What Helps with Allergies at Home? How to Manage Symptoms with Lifestyle Changes

Allergies can get in the way of your day-to-day activities – especially when they leave you with eyes that itch, a nose that runs and other frustrating symptoms¹.

If you’re wondering how to get rid of allergies, you should know that there’s no ‘cure’ as such. But understanding what helps with allergies, adjusting your lifestyle and finding ways to reduce the impact of your triggers are all great ways to overcome or reduce your symptoms. That way you can get on with living your life.

Thankfully, there are plenty of things you can do to start managing your allergies at home, so you can enjoy the things that matter. Here are our top suggestions.

Know Your Triggers

Knowing what sets off your symptoms is the first step in learning how to help your allergies. It makes it far easier to adjust your lifestyle so you can start avoiding those triggers.

Common allergy ‘irritants’, also known as allergens, include:

If you notice recurring allergy symptoms, but can’t put your finger on what’s causing them, speak to your doctor and ask them to test you for allergies². Once you have a definitive answer, you can discuss the best treatment for your allergies with more clarity.

Stay Hydrated

Drinking plenty of water each day is a good idea anyway^3,4, but it can be especially beneficial when you’re struggling with allergies⁵.

Your body produces more histamines (the chemicals that lead to allergy symptoms) when it’s dehydrated⁶, so drinking water may potentially be good for allergies.

Clean Regularly

If you’ve had your windows open or been going in and out of the house a lot, you may be bringing allergens into your home. In fact, 60% of household dust comes from outdoors⁷.

Regularly washing your clothes, bedding and soft furnishings could help remove some of the allergens that cling to the fabrics and prevent setting off your reactions in the first place⁸.

Regular vacuuming can also help, so there’s an even greater incentive to get those chores done.

Use a HEPA Air Purifier

Some people choose to use air purifiers for help with their allergies. These portable devices can be set up indoors to reduce unwanted air particles⁹. They’re particularly useful for people with dust or pet allergies, as they can help to remove common indoor allergens from the air.

When you buy an air purifier, check its capacity to ensure it’s big enough for the room you want to put it in. A HEPA (‘High Efficiency Particulate Air’) filter can potentially take more than 99.9% of mold, pollen and dust out of the air in your home¹⁰.

Turn on Your Air Conditioner

When it comes to relief from allergies at home, it doesn’t get much simpler than cranking up the AC. While opening your window for some fresh air is great, it can also let pollen and other irritants into your home, which could trigger your allergy symptoms¹¹.

If you have a central air conditioning unit, using it all year round may well help with your allergies, as it dehumidifies the air to filter out aggravating particles¹².

During the warmer months, relying on AC instead of opening all your windows could ease your symptoms in two ways. First, by preventing allergens from getting into the air in your home during the peak pollen season, and secondly, dispersing them when they do.

Try Nasal Irrigation

Sinus rinsing or nasal irrigation using a neti pot – or similar container – can help remove dust, pollen and other debris, as well as loosening thick mucus –which may help relieve allergy symptoms¹³. Just remember to use a saline rinse if possible, as plain water can irritate the delicate tissues inside your nose¹⁴.

Change Your Clothes

Pollen and other allergens can stick to your clothes when you come in contact with them. So if you’ve been for a summer stroll or spent some time with a friend’s pet, and notice that your allergy symptoms start to flare up, try changing your clothes as soon as you can. This may help reduce your exposure to whatever allergen has latched itself on to your clothing, and give you some much-needed relief.

Take a Shower

If you’re in need of some allergy relief at home, simply taking a shower could help. Not only will the steam from a shower help to relieve some of the swelling in your nasal passages, it can also help to wash any lingering allergen particles from your skin and hair.

MANAGING ALLERGIES AT HOME

STAY WELL HYDRATED

KNOW YOUR TRIGGERS

USE A HEPA AIR PURIFIER

USE AIR CONDITIONING

TRY NASAL IRRIGATION

CLEAN REGULARLY

TAKE A SHOWER

CHANGE YOUR CLOTHES

USE SOOTHING WIPES

How to Help Allergies – FAQs

What can I drink for allergies?

In general, drinking water and staying hydrated is one of the simplest ways you can try to stay itchy eye and runny nose free.

When is allergy season?

In many areas of the US, allergy season tends to fall between February and early summer. But the specific time your symptoms strike will depend on which type of pollen you’re allergic to¹⁴. Tree, grass and weed pollens tend to be at their highest levels in May, while July sees ragweed pollen levels start to rise.

Using certain products and improving your home environment with a ‘spring clean’ – or air conditioning in the summer – may all provide help with allergies. You should speak to your doctor if you’re experiencing severe seasonal symptoms.

What is the best allergy treatment at home?

Simply turning up your AC, breathing in steam or cleaning allergens from your face can help reduce the impact of allergy triggers around your home. However, for fast allergy symptom relief, ZYRTEC® helps relieve your worst allergy symptoms – working at hour 1 and staying strong day after day. Learn more about the ZYRTEC® family of products

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