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The one thing allergy sufferers forget to clean at home

Experts reveal the unexpected part of our home that over half of Australians never clean.

How often you should clean household items is no secret: every one to two weeks for bed linen, once a month for the fridge, once a week if you’re lucky enough to have a tub at home. Even if you put off giving something at home a clean, at least you know exactly what needs cleaning…right?

According to research by Dyson, this isn't quite the case. Almost two-thirds of Australians (58% to be exact) have no idea that the air inside the home needs cleaning too, and that it can cause all sorts of issues for asthmatics, allergy sufferers and even affect quality of sleep.

If you constantly wake up tired or stuffy, this could be the thing you're missing.

Allergens are an invisible pest

There are tons of airborne allergens in the air we breathe, generated from a variety of things including pollen, pet hair, chemicals on furniture and carpet, and dust mites.

“They are so small you would never be able to see them with the naked eye, but they can have a huge effect on our short term and long-term health,” explained Dr. Sheryl van Nunen, a Clinical Allergist and a regular authority with the National Asthma Council Australia.

“This is why it is so important to prevent and eliminate airborne allergens the best way we can.”

Read more: Eight common cleaning mistakes you’re making in the kitchen

As well as causing havoc with anyone with allergies, these allergens making our air at home ‘dirty’ also mess with the quality of sleep we get each night.

Image: Unsplash

Dr. Carmel Harrington, an expert in sleep, reveals how air quality can impact slumber: “To achieve optimum health, we need a solid night’s sleep. My top tips for a decent night's sleep is to be in a quiet, dark and cool environment, and have clean air, free from dust and debris to ensure we breathe clearly.”

“In doing this, you reduce your susceptibility to asthma, rhinitis and sleep apnoea, thereby improving the quality and quantity of your sleep.”

For an easy way to reduce dust mites at home without splashing out on a fancy new fan, Dr. Sheryl van Nunen suggests focusing on the area where the dust mites are most commonly found – your bed.

“Once a week, hot wash your bedding and that should help with most things,” she suggests.

“If you don’t like hot washing or you’re not set up for it at home, then get a detergent and some eucalyptus oil. The eucalyptus oil and detergent disrupt the membrane of the dust mite and it’s just as effective as hot washing.”

But if you do want to purify the air you breathe, Dyson have released their latest Pure Cool purifier fan designed to clean the air we breathe at home at the touch of a button. This makes cleaning the air in your home way simpler than giving the bathroom a scrub down, or even washing the sheets (but you should still do that, too).

Read more: This is how often you should clean household items