As you spend more time indoors during the COVID-19 pandemic, experts say this is a great time to focus on improving your indoor air quality. Excess dust and pet dandruff can lower your indoor air quality. Also, scented candles and some holiday decorations have toxic fumes and chemicals that can all inflame allergies and lead to allergic reactions. As we continue to shelter in place during the COVID-19 pandemic, we’re also staring ahead at a long winter that will see us spending more time indoors than ever.
One thing that might not be at top of mind when it comes to being inside so much is the air quality of our living spaces. While we hunker down inside to keep ourselves and those around us safe, are we doing enough to make sure the air we breathe is up to par? Dr. Neeta Ogden, an allergy, asthma, and immunology specialist who has a private practice, said she doesn’t believe enough people recognize how much their indoor air quality is tied to their respiratory health.
She said people who have common conditions like seasonal allergies and asthma, who have a reactive airway, all need to be especially aware of indoor air quality. Beyond this, a person who is fighting off a common cold should consider the air quality in their home. “As an allergist, I’m concerned about how people maintain their home environment, keeping things relatively clean in the sense of dust and dust mites around their bedroom and their home in general,” Ogden told Healthline.
“I’m also focused on being thoughtful of inhaled triggers from smoke from fires and wood-burning fireplace, about candles, especially during the holidays,” she said. Ogden added that scents from mood misters and cold air itself can be triggers if you’re opening up your windows during the wintertime or going for walks outside in the low temperatures of the season.
Other triggers can be in the form of pet dander and mold that might be in your home. Basically, all of these are common-sense things that we just might not take the time to notice in our busy day-to-day lives.
Dr. Reza Ronaghi, a pulmonologist at UCLA Health, said the current realities of COVID-19 mean we have to keep multiple things in mind at once: adhering to protective measures against the coronavirus while also keeping one’s respiratory health in check while spending a significant amount of time indoors.
“You want to make sure it is a well-ventilated [area] and to make sure you still social distance even if indoors. Masks should be worn even if you are indoors and close to others,” Ronaghi wrote in an email to Healthline. “Remember that there are different causes of allergies. Make sure there are not dust or allergens inside.
