Don’t let your allergies hold you hostage…is your old carpet affecting your health?

If you have allergies or asthma, then you know how it feels to be held hostage in your own body. Many homeowners today stay away from carpet because it has been said that having carpet installed will make your symptoms worse.

What we found is most people suffering from asthma and allergy symptoms did not know that carpet actually provides more positive health benefits than other flooring options.

Having to protect family members who suffer from these issues can seem like a never ending battle, but what if it was much easier than you thought?

Growing up with a brother who suffered greatly from asthma, carpet was always something my mother would shy away from. We never experienced the comfort of carpeting as kids because mom thought carpet made his breathing issues worse.

The Truth about Carpet and Asthma

Over the past decade, allergies and asthma have never been known to work well with carpeting. This, however, has been proven to be not true by many different studies and also personal experiences.

Believe it or not, carpet actually acts as a trap, keeping allergen particles out of your breathing space. Once the carpeting is vacuumed, the allergens are sucked up and removed.

There are many testimonies out there that talk about the benefits people receive from carpeting. For those who suffer from asthma and allergy problems, buying new carpet will definitely be nerve-racking. It is a wonderful investment, however, and it will benefit your breathing.

Two of the studies supported by the CRI that prove carpet and asthma make a good pair are listed below:

• In Sweden, a fifteen year study took place and found that there were no links between carpet and allergies and asthma attacks. It actually showed that when carpet usage decreased, the allergy reaction and problems for asthmatics increased.
• In New Jersey, a study is 2003 showed that adding carpeting into the bedrooms of children that suffered with the issues lowered. They missed fewer days of school and needed less medication for their breathing problems.

Even though carpet alone can actually help keep your loved ones from suffering, it does not explain how to efficiently keep the allergens out of your carpet all together. The good news is there are ways to do it.

Proper Carpet Maintenance

To keep your carpet in good shape and maintain a healthy home environment, you need to create a proper carpet cleaning routine. The flooring alone will help with breathing problems, but it has to be taken care of properly to consistently avoid them.

Keep in mind that if your carpeting is already in terrible shape, cleaning it may not do much. If your carpeting is in bad shape, consider installing new carpet.
To properly keep carpeting clean, make sure to incorporate these steps:

• Vacuum Regularly – Vacuuming is the most obvious and important way to keep your carpet clean and healthy. To figure out how much you need to vacuum, you need to consider how much foot traffic your home experiences. For example, if you have a lot of people over all the time, you need to vacuum every day to twice a week.
• Limit Dirt Intrusion – Make sure to keep as much dirt and grime out as you can by using entrance mats at your doors. Also ask people to take off their shoes. Not only will it keep all the outdoor pests outside, its simply common courtesy.
• Professional Carpet Cleaning – Almost every carpet dealer and manufacturer recommends that you get a professional carpet cleaning every twelve to eighteen months. Professionals have equipment that you cannot simply pull off the shelf, and it will get your carpeting cleaned better than any do it yourself method.
• Look Into Low VOC Carpet – A VOC (Volatile Organic Compound) can be released by some types of flooring products and negatively affect breathing issues. Make sure to look into carpeting that emits low VOCs or Eco-friendly “green” products to prevent any problems.

If you are going to try to clean your carpeting on your own, make sure to research the cleaners you are going to use. Some of them can be harmful to people with asthma and allergies, and that completely defeats the purpose of cleaning it.

Do You Clean Your Air Ducts?

Did you know that you air ducts can affect your breathing and the cleanliness of your carpet? Air ducts get filled with all kinds of things, and those particles get blown out into the air falling on the carpet.

When people walk throughout your home, those particles are kicked up off the carpet (if it has not been vacuumed) and enter your lungs. Some of the things that dirty air ducts fill up with can consist of:

• Dust
• Dirt
• Dead rodents
• Dead insects
• Mold

Getting air ducts cleaned is not a do it yourself job. You will need to hire a professional to get the job done for you. Like professional carpet cleaners, they have equipment that you cannot simply purchase off the shelf.

Give Carpet a Shot

Hopefully you have been encouraged to not be afraid of carpeting if you have family members that suffer from allergies or asthma. All of the things listed above tie together to keep not only your carpeting healthy, but your home environment healthy as well.

I know what it feels like to watch someone suffer from allergy and asthma problems, but if getting carpeting installed was able to help my brother, it will definitely be able to help your loved ones as well.

There are even products on the market that are eco-friendly and will promote healthier quality carpeting. They are built to protect you, your loved ones, and the environment as a whole.

Getting new carpet installed may be one of the best decisions you could make for your home. Break out of the prison cell you allergies have you stuck in and enter the world of easy breathing and comfort.