National Care About Your Indoor Air Month
Elderly Care in Alexandria VA
You care about a lot of things in your elderly care journey with your aging parent, but how often do you stop to think about how you feel about the air inside her home? February is National Care 
about Your Indoor Air Month, a fantastic opportunity for you to pay attention to the quality of the air that your parent is breathing when she is home, and what you can do to make it healthier and fresher. With all of the pollutants, dust, dirt, germs, hair, and other contaminants that might be floating around inside her home and in every breath that she takes in, improving the quality of her air really could improve the quality of her life.
Use these tips, and share them with your parent and her elderly health care services provider, for ways that you can help to improve and protect the quality of the air inside your parent’s home during Indoor Air Month and throughout the rest of the year:
- Send smokers outside. Tobacco smoke contains a huge array of chemicals and pollutants that can linger in the air making it smell stale and diminishing the quality of every breath that anyone in the room takes. Just check out a white wall in a room where people smoke frequently and you will see the buildup of residue. That residue is what your parent is breathing in. While it is best to just encourage the smoker to quit, if your parent or someone else who visits the home smokes, ensure that that person goes outside to do it to prevent those toxins from getting into the air inside.
- Cut down on cleaners. There is a reason that cleaners might make you cough or give you a headache when you inhale too close to them. These strong products contain harsh chemicals and additives that go into the air and can make breathing uncomfortable. Cut down on the chemical cleaners, solvents, and air fresheners that you use, and opt for natural and homemade versions instead.
- Take off your shoes. Removing your shoes when you go inside the house not only makes you feel more comfortable and relaxed, but it also reduces the number of pollutants, allergens, and contaminants that you track through the home. Designate an area of the house where you keep shoes and do not allow them in any other area of the house. Be sure to clean up this area regularly.
- Clean out your humidifier. A humidifier can be wonderful for making a space feel more comfortable, and can help keep your skin, eyes, and sinuses healthier, but they can also breed bacteria, mold, mildew, and fungus if not properly maintained. Make sure that you are using only the amount of water dictated on the box, and that you empty it thoroughly and clean it out regularly. Consider adding tea tree oil to the water when you first add it for even more benefits. This essential oil will give your parent’s home a lovely smell, but it is also a natural anti-bacterial and anti-fungal, helping to keep the water cleaner and safer longer.
If you or an aging loved one are considering elderly care services in Alexandria, VA, call the caring staff at Medical Professionals On Call today. 703-273-8818
Medical Professionals On Call has such a caring, professional staff who are available to step in with whatever level of care necessary for loved ones and to relieve you of that stress.
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