Spring, Summer and Fall can be very beautiful seasons in Wheat Ridge, Colorado, but they can also have days with high pollen counts. If you suffer from seasonal allergies, the high pollen counts can leave you sneezing, coughing, and with itchy eyes, nose and throat. There are some things that Wheat Ridge residents can do to help lessen the effects of seasonal allergies.
1. Avoid the allergens. Check the news, or online for the pollen count for the day. If the pollen count is high then avoid going outside if you can.
2. Start taking your medications before you have any symptoms. It’s much easier for medications to work if you’ve been taking them before your symptoms begin, rather than having the medication playing ‘catch up’ on your symptoms.
3. If you’ve been outside, take your shoes and clothes off to stop the pollens from getting into your house. You should also have a quick shower and rinse your hair to remove any pollens from your hair and body.
4. Shower and wash your hair at night, so that pollen doesn’t transfer from you to your pillow and bedsheets.
5. If you have any outdoor pets, rub them down before they come inside, and don’t let them on the beds.
6. Dry your laundry inside. Pollen can stick to any laundry drying outside, and then come inside when you bring it in.
7. Close your windows and doors to keep the pollen out. Make use of your air conditioner to recirculate air through your house.
8. Change or clean the filters on your AC. You might need to consider replacing your AC unit, if it isn’t running effectively. You can find wholesale air conditioners that can be cheaper and more effective than your current unit.
9. Keep the humidity in your house at less than 60%. You can buy a humidity gauge to check the current levels in your house, and you can buy a humidifier to regulate the levels if you need to.
10. Try to avoid outdoor tasks like lawn mowing, and weeding. If possible have someone else do these things for you. If you can’t get a family member or friend to help, then you might want to consider hiring someone, or using a pollen mask to reduce your exposure.
11. If your nose and eyes have been really affected, then you could rinse them. You can get artificial tears to rinse your eyes. You can rinse your nose with a saline solution. Always use a container that is meant for nasal rinsing, and clean it after every use with sterile water. Rinsing your nose will clear out the mucus, and allergens.
If your seasonal allergies are severe then you should visit your doctor, and ask for prescription allergy medication.