can also cause mold to grow anywhere inside the house. The problem is worse during the summers, particularly during the summer. The easiest way to resolve the issue is to use the air-conditioning regularly.
4. Smoke and Smog
There are several ways that smoke and smog can enter the home and affect you.
One of them could be smoke inside the house because of cooking, a fireplace, or cigarettes.The other way could be that smog outside the house finds its way in. This could be because of the area that you live in.
The only way to get rid of smog it is to close your home's windows and doors tightly. You might need to get older doors and windows fixed, as they may be inadequate at keeping foreign elements out.
Smoke and smog can affect someone with asthma seriously, leading to severe coughing, chest pain, and labored breathing.
5. Cockroaches and Other Pests
One of the primary hidden triggers in any home is cockroaches. It's not the pest itself that does the damage, but their droppings. The droppings from cockroaches contain proteins that trigger a reaction. This reaction can only be controlled by the best allergy medicine.
Just like cockroaches, other pests can also trigger some allergies, either via their droppings or when they shed their skin. The easiest way to stop the issue is to ensure that none of the droppings or skin finds its way into your food. Keep all your food in containers, and keep the dishes at a place where pests can't reach them.
The long-term solution is to use pesticides throughout the home and seal off any cracks in the home.
If the problem isn't subsiding after the above methods, then it may be time to go for fumigation that gets rid of all the pests at once. Of course, even after fumigation, you will need to maintain the home's cleanliness.
Taking care of all the above triggers isn't easy, and it may take you a lot of time to ensure that your home is truly free from these issues. If you're looking for reliable, high-quality allergy medication to help you stave off allergies in the meantime, get in touch with us as Health A2Z.
We're a pharmaceutical store that provides top-quality allergy relief medicines at affordable prices. We provide medicine home delivery throughout the US.
Call us today to discuss more our products, and take a look at all the pharmaceutical products we provide.