In the U.K., pollen has taken a backseat during the current bout of rain and thunderstorms. However, as soon as the Sun comes back out many will be forced back inside to avoid their pollen allergies and the associated hay fever symptoms. Even here, staying indoors as much cannot help everyone to fully escape breathing in pollen and triggering an IgE immune response (or, in other words, allergic rhinitis which is also known as hay fever).
If an individual has an allergy, their immune system overreacts to a given allergen by producing IgE antibodies. These antibodies travel to cells that release chemicals, causing an allergic reaction.
The company Airmatic has released some tips on how impacted individuals can keep their symptoms to a minimum when indoors. The assessment has been provided to Digital Journal.
With such advice, Robert Taylor, technical director of Airmatic, states: “One of the most obvious things you can do to help stay hay fever-free is to keep all windows and doors closed to prevent pollen from getting inside in the first place.”
Noting the restrictions that come with this, Taylor adds: “But this isn’t exactly easy when you’re also battling the summer heat. If you need to have your windows open to stay cool, it’s definitely worth investing in an air purifier – just make sure this comes with a HEPA filter to ensure it catches as much pollen as possible.”
Here the grade of HEPA filter is important. The high efficiency particulate air filter must be capable of capturing a high proportion of particles of the correct dimensions.
Looking further at lifestyle, Taylor adds: “When you have no choice but to go outside, it’s a good idea to immediately change clothes when you get back inside. If you suffer quite badly from allergies, you may even want to have a shower, washing yourself off and keep your pollen-covered clothes away from you.”
Continuing these, Taylor says: “Speaking of clothes, avoid drying them outside if you can, as they’ll become the perfect pollen catchers and bring it all back inside.”
Another areas to focus on is household cleaning. Here Taylor considers: “Cleaning often is also one of the best ways to help avoid stronger symptoms too. Use a vacuum (ideally with a HEPA filter) to get rid of pollen that’s settled on the floor and a damp cloth for all your surfaces.”
Aware of the challenges, Taylor concludes: “Keeping pollen out of your house entirely really is a difficult task, and so the name of the game is to just try and get rid of as much of it as possible from what has snuck in.”
