Spring Days bring warmth and flowers but they also bring a lot of pollen. If you are sensitive to pollen then you may dread the springtime but unless you are willing to move to the desert you won’t find much relief at least until mid summer.
Unfortunately we can’t lock ourselves in a computer assembly clean room all of the time so we have to find ways to cope with the problem of pollen.
The first thing you should remember is that opening your windows is not a great idea. Even if you have mild reactions to pollen you will be inviting it into your home where it will stay until you remove it.
I for some reason always forget this and want to get some fresh air into the house after having the windows closed all winter.
If you do feel the need to air out the house a good time might be right after a spring shower. When it rains pollen counts in the air will be less but they still will be present.
I have been considering building a window filter out of a furnace filter and cardboard that I can place in one room and then suck the air through the home with a fan pointed out of a window in another room. This probably should work however the size of pollen particles is pretty small and can range between 1 and 10 microns in size. For this reason a general purpose filter would probably catch most of the larger particles but I think even the best heater filter would not catch the smallest particles of pollen.
It is an option to consider and it would at least be better than just opening the window and doing nothing.
Vacuuming would result in the same problem even with a HEPA filter because they can only remove down to .3 microns so you will catch most but not all of the pollen dust.
Another option is to supplement your vacuuming with carpet cleaning. It can be a difficult task to clean your carpet with a wet carpet cleaner but it will remove a lot of dust, dander and pollen.
Instead of dry dusting a moist cloth would probably be a good idea. Whatever you can do to reduce kicking up dust is probably the best thing you can do while you wait out the season.
However when you are cleaning you don’t want to make things worse by using a lot of cleaners and chemicals that can stimulate your system.
I also never bring flowers into the home. This can be difficult if you get them as a gift but maybe you can ask them for something else.
Medicines and Pollen Allergies
If you have an on going problem with spring pollen allergies you might want to contact your doctor about what medicines are best for you.
You also have to be careful about interactions of anything you are currently prescribed with what you might take to find relief.
Over the counter medicines like antihistamines can be taken for mild problems but they normally don’t offer instant relief. You normally need to take them before a problem occurs to help block rather than cure the problem.
Prescribed medicines can actually work right at the receptor level and can offer quicker results.
Another thing you can try is saline nasal washes. You will have to use the solution to irrigate your sinuses a few times a day to get relief but it will help many people.
Whenever you decide to take medication or treat yourself for a medical problem you must consult a Doctor. This is especially true if you are under the care of a doctor for other problems.
Final Note
Although it might not be a lot of fun it can be a good idea to stay inside during the worst pollen days. You should check the weather forecast to get daily information but don’t dwell on it. If you see its going to be a bad day by the report its not always true just like their predictions of rain. But hearing the reports can make you a bit depressed or worried.
If you are sensitive to spring pollen then you want to use your air conditioner instead of opening the windows. Just after a rain may help but you can’t always count on that.
And talk with your doctor or an allergy specialist for more information.