Facts, Prevention, and Relief for Indoor Allergies for 2024

Indoor allergies can cause issues for people year-round. While most seasonal allergies often subside during the winter, indoor allergies sufferers get no such relief.

If you have indoor allergies, removing the source of your allergies from your home is a good start. Wyndly can also help you find lifelong relief from your indoor allergies.

Set up an allergy consultation with Wyndly today to get started with long-term allergy relief, or read on to learn more about indoor allergies.

Common Symptoms

While indoor allergy symptoms share many symptoms with seasonal allergies, you may notice them becoming more persistent in winter when you’re inside more often.

If you have indoor allergies, you may experience the following symptoms:

• Runny nose
• Congestion
• Sneezing
• Hives, rashes, eczema
• Scratchy throat
• Coughing
• Itchy, watery eyes
• Fatigue
• Aggravated symptoms if you have asthma

The symptoms you experience and the severity of those symptoms will vary from person to person. If you notice that your allergy symptoms don’t subside at any point during the year, you may have an indoor allergy.

Where Are Indoor Allergies Found?

Indoor allergens can be found in homes, offices, businesses, and any indoor location. Typically, indoor allergens are more prominent when an indoor space is dirty or damp. Keeping your indoor spaces clean and well ventilated can help reduce the presence of indoor allergens.

What Are the Types?

Many different indoor substances can cause allergies. The types of indoor allergens include:

• Dust mites
• Mold
• Pet dander
• Cockroaches (body parts, saliva, droppings)
• Indoor plants
• Fabrics

Certain indoor allergens like indoor plants and fabrics can simply be removed from the home. The more common allergens like mold and dust will be harder to control.

Testing and Diagnosis

Self-diagnosing your indoor allergies can be difficult. Common allergens like mold, cockroaches, and dust mites can be present in almost any household or indoor facility. Instead of guessing at the source of your allergies, it’s much easier to find out the exact cause with an allergy test. Wyndly offers an easy, at-home allergy test that avoids the hassle and pain of a skin prick test at the doctor’s office. Try our at-home allergy test to identify your allergens.

This is how different allergy testing options work:

Old-Fashioned Method: Skin Prick Test at Your Doctor’s Office

Skin prick testing requires you to go to the doctor to find out your allergen triggers. It’s often uncomfortable, and it takes time out of your day. You’ll go to the doctor’s office, they’ll administer a test where they prick or scrape your skin with a needle tipped with different allergens, and then they’ll observe the areas they pricked for itchiness, redness, or swelling. All in all, it’s not a pleasant experience. Instead, you can save yourself time and pain by getting an at-home test.

Modern and Efficient At-Home Method

1. Order Wyndly’s at-home allergy test. We ship our CLIA-certified test straight to your door.
2. Take the allergy test and send it back to us. Just do a quick finger prick test to provide us with a blood sample and mail it back when you’re done.
3. Receive your personal allergy profile. Our doctor will interpret your results, create an allergy profile, and walk you through a treatment plan.

Unlike self-diagnosis, an allergy test can reveal the full breadth of your allergies. This way you know exactly what you’re allergic to and how you can treat your symptoms.

Treatment and Remedies

Once you’ve discovered what is causing your allergies, you can focus your treatment and manage your symptoms more easily. There are several good ways to manage and treat your indoor allergies.

Limiting Exposure

Limiting exposure is the first step to any treatment plan. If you can remove or reduce the source of your allergies in your home, you may find your symptoms are much less bothersome. Different allergens require different treatments, and we have suggestions for how to address the problems.

• Mold: Mold releases spores into the air that can cause allergy symptoms when you breathe them in. Mold grows best in damp areas and areas with water damage, like basements, kitchens, and bathrooms. Here are some ways to reduce mold spores in your home:
  • Reduce humidity: Control the humidity in your home with a dehumidifier. You can also buy a measuring device that tells you what the humidity levels are in your house.
  • Fix water damage: Find and repair any leaks or water damage in your home.
  • Clean mold immediately: When you find mold, you can use a mold cleaner or bleach solution to eliminate it. Use a vinegar solution for porous surfaces.
  • Vent your bathroom: Don’t run showers for too long, and make sure to keep vent fans on.
  • Use a HEPA filter: A filter on your air conditioning and heating can prevent mold spores from circulating throughout your home.
• Dust Mites: Dust mites are microscopic creatures that prefer warm, damp environments. Here are some ways to reduce dust mites:
  • Reduce humidity: Just like mold, dust mites prefer humid environments. A dehumidifier and humidity monitor can help you control humidity levels.
  • Vacuum with a HEPA filter: Carpet and furniture can collect dust mites. Vacuuming frequently can reduce their presence.
  • Wash clothing and bedding in hot water: Do laundry often, and wash your bedding once a week in hot water, which will help to eliminate dust mites.
  • Use dust covers on pillows, furniture, and mattresses: Dust covers can help prevent dust mites from gathering on your pillows, furniture, and mattress.
  • Remove rugs and wall-to-wall carpet: If possible, reduce the use of rugs and wall-to-wall carpet in your home. This can help keep dust mite levels down.
• Cockroaches: Cockroach parts, saliva, and droppings can trigger allergic reactions. You can take the following steps to keep cockroaches from being a problem in your home:
  • Don’t leave food or trash out: Food particles and trash will attract cockroaches.
  • Used lidded trash cans: Keeping a tight light on your trash cans will prevent cockroaches from being attracted to them.
  • Seal cracks in your home: Seal cracks under doors, in walls, and on the floor. These cracks make it easy for bugs to get in.
  • Use traps or hire an exterminator: If you have a minor cockroach issue, traps may be enough to contain the problem. Major issues may require the intervention of an exterminator.
• Pet Dander: Pet dander is the dead skin cells shed by your pet. Pet saliva and urine can also cause allergies. If you have a pet in your house, you can reduce allergens with the following steps:
  • Keep pets out of the bedroom: Since you sleep in your bedroom and spend a lot of time there, it’s a good idea to keep your dander exposure to a minimum. Keeping pets out of the bedroom can help.
  • Vacuum often: Use a vacuum with a HEPA filter to reduce dander.
  • Groom pets outside: Brush pets outside to get rid of dander. If possible, have someone else do this or do it with a mask on.
  • Use a HEPA filter: Using a filter in your home can prevent dander from circulating in the air.

Limiting exposure can certainly help, but it doesn’t always lead to complete relief. If you’re needing to manage your symptoms, your next step might be medications.

Medications

When symptoms occur, medications can help you find temporary relief. These are some of the most common medications you can find at your local pharmacy.

• Over-the-Counter Medications: There are a wide variety of OTC allergy meds options. There are even options for kids, non-drowsy opinions, and 24-hour relief options. Here are the OTC allergy meds you can try:
  • Antihistamines: When your body perceives an allergen as a threat, it responds with antibodies and histamine. Antihistamines can inhibit histamine response, providing you with temporary relief.
  • Nasal sprays: Nasal spray reduces swelling and inflammation in the nasal passage, providing relief from runny or stuffy noses.
  • Eye drops: Eye drops can flush allergens out of your eyes, relieving itchy and red eyes.
• Prescription: When OTC allergy meds aren’t doing enough for you, prescription medications may be on the table. This should be a last resort and will need to be discussed with your doctor.

Preventative measures and medication can provide you with short-term relief, but if you are seeking long-term relief from your symptoms, you may want to consider sublingual immunotherapy.

Sublingual Immunotherapy Allergy Drops

Allergy drops are a form of immunotherapy that is administered with liquid drops under the tongue. Unlike allergy shots, this form of immunotherapy doesn’t require painful needles and trips to the doctor. Allergy drops are just as effective and can be taken at home.

Allergy drops work by introducing your immune system to small, incrementally increasing amounts of your allergen. This trains your immune system to ignore the substance instead of triggering an allergic response. If you’re interested in allergy drops, Wyndly is making them available to allergy sufferers all across the United States.

Get Lifelong Allergy Relief With Wyndly

When you’re ready to finally find lifelong relief from your allergies, let Wyndly help.

Our doctors will make you a personalized treatment plan. With sublingual immunotherapy allergy drops, your immune system will gradually learn to ignore allergen substances. Get a personalized treatment plan with Wyndly today to get started on your path to complete relief.

Indoor Allergens FAQs

Here are some frequently asked questions about indoor allergens.

If I remove allergens from my home, will I be free of indoor allergies?

While reducing allergens in your home can help, there’s no accounting for other homes and buildings. Even if you manage to free your own living space from allergens, you may still be exposed when you leave your home.

How do I know if I have indoor or outdoor allergies?

Generally, outdoor allergies will subside in the winter, especially if you live in a place that gets colder weather. That being said, an allergy test is the best and surest way to identify your allergens.

How do I know if it’s allergies or a cold?

Since indoor allergies can increase during cold and flu season, people sometimes wonder if they might just have a cold. Generally, a cold will last for one to two weeks before subsiding, while allergies can persist year-round. While they share many symptoms, some symptoms differ between the two. Allergies typically don’t come with a fever, and colds don’t typically come with hives or itchiness.

Environmental and Seasonal Allergens

Allergies to Cats

Allergies to Dogs

Allergies to Horses

Alder Tree Allergies

Ash Tree Allergies

Aspen Tree Allergies

Bahia Grass Allergies

Beech Tree Allergies

Cedar Tree Allergies

Chestnut Tree Allergies

Cocklebur Allergies

Cockroach Allergies

Cottonwood Tree Allergies

Cypress Tree Allergies

Dust Mite Allergies

Elm Tree Allergies

English Plantain Allergies

Grass Pollen Allergies

Hazel Tree Allergies

Hickory Tree Allergies

Hornbeam Tree Allergies

Indoor Allergies

Johnson Grass Allergies

Juniper Tree Allergies

Kentucky Bluegrass Allergies

Kochia Allergies

Lamb’s Quarters Allergies

Maple Tree Allergies

Mesquite Tree Allergies

Mold Allergies

Mugwort Allergies

Mulberry Tree Allergies

Oak Allergies

Olive Tree Allergies

Orchard Grass Allergies

Palm Tree Allergies

Pecan Tree Allergies

Pigweed Allergies

Pine Tree Allergies

Poplar Tree Allergies

Redtop Grass Allergies

Rye Grass Allergies

Sagebrush Allergies

Sheep Sorrel Allergies

Sweet Vernal Grass Allergies

Sycamore Tree Allergies

Tree Pollen Allergies

Tumbleweed Allergies

Walnut Tree Allergies

Weed Pollen Allergies

Willow Tree Allergies