7 Surprising Allergens in Your Home

Having trouble shaking your allergy symptoms? You might be introducing one of these seven irritants into your home without realizing it. 

There’s nothing fun about having allergies. The itchy, watery eyes, the runny nose, that dry, scratchy feeling in the back of your throat; it’s all pretty terrible. 

Whether you’re allergic to pollen, grass, pet hair, or some other element, most people try to steer clear of the things that make their allergies act up.

But despite your best efforts, you might be living with things right inside your home that can actually make your allergies worse. Here are seven surprising things in your apartment that make allergies worse that it’s time to do away with once and for all!

1. Red Wine

Do you love arriving home at the end of a long day of work and relaxing with a glass of red wine?

Unfortunately, your favorite cabernet or merlot might be making your allergies worse.

Red wine contains sulfites, which are preservatives used in various foods and most alcoholic beverages. They’re particularly important in red wine, as they help the wine maintain its flavor and fresh taste. The problem is that the more sulfites you consume, the more likely you are to have a stuffed-up nose, a headache, or both.

Sulfites are also found in beer, so the worse your allergies are, the better it is to skip the alcohol altogether.

2. Indoor Plants

Indoor plants are a huge décor trend right now because they’re a great way to bring some nature inside the home. But if you display your plants in wicker baskets, you might want to think about repotting them.

Wicker baskets are prone to mold, and if you don’t clean them regularly, mold spores can grow freely and wreak havoc on your allergies. Mold spores make you sneeze and make your nose feel irritated, so instead of using wicker baskets, it’s best to house your plants in ceramic or wood pots.

Additionally, if you use wicker baskets for storage in and around your apartment, you might want to donate them and opt for plastic or wooden bins instead. 

3.  Cockroaches

Hopefully, you don’t live with cockroaches — that’s never a pleasant experience. But if you do happen to see one or two crawling across the kitchen or bathroom floor, call your landlord and insist that they bring in an exterminator.

Some people are allergic to cockroaches and suffer terrible nasal allergies in their presence. And since cockroaches tend to hide out in dark, wet places, you may have them and not even realize that those little buggers are making your allergies worse.

4. Apples, Tomatoes, and Cantaloupe

Peanuts, eggs, milk, and shellfish account for some of the most widespread food allergies. But if you suffer from oral allergy syndrome, you’ll want to steer clear of apples, tomatoes, and cantaloupe as well.

For people with OAS, eating certain types of fresh, raw fruits and veggies can trigger a reaction similar to a pollen allergy. And that’s because these fruits and vegetables contain food proteins on the outside of their skin.

If you have an allergic episode after eating a certain vegetable or fruit, take note of it. You may need to cut that food out of your diet altogether. Or, at the very least, you may have to limit your intake and cook it to kill those proteins rather than eating it raw.

Oral allergy syndrome can be incredibly serious. For some people, it simply causes the lips and mouth to itch. For others, it can lead to anaphylaxis.

5. Candles

Not sure why you’re always sneezing when you’re in your apartment with the windows closed? Take a look (and a sniff) around; the culprit might be your candles.

A simple scent can bring on a sneezing effect, even if it’s a scent that you love. This isn’t limited to candles; sneezing can also be caused by incense, potpourri, and even some essential oils you put in your diffuser.

In some people, specific scents can irritate the eyelids and nostrils. Even if they don’t cause you to sneeze, they can make it feel like your allergies are acting up without a good explanation.

If you’re sensitive to scents, be mindful of what air fresheners and air cleaning sprays you use as well.

6. Your Fireplace

We are all well aware of the fact that secondhand smoke is bad for us. It’s full of toxins and irritants that damage our lungs, make our throats feel sore, and exacerbate our allergies.

But sitting next to a smoker isn’t the only way to get secondhand smoke into your lungs. If you have a fireplace in your apartment, you could be subjecting yourself to secondhand smoke without even knowing it.

Before you throw a log on the fire, take the necessary precautions to ensure that your flue is open and that your fireplace is properly vented. A fireplace in proper working order should vent the smoke up and out, never into the room.

7. Contact Lenses

For contact lens wearers with allergies, those tiny little lenses might be doing you more harm than good.

Contact lenses are like little mini magnets for pollen and other airborne irritants. So when you’re outside, be sure to protect your eyes (and your lenses) by wearing sunglasses. Even a small pair of sunglasses can help prevent some of the dust and pollen particles from getting into your eyes.

If your eyes are extra-itchy or watery, take your lenses out, clean them thoroughly, and give your eyes a rest by wearing your glasses instead.

Conclusion

For most allergy sufferers, dust mites, mold, pollen, and pet hair are the biggest triggers. But anyone can develop a new allergy at any point in time.

It’s a common myth that our allergies change every seven years, but that’s just not true. However, allergies can improve or worsen over time, especially when you expose yourself to new environments.

If you’re suffering from watery, itchy eyes, a stuffed or runny nose, or a sore and scratchy throat more so than usual, it could just be nature taking its course. Or it could be that you’re living with a common household item that’s making your allergies worse.

Caitlin Sinclair is the Property Manager at Harmony 3900 with five years of property management experience and many more in Customer Service. She shares her passion for her community and looks forward to making Harmony 3900 the place to call home.