air purfiers and asthma?????????

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-31-2003
air purfiers and asthma?????????
3
Mon, 04-12-2004 - 11:00am
Hi there

My son has been diagnosed with Coughing Asthma. He is on Advair twice a day. He seems to be doing better now with this then any other meds we have tried. I have been trying to keep the dust out (daily vaccummes and dusting) But we live in a very old house (50 yrs old) We can't afford to update the heating and cooling systems. and we can't just move either so I am looking for ways to make him more comfortable. (mind you he is 8 and just a yr ago started this constant coughing)

Someone suggested I get a air purfier. Will this help? What do they do if anything? and what if I run a humidifier (sorry I think...... I Know I spelled that wrong.)

I am hopeful someone here can help me out.

Thank you

LM

ps I found the asthma board and posted this there as well, it can't hurt to get lots of info from someone who has been ther and done that.

iVillage Member
Registered: 12-04-2003
Wed, 04-14-2004 - 7:21pm
Get the toxins out of your house! You can research online, or e-mail me and I can send you a bunch of links. There's a definite correlation between asthma/allergies and toxins.

There are toxins in household products you think are harmless....

baby shampoo contains formaldehyde (not listed on bottle as formaldehyde, listed as quaternium 15)

laundry products, shampoo, toothpaste...they all contain toxins.

My son has allergies and I got rid of the toxins and he is doing much better. I'd be happy for talk with you off the board and give you some info on what I did and how it helped. My e-mail is jencip325@yahoo.com

Good Luck!!

Jennifer

SAHM to Tyler (10 months)

Turn a Monthly Expense into an Income!

http://www.stayinhomeandlovinit.com/cgi-bin/team.cgi?id=je57771&action=show

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-26-2003
Thu, 04-15-2004 - 8:12am
Did the doctor says anything about being an older house , what could be in those walls, floors underneath, if you would like to see if changing the ordinary stuff that you buy at your local store , t clean your house would help by switching to less toxic ,safer products , I know if would help you !!and your little one...

Email ne : smichaud@eastlink.ca

No pressure you could see if that would help , you need to buy all of your cleaning supplies and laudry supplies in any case, why not switch to something better for his health, it may just need to use something better...

What do you use for washing his clothes, cleaning your house, the airspray, your own cosmetics etc that could trigger his couhging,,any animals at your house..you really have to take a long look at what you use ,that could be the reason he his coughing so much, does he cough all of the time, etc

Hoping to hear from you ..

stella

iVillage Member
Registered: 04-27-2000
Thu, 04-15-2004 - 11:36am
Hi. Definitely no humidifier. Many kids with asthma have problems with dust mites. And dust mites thrive on humidity. Lower humidity is better for asthmatics.

I have pretty severe asthma. I bought a room-sized Amaircare filter that is about the size of a large coffee can. It cost about $120, and about $12 a year for the replacement filters. I use it in my room when I sleep at night, and also in the car when I'm having symptoms (you can order an adaptor so it plugs into a cigarette lighter).

The larger multi-room or whole-house HEPA filters can get very very expensive. I'd suggest that you try something like this and see if it appears to help him at night. Also, dust mite protector covers for his mattress and pillow if you suspect dust mites as one of the problems.

I would not recommend those purifiers they sell at sharper image. They are hard to clean and maintain, they buzz, and many people are actually allergic to the plastic and the high levels of ozone outgassing.

As far as the old house thing goes, there are often powder molds and mildew spores hiding in attics and behind walls. Every time the humidity goes up, they activate and start growing. Nobody would ever smell them or know they are there. But asthmatics can sure feel them.

Best wishes - Suzanne