Avoid and Treat Allergies

People most readily associate allergies with early spring and all its flowering buds and blooming trees, but the fact is symptoms like sneezing, congestion, runny nose and watery eyes can strike just about year round, depending on the individual, where they live and immediate surroundings. Fortunately, there are steps you can take to minimize the chances pollen, ragweed and the like will make your life miserable.

Stay Informed: Forewarned is forearmed and that certainly applies to avoiding the worst of allergy season. Check your local newspaper, its website or any number of other online sources for the day’s pollen forecasts and current levels. If high pollen counts are forecasted, start taking allergy medications before your symptoms start.

Reduce Your Exposure: If you must go outside, be as selective as possible regarding the time of day and potential activities. The best time to go outside is after a good rain, which helps clear pollen from the air. If possible skip the lawn mowing, weed pulling and other gardening chores that stir up allergens. If you must go out there, upon your return remove the clothes you wore outside and shower to rinse pollen from your skin and hair.
In-House Help: It’s sad to report that there is at the moment no miracle product with the ability to eliminate all allergens from your home. There are, however, steps you can take to reduce their presence in the air you breathe, including running the air conditioning when possible rather than throwing open windows, utilizing high-efficiency filters in your home’ HVAC system and making sure they stay clean and running a dehumidifier to keep indoor air dry. Also consider a portable high-efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filter for your bedroom and purchasing a vacuum cleaner with a HEPA filter.

Mask Up: No one wants to hear this after two years of COVID but masks can reduce the amount of unwanted particles entering your airways. And as we have been hearing for two years, the N95 respirator mask is the gold standard. It should be easier to find these days at your local pharmacy or medical supply store and promises to block 95% of small particles, such as pollen and other allergens.

Rinse It Out: Nasal rinses clean mucus from your nose, easing allergy symptoms, whisking away bacteria and reducing postnasal drip. Rinse kits are readily available at the aforementioned locations or you can make one of your own using a neti pot or a nasal bulb.

Drink More: Not the hard stuff, mind you. But if you feel stuffy or have postnasal drip from your allergies, sip more water, juice or other nonalcoholic drink. The extra liquid thins the mucus in your nasal passages and thus provides some relief. Warm fluids like teas, broth or soup come with an additional benefit in the form of steam.

At Harmony Communities, we feel strongly that each resident has a sense of home. That they come home from work and feel pride in their environment and in their place in the greater community. That families are comfortable raising children in our neighborhoods, and that couples and singles know that they belong to something bigger than their four walls. In other words, we seek to create harmony within each community, making our communities not just passable, but peaceful, safe, functional, and beautiful.