Is the dust in your home making you ailing?

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Keeping your home utterly dust-free would possibly appear to be an countless, tedious activity. But may these dusty surfaces and skirting boards be making you unwell?

Just like pollen, dust is a standard allergen, and people dust bunnies in forgotten corners of the home may very well be secretly inflicting us well being issues.

So, if you’re questioning whether or not it’s time for a superb spring clear, your lungs and eyes may thank you for it. Here’s a more in-depth look…

Dust could be tough to handle

When it involves ‘hidden’ dust, Nicola Alexander-Cross, an optometrist and co-founder of eyecare model, Peep Club, says problematic areas embrace “the kitchen or bath/shower – since it’s where we spend a lot of our time and because of the added humidity. And after that, the bedroom – especially if sheets aren’t washed regularly enough,” she provides.

Emma Rubach, head of well being recommendation at the charity Asthma + Lung UK, says dust is usually a actually tough factor to sort out in the home.

“There’s dust everywhere. Dust is usually the product of shedding skin from humans and pets, as well as dust found in soft furnishing, and even if you cleaned all the time, it would be really hard to get rid of it,” says Rubach.

“This can become more a problem at certain times of the year, as first turning on your heating in October will trigger dust mites to mate, meaning there will be more in the house to cause an allergic reaction,” she provides.

There are explicit spots in the home which can get uncared for too, together with youngsters’s toys or objects that spend most of the 12 months in storage, comparable to Christmas bushes. It’s value retaining this in thoughts if being round dust does are likely to set off any signs.

Are you allergic to dust?

Being allergic to dust isn’t truly unusual, particularly if you are susceptible to comparable allergic reactions. Symptoms of a response to dust embrace sneezing, a runny nostril, watery, irritated eyes, and typically itching throughout.

Dust can set off bronchial asthma

If you have bronchial asthma or a pre-existing lung situation, an excessive amount of dust in the home may set off a response. As properly as a few of the allergy reactions listed above, you would possibly discover coughing and breathlessness and a basic improve in signs.

“It’s actually really important if you know that you’ve got a dust allergy and that dust is triggering your lung health symptoms, to make sure you’re regularly taking your prescribed medicine, because it’s very hard to avoid dust unfortunately. Make sure you’re ventilating your home, make sure you’re cleaning – but it’s very difficult to get your home clear of dust so it’s really, really important to make sure you’re taking your medicines as prescribed,” stresses Rubach.

“If you have asthma, it’s really important to make sure that you’ve got a blue reliever inhaler, which will help you if your symptoms do flare up.”

Too a lot dust publicity can irritate your eyes

Dust particles can typically get trapped in eyelashes and should trigger irritation to the eye till they’re cleaned off. If you discover that your eyes have signs – redness, itchiness, watering – after you’ve swept the home or vacuumed, then it may properly be that you have a dust allergy or significantly delicate eyes.

When this occurs, it’s essential to not rub your eyes. “Rubbing the eye can cause micro scratches to your cornea and will make the symptoms worse,” Alexander-Cross says.

Instead, she suggests making use of a cool compress or taking a cool bathe, as warmth may cause the blood vessels to dilate, which can make the irritation worse. Other ideas embrace ventilating the home as a lot as attainable by opening home windows to let in recent air, and in addition cleaning your eyes to take away the dust particles from your eyelashes.

If signs proceed or are getting worse, see your physician for recommendation.