Keep it clean

— Banishing allergens

Call it fall cleaning.

The change in weather can bring a host of unwelcome allergens. So just what are the ragweed-averse to do?

Arm & Hammer (with a little help from the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology, a professional organization of some 5,500 allergists and immunologists) offers these suggestions:

Change your vacuum cleaner filters and bags to make sure your vacuum has adequate suction.

Check your humidifier setting. It should be set at 35 percent to 50 percent humidity. Dried out sinuses can aggravate allergy symptoms. Look for humidifiers with HEPA filters, the company suggests.

Before you turn on your heat, clean your heating ducts so trapped mold and dirt won’t circulate through the house.

Stay indoors when possible.

Use your exhaust fan when showering to keep mold fromdeveloping.

Arm & Hammer is one of a number of companies that offer HEPA vacuum filters aimed at keeping dust, pollen and pet dander from being circulated back into the air. (They’re only available at Wal-Mart. For more information visit armhammervac.com.)

The company maintains its HEPA filters “retain up to 99.97 percent of dust mite debris, household fibers, grassand ragweed pollens, plus particles 15 times smaller than the diameter of a human hair.”

An article in this month’s Consumer Reports says some, and we stress some, vacuum cleaners with regular filters do just as good a job at keeping in the dust. Check it out at ConsumerReports.org.

HomeStyle, Pages 46 on 10/30/2010

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