Ways to Improve Your Home & Your Respiratory Symptoms

Living successfully with COPD, asthma, or cystic fibrosis, requires a multifaceted approach. Quitting smoking and following your prescribed management (like using your portable oxygen concentrator when symptoms arise), are the first steps to breathing correctly. But, did you know that your home may be aggravating your symptoms and causing you to rely on your home oxygen concentrator more often? Deep cleaning your house weekly, can eliminate irritants in the air that make it hard to breath. With these 5 ways to clean the dustiest, most dander filled areas of your home, you will be one step further to breathing a better life.

Air out your air ducts. If you have central air and heating, you probably do not think about cleaning the ducts that carry climate-controlled air into every room. Air ducts can be full of dust and mold, which can worsen COPD and asthma symptoms. Consider using air filters regularly, so that the air is clean of bacteria. Oxygen Always recommends that you replace your air filter every month.
Replace your carpets. Carpets are a house for dust, dander, smells, dirt, and millions of bacteria. Replacing the carpet in the rooms of your home with hard wood or tile flooring, will eliminate an enormous amount of allergy-inducing pollutants in your home. If replacing the flooring in your home is not an option right now, be sure to have your carpets steam cleaned at least once a month.
Use natural cleaning products. Most cleaning products contain chemicals and irritants that contribute to COPD and asthma symptoms. Oxygen concentrator distributors suggest opting for natural cleaning products like vinegar and water. Even apple cider or lemon juice are said to do the trick.
Pet allergies. Cat allergies are more than twice as common as dog allergies. If you feel that your pet is adding to your constant allergies and causing you to breathe heavily without your oxygen concentrator, talk to your healthcare physician about testing for pet allergies.
Get rid of fragrances. Some people with COPD are very sensitive to perfumes and scents, yet others are unaffected. Do a clean sweep of your home to remove all scented products; including: candles, air fresheners, dryer sheets, sachets, and any other items intended to make life smell sweeter.

These areas and aspects of your home are often overlooked as the source for worsened COPD and asthma symptoms; however, they are vital to the success of your oxygen therapy. Maintaining a heightened level of cleanliness in these certain areas, will help make your breathing easier. Oxygen Always can not only help you find the perfect oxygen concentrator to suit your lifestyle, we also want patients to know the many ways that they can supplement their oxygen therapy through natural home and lifestyle changes.