Seniors Matter(s): A healthy home

What does it mean to have a clean house?

My research shows me that it is much more than cleaning, dusting, and polishing the floor!

A healthy home means its occupants are also safe and healthy. It’s important to operate a healthy house in order to protect us. Living in an unhealthy home, can cause sicknesses that you don’t recognize as the house being the source. This may include allergies, constant nasal drip, poor sleep, dry skin, and so forth. In order to keep everyone healthy and safe, a home should be free from any moisture, be free from any hazards, and be comfortable.

A comfortable home is generally airtight, as there won’t be any drafts or temperature fluctuations. If your house is not airtight, then drafts and cold air can become a source of airborne particles and mold.

Your heating and cooling systems simply recirculate the air that’s already in the house, including all the dust, dirt, and pollen. When the weather’s nice and pollen counts are low, open windows and doors to freshen things up. This is especially important if there are fumes from painting, cooking, kerosene heaters, or hobbies like woodworking.

A dirty filter on your heating and air-conditioning unit can keep air from flowing the way it should and lead to mold growth if it gets damp. You need to change or clean the filer at least every three months and make sure it fits well. If you have asthma or allergies - or you have pets or a large family - you might want to check it once a month. It’s also a good idea for a professional to inspect the unit once a year.

Some cleaners under our sink are actually harsh chemicals that can cause breathing problems or trigger an allergy or asthma attack. You need to read labels carefully and stay away from ones that have Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs), fragrances, or flammable ingredients. You can make your own cleaners with plain soap and water, vinegar, or baking soda.

If there’s mold in your house, the tiny spores can float into your nose and even your lungs. That can lead to allergy symptoms, like coughing or sneezing, or other breathing issues. Fungi loves damp areas, so keep bathrooms dry. You need to turn on a fan or open a window to help move air after you shower and hang up wet towels and washcloths. If you see mold in the tub or other areas, you may need to clean more often to help keep it at bay.

I have found that even pleasant smells can cause problems. Some air fresheners have VOCs in them that may bother your nose and throat. Other aerosol sprays, including some health and beauty products, have VOCs too. You need to read the labels carefully.

If you keep them too long, mold can grow on stored fruits and vegetables. You need to toss anything that has mold or slime on it. To keep them fresh longer, don’t wash them before you store them – was them just before you eat them. If you’re not sure if something is fresh, throw it away.

I have learned that cockroaches can cause problems even after they’re dead. When they die, their bodies break down into small bits, and those can get into the air. The same can happen with their feces. Those bits can get into sheets, pillows, and other fabrics, and may trigger asthma attacks or allergic reactions. If you know you have a roach problem, use roach baits instead of sprays.

You know that any leaks that happen with sinks, toilets, showers, dishwashers, or refrigerators - even your roof - usually start so small that they are undetected. The pooled water can lead to issues with mold and cockroaches, so any leak needs to be taken care of quickly.

I talked about pets and what they bring into the house in my bed issue. Dander and other allergens that Fido and Fluffy bring in from outside can cause trouble for your lungs. As hard as it might be, it’s a good idea to keep them out of bedrooms and off beds. If that’s not an option, you need to bathe them regularly and vacuum the areas where they spend time.

I have too many times forgotten to change the filters on my stove exhaust because it is tedious to do and easily ignored. Cabinet tops are other places that can gather up unnoticed and unwanted germs. I often forget to clean there, along with behind toilets and under bathroom sinks. You need to wipe them down every so often with warm, soapy water. Even the pets’ dishes need daily wash, and check around for other areas that might collect grease, food, grime, or water.

Fabrics can trap dust, pollen, and other allergens. The next time you give the living room a new look, consider leather or vinyl furniture instead of cloth. If you have issues with allergies or asthma, you also might want to hang blinds instead of curtains, and dust them regularly.

Hard surfaces, like wood, don’t collect things that affect your breathing the way carpet can. If you need some soft areas, use throw rugs you can clean in a washing machine or sink. If you can’t take up your carpet, vacuum it weekly with a cleaner that has a HEPA or small-particle filter. When it needs to be professionally cleaned, be sure to use a certified “asthma and allergy friendly” service.

A daily cleaning routine is helpful in your home. This will help you get the important chores in your home done. To do so, you can come up with a list of the important chores that need to be done in the home, and divide them into different days, such that for each day, there is an assigned chore. For instance, you can decide to scrub the floor on Mondays, do the laundry on Tuesdays, and so on.

Over the course of time, I have amassed many items and it can sometimes become difficult to sort them out. Amassing  irrelevant items in your home can give room for the breeding of insects and germs, which can cause diseases and infections. From time to time, dispose of some of the objects in your home, especially those you no longer have a need for. By so doing, you have cleaner and less congested areas in your home, with no hiding spaces for insects and microorganisms.

Piling the dishes in your home after meals is an untidy habit which gives room for the infestation of germs. Also, a kitchen full of unwashed diseases is enough to discourage anyone from attempting to have them washed. By washing your dishes immediately after each meal, the kitchen is kept tidy at all times, and it makes the environment safe for cooking. Also, any kitchen utensil that is used during the cooking of meals should be washed up immediately to prevent them from stacking up.

You need to avoid leaving trash inside your home overnight, no matter how little you think they are. Even if it is the last thing you do at night, make sure you take the trash from all rooms and dispose of them properly outside. When you leave trash inside your home overnight, it attracts insects and rodents which can carry diseases and infections around the house. When trash is disposed of daily, you wake up every day to clean, fresh air.

Increasing the supply of fresh air can help reduce exposure to indoor asthma triggers and other contaminants. To keep your home well-ventilated, use exhaust fans and open windows, especially when you are cleaning, cooking, or using chemicals in your home.

In addition to the negative physical health concerns, an unhealthy home often leads to higher energy bills due to a home that cannot stay consistently warm or cool. Improving the energy efficiency of a home will result in a more comfortable and affordable living environment. A home that is well insulated is a home that maintains consistent temperatures throughout every space and every floor. Insulation provides a much-needed barrier from the outdoor environment resulting in the comfortable living environment inside.

Air sealing is another major contributor to a healthy home. By air sealing and insulating, less unconditioned air is making its way inside which means healthier indoor air. An energy efficient home is a home that is comfortable, affordable and healthy, well insulated, air sealed and uses energy efficiency packages. Living in an energy efficient home means that your home is using less energy to run resulting in cheaper hydro bills.

Adding a humidifier to your home, especially during the dry winter months, offers a host of benefits. When you live in a dry climate or have a cold and dry winter, you and the things in your home can suffer various ill effects from the dry air. Indoor air, especially in winter, can have humidity levels at around 10 per cent, but the ideal humidity level for your home is about 30-50 per cent.

Adding humidity to your home can have many positive impacts. It is a balancing act though. Monitoring moisture levels and regular maintenance of your humidifier can ensure you get all of the benefits of moistened air without the risks. Too much moisture in the air can encourage the growth of organisms, including dust mites, and can even lead to mold if left untreated. If it's dryness you struggle with though, a humidifier has a lot of advantages.

Humidity allows tiny hairs in the nose to move and do their job of filtering out bacteria and viruses to prevent colds and flu. Added humidity can also help prevent bloody noses. This makes a lot of sense when you think about it. Flu season coincides with a drop in temperature and humidity every year, so increasing the humidity within your home can prevent the transmission of viruses within your home. 

Air moistened with a humidifier can help soothe some symptoms of colds or flu, including irritation of nasal passages, the throat, and bronchial tubes, helping you breathe and sleep easier. Higher levels of humidity can bust congestion in your sinuses, which will enable you to breathe with more ease and clear a blocked nose and painful, dry throat. Running a humidifier overnight will also help you to sleep easier by taking the pressure off your breathing passages as you lie down.

The heat blasting through your home during the winter months can leave skin tight, dry, and itchy, especially skin on your hands, which has fewer oil glands. Lips also seem to chap more often and more easily in winter because the skin is more sensitive to environmental changes.

Although moisturizers and lip cream can help to manage this, a humidifier can fight the cause of dry skin and help to keep your skin moisture at a comfortable level through the summer months. Your skin can absorb these heightened moisture levels and won't have to work as hard to stay moisturized. A humidifier will not only fight the dry skin that usually accompanies winter, but it will also make your home feel warmer. The humidity in your home should be between 30-50 per cent, and if it's too low the dry air will feel cooler. Conversely, the more moisture that is in the air, the warmer it will feel.

One sure sign of winter is the first time you pet the cat and get a jarring jolt of static electricity, or when you find the latest missing sock stuck to someone's shirt or pants. Dealing with an entirely different hairstyle also is no picnic. A humidifier can lessen the potential for static electricity during the winter months. Added static electricity in your home is annoying, and a little comical, but the very real danger to electronic equipment, including your computer, is decidedly unfunny. The chance of significant damage is minimal unless you happen to have your computer open at the time to add RAM, a sound card, or any similar task. The risk is considerable in that case. You could end up with a dead board or other less obvious damage.

Wood furniture and flooring responds negatively to too much or too little moisture in the air. Too little moisture can cause wood to split and crack. Adding a humidifier to any room with wood furniture can help preserve the integrity of the wood.

What’s really important is making sure you maintain a healthy home that includes clean air, even temperatures, and a comfortable living environment.

A dehumidifier for an enclosed basement is vital for exactly the opposite reasons of a humidifier. A damp basement can be the source of great maladies.

Since we spend so much time making sure our houses are airtight, we must also be diligent in ensuring the safe environment we are trying to maintain is in fact healthy, and not a cesspool of daily distress.

"Do not try to be the man your father would want you to be; be the man you would like your son to be."

Stay safe.

‘Till next time!