Micaela Diaz often feels like there is no escaping her allergies.<\/p>\n
The 28-year-old from Brisbane\/Meanjin suffers from seasonal hay fever and a dust-mite allergy.<\/p>\n
“It’s incredibly debilitating,” Micaela says.<\/p>\n
“When it’s really bad, I get swelling of my face and my eyes.”<\/p>\n
She says staying on top of cleaning at home and taking preventative measures on high pollen days can help her symptoms.<\/p>\n
Here’s what experts recommend to decrease dust and pollen in your home this allergy season.<\/p>\n
Is it a dust mite, pet allergy or seasonal hay fever?<\/p>\n
Understanding what is causing your symptoms is the first step, according to Adjunct Associate\u00a0Professor Joy Lee, a researcher from the National Allergy Centre of Excellence in Melbourne\/Naarm.<\/p>\n
“Because you don’t want to go and make huge changes to your home, and [find] it’s not actually that allergen that’s causing problems.”<\/p>\n
The medical term for hay fever or a dust-mite allergy is allergic rhinitis.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Allergy researcher Joy Lee says seasonal hay fever mostly impacts people during spring. (Supplied: Alfred Health)<\/p>\n
Symptoms include sneezing, itchy eyes, nose, or throat, nasal congestion, watery eyes, and a dripping nose.<\/p>\n
Experts say if you have “perennial” (year-round) symptoms that are often worse indoors in the morning or evening, they are likely caused by dust mites or pets.<\/p>\n
“The people who have grass pollen allergies, [that’s] really only an issue around this time of year \u2014 September, October, November \u2014 in some parts of Australia,” Dr Lee says.<\/p>\n
Is it hay fever or is it a cold?<\/a><\/p>\n For many people, hay fever and spring are inseparable, but how can we tell the difference between seasonal allergies and a cold or flu?<\/p>\n Author and medically qualified journalist Norman Swan says “perennial rhinitis” can have the same triggers as asthma.<\/p>\n “Like dust mites, cockroach droppings, and animal fur, those tend to be the causes of perennial rhinitis rather than the pollen,” Dr Swan says.<\/p>\n Dr Lee recommends people consult their GP or\u00a0an allergy specialist, who\u00a0may be able to\u00a0conduct a skin prick test or a blood test to determine the cause of the allergy.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Simple ways to reduce dust in your home<\/p>\n Dr Lee says a clean, dry, well-ventilated home is a good first step.<\/p>\n “You’re never going to be able to completely remove yourself from all allergens,” she says.<\/p>\n “We can’t seal ourselves up in a little bubble; it’s just about trying to reduce the load.”<\/p>\n She says vacuuming and dusting weekly is ideal.<\/p>\n Micaela Diaz says staying on top of cleaning at home can improve her hay fever and dust-mite allergy symptoms. (Supplied: Micaela Diaz)<\/p>\n If you’re the one with the allergy, she recommends getting someone else to do this job and staying out of the room for 20-30 minutes afterwards.<\/p>\n “Vacuuming itself (and emptying the bag) stirs up a lot of dust,” she says.<\/p>\n Wipe down things such as fans and surfaces using “electrostatic or damp cloths”, not feather dusters, which can harbour the dust mites.<\/p>\n Washing bedding regularly and using dust mite covers is also recommended.<\/p>\n “You can use a hot dryer to try and kill the dust mites, and hot washing,” Dr Lee says.<\/p>\n “[There are] heaps of dust mites in your bed, so we can get impermeable dust-mite covers for the mattress and pillows.”<\/p>\n Soft or plush toys are also breeding grounds for dust mites.<\/p>\n Micaela says she prefers to use the freezing technique for those items.<\/p>\n “Two ways to kill dust mites are either heat or freezing,” she explains.<\/p>\n Dr Lee agrees and says if items can’t be washed, they can be put in the freezer overnight to kill the dust mites, which “love humidity” and “warm temperate environments”.<\/p>\n Cleaning your air conditioner in summer<\/a><\/p>\n Cleaning your air conditioner’s filters is a simple yet often overlooked task. And it is an important one that can not only improve your general wellbeing, but also save you money on energy costs.<\/p>\n Climate control expert Goran Surbevski recommends using a programmable or smart thermostat with humidity control on your air conditioning unit or running it on dry mode.<\/p>\n “That actually puts the air conditioner in a really efficient cooling cycle, and takes away the moisture in the home,” Mr Subevski says.<\/p>\n “By maintaining indoor humidity levels \u2026 you can limit mould growth and reduce dust mite populations.”<\/p>\n He says regular cleaning and maintenance of your air conditioners is also important.<\/p>\n Tips to reduce pollen inside your home<\/p>\n If you suffer from seasonal hay fever, you’re probably in the thick of things right now.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n