Living With Asthma - Tips On How To Make Your House "Asthma-Friendly" (#Asthma Tips)

My experiences with asthma when I was younger could have been far worse, if it wasn't for the determination of my mom to make sure she took all of the doctor's advice and any needed measures to make sure our family home was safe for me.  I credit my mom for the reason why I've overcome many of my asthma symptoms and now enjoy life without being weighed down my previous obstacles due to my asthma.

We had a recent family emergency on Christmas day that left my daughter fighting for her life after it was discovered she was severely sick from a virus that had led to severe pneumonia, which in turn triggered a life threatening asthma attack.  I always told my husband from the time we had kids that I never wanted to see them develop asthma and have to struggle with it.  In the back of my mind though, the constant dry cough that my daughter consistently had from the time she was a baby always raised red flags in my mind that she would be the one prone to asthma.  She suffers from seasonal allergies, a severe peanut allergy, dust mite allergy and also a penicillin allergy.  Between all of that and eczema that she had when she was a baby, she was a sure fire candidate for asthma.  But I was reassured by her allergist that her lungs seemed clear and fine about a year ago.  Sure enough though, as we've found out recently, she does have asthma, and without a doubt.  Not only does she have asthma, but she has a much more severe form of it than I ever did.  Luckily for us though, my family isn't unfamiliar with how to live with asthma and between the tips my mom shared with me, as well as my daughter's respiratory specialist, I've decided to share some tips for keeping your home safe for someone who suffers from any form of asthma.

My home was already fairly asthma friendly, and because of growing up with asthma, I'm not a smoker.  All of these things now work in our favour, but that's not the case for everyone.  

Dust mites are a common trigger for asthma sufferers and that means that your house needs to be as dust-free as possible and rid your home of anything that easily attracts dust.

Yes, it's a bit of a long list, but let me tell you, it's WORTH reading!

Tips for Keeping your Home Healthy for Asthma Sufferers:

• Vacuum floors daily and be sure to regularly REPLACE your vacuum bags.  Use a vacuum cleaner that has a hepa-filter.

• Dust daily, preferably with the soft brush head for your vacuum cleaner which will suck up dust, rather than push it around like many cloths and dust brushes do

• Wash  bedding at least once a week in hot water and also place in dryer to kill off dust mites
• Encase mattress and pillow with a washable protector to keep out dust mites and also, be sure to tape down any zippers.

• Remove carpeting in your home, or as much as possible and be sure to vacuum/steam clean regularly. But NO carpet in the bedroom of the allergy sufferer!

• Use a dehumidifier, especially in basements, to keep out moisture and prevent mold from forming.

• Air cleaners - we actually have one in our daughter's room as well that I run during the day on low. And be sure to CLEAN the filters.  I'm able to vacuum out the filters in my air cleaners, so I do this once a week.

• No curtains!  Curtains are one of the worst things that trap dust and are more difficult to clean properly.  Replace with shades that are easy to vacuum with the brush head on your vacuum.

• Be sure to regularly replace your furnace filters and use good quality ones.

• Keep your furnace room and laundry room clean!

• Avoid clutter in your house, especially in the bedroom of the asthma sufferer, as it attracts dust and is harder to keep clean.

• FREEZE stuffed animals!  Yes, that's right.  Place them once a week in a bag in the freezer to kill off dust mites, then wash to remove the dead dust mites and dry.

• Keep stuffed animals to a minimum!!  I only have 2 stuffed animals that are allowed in my daughter's bed and they go in the freezer/washer once a week.

• If you have pets, keep them in a separate part of your house from the asthma sufferer if possible.  DO NOT allow the pet in the asthma sufferer's bedroom.  Asthma sufferer should avoid petting the pet (if possible) and everyone in the house should always wash their hands after handling the pet.  Cat and dog dander is often a trigger for asthma sufferers.

• Avoid WARM MIST humidifiers if possible.  They're a breeding ground for mold and bacteria.  If you must use, use a cool mist humidifier. 

• DO NOT use aerosol sprays!  For example, many hairspray bottles, disinfectant products, and household products are culprits of this.

• Avoid scented products, especially candles and perfumes as they can often trigger many asthma sufferer's lungs to react.

• Remove any wallpaper in the home or wall coverings. 

• No smoking!!  This one should go without saying, but I know many people who unfortunately still insist on it whether they're an asthma sufferer themselves or live with someone who has asthma.  Get rid of those cigarettes!! 

• Not so much a "household" tip, but good to know: Keep inhalers within reach at all times, but out of reach of children of course.  A good tip is to keep a "controller" inhaler by your toothbrush so you remember to take morning and night.  If you are responsible for your child's inhalers, keep them in your purse, especially the "rescue inhaler" when away from home.  Be aware of inhaler's expiry dates and keep proper track of how many puffs have been used.

• Of course, AVOID Asthma TRIGGERS.  Every one has different triggers, but common ones include: dust mites, cold air, high humidity, cigarette smoke, exercise for some people, animal dander, etc.

I can't stress to you enough how important it is to follow as many (if not all!) of these tips.  If you have a child with asthma, taking these steps to keep your home environment clean and safe for them will significantly help improve their asthma symptoms immediately and also over time in most cases.  Like I said, my doctors praised my mom for taking all these steps, as it's the reason why I no longer suffer from asthma symptoms.

Please Note: These tips are a combination of my own personal tips, as well as tips given to me by a doctor.  Your tips, opinions and doctor's advice may vary.  Always consult your doctor with questions in regards to your health.