Asthma control at home

Asthma control can be a juggling act and obviously the rules willvary according to your severity. Remember, that almost anything can trigger asthma. Triggers in the home may make asthma symptoms worse or keep you from getting better. While it's important to find out what your asthma triggers are and avoid them, you can't asthma-proof your home by living in a sterile box. A compromise is needed taking into context the severity of your asthma and your lifestyle. With sensible care an asthmatic should be able to lead a normal life.
Here are a few tips:

Dust Mites
Animal Allergens
Moulds
Odours
Cigarette Smoking
The Garden

Dust Mites

Mites live in specks of dust in warm, humid conditions. They will live in surface dust but prefer that found in fabric - the bed, mattress, sheets, blankets, soft toys, rugs, carpets, curtains and furniture. The particles they shed trigger IgE reactions to susceptible asthmatics.

Suggestions to reduce their numbers include:

Vacuum your bed regularly and wash sheets and blankets in hot water (55C). Remove dust traps such as dried flowers or macrame wall hangings from the bedroom. Regular vacuuming while the asthmatic is away from the area and cleaning with a damp cloth to pick up dust are encouraged.
If you want to get really aggressive with dust mites then you can also
cover mattresses and pillows
place filters over heating vents
remove upholstered or fabric-covered furniture
remove carpets
wet-mop floors
remove soft toys from the house or freeze them over-night

Dust mites cannot be eradicated and neither can we live in a totally dust-free environment. Doing all that extra work and sitting on plastic furniture on cold wooden floors while nursing a frozen teddy bear is likely to give anyone an asthma attack! Try taking reasonable precautions only.

Animal Allergens

Pets shed hair and tiny pieces of skin called dander to which some people have an allergic reaction to. Some asthma experts recommend that you get rid of pets. The pleasure they give and the trauma of losing them, inspires the suggestion that perhaps they can be kept out of the bedroom or only on uncarpeted areas. Before you make the decision to get rid of your pets, have the asthmatic tested, to see if they are allergic to the animal.

Moulds

Moulds in humid environments trigger a lot of problems, yet people who move to dry climates still have their asthma. They simply react to something else. Dampness encourages mould to read more