I know all about mold allergy. During my first few years of grade school, it seemed like I always had a cold. My chronic cold turned out to be allergies, mold and grass pollen allergies in particular. After the diagnosis, I was given allergy medication and allergy shots (immunotherapy) – but back then, I never learned about the other effective method of treating mold allergies: Environmental control. If you can eliminate the source of mold in your environment, then your allergy symptoms will subside.
Stephen Hong, President of Sylvane.com, explains, “The key to mold control is moisture control… Indoor mold is a major cause of sinus infections, allergies, and asthma attacks, not to mention structural damage to buildings, but if you control your home’s humidity, then mold doesn’t stand a chance.” Read more about how to combat mold allergy using environmental control
If Austin Powers materialized from the movie screen and asked for a vacuum cleaner that wouldn’t destroy his shag carpet, I’d recommend the Bissell Healthy Home vacuum. This bagless vacuum lets you to turn off the brush roll while maintaining the powerful cyclonic suction, thus allowing you to vacuum shag carpet and other delicate materials that might otherwise get scratched or tangled in the brush. The brush also stops rolling when the vacuum is not moving forward, making the vacuuming experience remarkably quiet.
My first question about a vacuum cleaner, however, is always this: Does it effectively eliminate household allergens? The Bissell Healthy Home vac not only features eight cyclonic chambers to suck up allergens, but it also contains a HEPA filter within a sealed system. The HEPA filter eliminates 99.97% of particles down to 0.3 microns in size, and the sealed system ensures that no dirt or allergens get back into the air. Plus, it has built-in Microban antimicrobial protection to keep mold, mildew, and bacteria from growing inside the vacuum. Read more about Bissell Healthy Home vacuums
At least one state has stepped up to defend consumers from false marketing claims that ozone generators are safe, effective air purifiers. In reality, ozone is a lung irritant, especially harmful to allergy and asthma sufferers. California is the first state in the nation to ban ozone generators.
The Air Resources Board of the California Environmental Protection Agency states:
Not all air-cleaning devices are appropriate for home use — some can be harmful to human health. The ARB recommends that ozone generators, air cleaners that intentionally produce ozone, not be used in the home. Ozone is a gas that can cause health problems, including respiratory tract irritation and breathing difficulty.
HealthCentral.com reports that using a high efficiency particle air (HEPA) filter for just two days significantly improves cardiovascular health in elderly individuals.
Class is back in session! It’s time for homework, report cards, and (hopefully not too many) sick days.
The Mayo Clinic recently released the top five reasons why children miss school:
1. Common Cold – The airborne common cold virus spreads easily from child to child in classroom settings. Symptoms include runny nose, sore throat, cough, sneezing, and fever. Cough medicines are not recommended for young children, and there’s no cure for the cold, but here’s how you can help your child feel better:
Offer plenty of fluids, such as water, juice and chicken soup.
Encourage your child to rest as much as possible.
Run a humidifier in your child’s bedroom, or have your child sit in a steamy bathroom.
Try over-the-counter saline nose drops.
For an older child, soothe a sore throat with hard candy, cough drops or gargled salt water.
I still clearly remember the day in sixth grade when I got called to the front office. I was wondering if I was in some kind of trouble when the secretary informed me that my mother was on her way to pick me up from school early. I was ecstatic about leaving early – until my mom told me that the bottom level of our house had flooded. My video games were down there!
My video games turned out to be okay, thanks to my fast-acting father. However, the carpet wasn’t so lucky. Instead of calling a water damage restoration professional immediately, my parents did what they could to clear out the lower level of our split-level home and dry things out. Unfortunately, they didn’t act fast enough. Read more about flood damage restoration
I recently attended my grandmother’s 90th birthday party (Happy Birthday, Grandma!) at my aunt and uncle’s house. I noticed that they had an iRobot Roomba vacuum, and being in the business of indoor health products, I just had to inspect the little robot.
I remember the first time that I saw the Roomba in a magazine. An intelligent, robotic vacuum that does the work for you! What could be better? “The future has arrived,” I thought. “Before long, we’ll all be living like The Jetsons.”
If you do an Internet search on how to clean grout, you’ll find all sorts of different methods involving harsh, toxic chemicals. These chemicals not only irritate asthma and allergies, but they also leave behind microorganisms in tiny cracks and crevices.
Vapor steam cleaners spray hot vapor deep inside cracks and indentions to kill all microorganisms – without any chemicals! A steam cleaner works much like an espresso machine; it heats water in a boiler to produce a “dry” steam vapor that dries in seconds. Read more about how to clean grout without chemicals
Just last month, the New York Times reported that granite countertops may emit harmful levels of radon. As granite countertops have become more popular, the media has been receiving more reports of high radon readings.
Lou Witt, program analyst at the EPA’s Indoor Environments Division, says, “We’ve been hearing from people all over the country concerned about high readings” – referring to measurements of radiation that go far above normal background levels. Read more about radon in granite countertops
According to WebMD, probiotics (“good” bacteria found in supplements and foods like yogurt) can change your immune system’s response to pollen.
In the future, probiotics may constitute another treatment option for the 40 million Americans who suffer from hay fever, or seasonal allergies. When ingested, probiotics join other microorganisms in the gut, where the majority of your immune system is located. Changes in intestinal bacteria have been linked to certain allergic disorders, and this prompted researchs to look at probiotics. Read more about probiotics and allergies
If you’re building a new computer server room or expanding or upgrading an existing one, you’ll likely need some extra cooling power. As servers work harder, they produce more heat, which can easily overwhelm a building’s HVAC system and damage sensitive equipment. To combat this problem, most server room technicians invest in portable air conditioners.
A portable air conditioner, or spot cooler, is the best choice for server rooms because it doesn’t have to be permanently installed. If your company moves, it’s easy to take the air conditioner with you. Also, you can move them around to spot cool specific servers. Read more about the best portable air conditioners for server rooms
I recently moved out of metro Atlanta to a cabin in a rural, wooded area. Since my move, I’ve been spending a lot more time outdoors, and with increased exposure to sunlight, my mood has improved.
I’ve always been interested in seasonal affective disorder because I’ve certainly felt the “winter blues” a few times. After spending most of the cold months indoors, I’ve often felt like I have less energy and get tired more easily. This is actually fairly common; with less sunlight and heartier meals, most people naturally slow down a bit during the winter.
But the lack of sunlight during winter affects some people more drastically, leading to clinical depression. This is known as seasonal affective disorder, or SAD. Read more about natural treatment options for SAD
Featured on Extreme Home Makeover, the IQAir Perfect 16 whole house air purifier is the premiere, state of the art system for delivering clean air to every room in your home. Most home air purifiers only clean the air in one room, but the Perfect 16 works in conjunction with your HVAC system to purify the air in your entire house.
It’s called the Perfect 16 because it’s rated a perfect MERV 16 – the highest rating possible for whole house air filters. It offers 50X more filtration power than the typical furnace filter, and within just an hour of installation, the air in your home is guaranteed to be 10X cleaner!
If you hate changing furnace filters, then you’ll love the IQAir Perfect 16 wholehouse system. The filters last for three years without losing efficiency!
Medical News Today reports that children who are given antibiotics during their first three months of life often wheeze at 15 months. However, researchers are not sure if antibiotics actually make children more prone to asthma since it’s difficult to distinguish between asthma and respiratory infections in young children. Read more and antibiotics and asthma
