Suffering from coughing, sneezing, watery nose & allergies all year round? But can’t figure out the source. Do you know there are high chances that this source may be from your mattress itself? Yes, you heard it right it’s the place where you sleep. Sleep and allergies are closely related. In the article, we will dig into the relation between allergies and sleep and suggest possible way out to overcome this problem.
Effect of allergies on sleep:
When allergens enter your nasal passage, they cause a lot of irritation and itching which obviously doesn’t let you sleep at night. Allergies are not a one day affair it goes on for weeks and sometimes lasts for months and chronic allergies can last for years. Many research studies show that people who suffer from sleeping disorders like insomnia, delayed sleep disorder, the main causes behind them were allergies.
Allergies surely keep you awake at night and don’t let you sleep, eventually people become habitual to it and as a result they become prone to sleeping disorders. This can cause drastic effect on your health. Even if you are not allergic to anything, it can still affect you, especially when you are sleeping. Let’s have a look at the health issues that can arise due to allergies.
Possible Health issues due to allergies
1. Weakens the immune system–
When viruses, bacteria get into your body, they first target the immune system, due to which you start falling sick often & there is higher risk of frequent allergies as your immune system gets weak.
2. Breathing problems-
When you are sleeping, virus or bacteria enter into the body through the nasal passage and causes difficulty in breathing, chest tightness & trouble in sleeping due to runny nose or excessive mucus.
3. Skin infections-
When we sleep first thing which come in contact with mattress & pillow is our skin. While sleeping we shed dead skin every day which act as a food for micro-organism and if the pillow or the mattress is not cleaned regularly, this can cause skin infections like acne or skin allergies.
4. Aggravate Asthma-
If you are an asthma patient & you are coming in contact with these dust mites, virus & bacteria then it can aggravate it by triggering the symptoms like chest pain, coughing, wheezing & result in restless night.
Allergies can surely harm your health, so if you care about your health, you will have to find some possible solutions to overcome this problem. So let’s dig in quickly.
How to overcome this problem?
1. Buy a hypoallergenic mattress-
No matter how much you clean your mattresses; it is difficult to keep the allergens and bacteria away. The best option is to buy a hypoallergenic mattress. These mattresses are made up of such a material that keeps the bacteria, virus & mites away, and they come with washable covers.
2. Buy anti-allergy pillow-
There are pillows available in the market that are anti-allergy and anti-dust so that dust or mites don’t gather and you can have a peaceful sleep. Go for a memory foam pillow. It is highly breathable, orthopedic as well as keeps the allergens away.
3. Wash mattress cover–
It is necessary to buy a mattress with a washable cover and make sure it is washed once or twice a week to maintain maximum hygiene. Also, regularly wash your pillow covers for best results.
4. Maintain room hygiene –
Regularly clean your air conditioners filters, vacuum the carpet and keep your room hygienic and clean since most of the dust comes from outside or AC’s. Always remove your footwear outside your room so that dust doesn’t come inside. Install humidifiers in your room, and they keep the temperature of the room favorable.
5. Take medication–
Some people who are allergic to dust have to be extra careful since dust tends to gather quickly on mattresses and pillows. Those suffering from a runny nose can take nasal sprays in moderation or better consult a doctor to avoid criticality.
Now you can see that allergies can be dangerous too, and you may catch most of them while sleeping. Hence, following suggested solutions may help you to lessen the risk of it and get uninterrupted healthy sleep.
