This time of year is rough – colds and flu, lots of time indoors where air quality is poor, and that cold, dry air mean that asthma is flaring up all over the place.

Both me and my middle child struggle with asthma, and in the 20+ years I’ve dealt with it I’ve figured out a few things. First, when the doc says you need to take a maintenance medication, you need to take a maintenance medication. But second, there are a few ways to relieve asthma symptoms that aren’t dependent on pharmaceuticals. Let me just tell you, I love albuterol for opening my lungs and letting me breathe. I hate it for making my heart race though.

So when my lungs start to tighten, or my little boy starts coughing, here’s my go-to plan.

1. Fresh air. Forget about smog – outdoor air is cleaner than indoor air.
2. Moisture – and lots of it. The cool air humidifier barely makes a dent. But if I close the doors to my bathroom and get in a hot shower the steam opens me up.
3. Lemon & honey – about half and half, and bottoms up. They help relieve coughing to allow the lungs to settle, and they’re both immune supports. But, the lemon aroma has also been shown to relieve symptoms.
4. Aromatherapy, using only pure essential oils. Peppermint, chamomile, ginger, and lavender. Put a drop of each into a small dish of olive oil and rub it into the feet.

The key to long-term maintenance is knowing your triggers and managing your symptoms before they become problems. Hopefully, clean indoor air, plants indoors, and a healthy lifestyle will help you find your way to managing asthma. In the meantime, maybe these tips will make your emergency situations fewer.

Note: This is meant to help someone manage asthma symptoms at the early onset, not in an emergency situation. A rescue inhaler is always the best bet when breathing is labored.

• Spider plants (reduces formaldehyde)
• Fig trees (reduces formaldehyde)
• English Ivy (helps tackle the impact of petrochemicals)
• Aloe vera (eliminates emissions from most toxic sources)
• Chrysanthemum (reduces formaldehyde, benzene, and ammonia)
• Chinese evergreen
• Bamboo palm
• Peace lillies (removes alcohols, acetone, trichloroethylene, benzene and formaldehyde)

• Sweep your entry ways – the less you’re tracking in, the easier it’ll be to keep the dust in your home and the allergens under control
• Invest in a new welcome mat – same reason as above. Those things don’t last forever, you know?
• Dust with a damp feather duster. Dust will cling to it rather than being kicked up into the air. House dust is one of the biggest allergens, and keeping it under control will help keep your allergies contained.
• Look for dust in places you might not regularly clean – on top of tall furniture, your ceiling fans, air vents, light fixtures, etc.
• Wash your linens in hot water. Dust mites are another big cause of allergies and asthma, and you need hot water to really get rid of them.
• Close your windows, especially at night. Air conditioners will help filter the air, whereas outdoor air will bring in more allergens.
• Vacuum once or twice weekly with a HEPA-filtered vacuum. More frequent vacuuming could actually make your allergies worse.
• Change your air filters. Yes, obvious, but necessary! And when you change your filters, remember to go ahead and clean your air vents.
• Control cockroaches (and let’s hear a communal “eww, gross!”). No one wants cockroaches in their home, but not many of us are aware that they actually trigger allergies and asthma. You can use Borax to control them, but you’ll want to be careful using it if you have small children or pets. Borax can be harmful if swallowed, so limit its use to places cockroaches are going to congregate – dark damp places, in cabinets, under the kitchen sink, etc.

So, if you or your child is struggling with asthma, what can you do at home to decrease the risk? Well, going all-natural would be a great idea. But if you’re not ready to completely step out, here’s a list of cleaning products that contain the chemicals most frequently linked to asthma (Monoethanolamine and Benzalkonium chloride).

Of all of that, the most distressing to me was the Dreft laundry detergent. It’s marketed specifically to parents of young children, and claims to be the #1 recommended laundry detergent by pediatricians. I don’t know about you, but I would expect that to mean that it’s free of allergens and asthma triggers. Also of note, every one of the laundry detergents listed above are made by Proctor & Gamble, and there are 2 ‘free and clear’ type detergents in the list as well. Apparently not all free and clear detergents are the same.

Other things can trigger asthma as well – it’s important to note what you and your kids are exposed to and how it affects their breathing. There could be other chemicals that will affect your asthma or your child’s, and it all depends on how and what your body reacts to.

But in another few days we’ll be putting away holiday decorations and putting our homes back in order – the way they are the rest of the year (or at least the way we want them to be for Superbowl parties).

A few things to remember as you’re doing your cleaning this week and next:

• As you put away your holiday decorations, remember that the regular decor that’s been boxed up may have collected dust and other allergens. Unpack them outside if possible, and dust them before you bring them in – especially if anyone in your home has asthma.
• Now is a great time to replace your air filters. All the changing of home decor probably created more dust in your home, and while you’re cleaning you might as well change those filters.
• Don’t forget to sweep your entry ways (even outside the home) and give your door mats a good clean. With the extra traffic of the holidays, you’ll want to make sure what remains is memories, not dirt to be tracked in!
• Have leftover candy canes? Throw them in a food processor, melt your favorite chocolate and spread it over a cookie sheet. Sprinkle the candy cane dust over the top, and refrigerate. Voila! Peppermint bark! Add a drop or two of peppermint oil to the melted chocolate to make it extra minty.
•  If you have silk plants and trees in your home, now would be a great time to spray them down. Again, the activity of the holidays brings extra things into your home, and that means extra dust. Either put the plants in the shower and use a detachable shower head to spray them down, or take them outside and use a garden hose and sprayer attachment to wash the dust away.
• A feather duster is a great way to go over your home quickly for dust. Just remember to wear a mask if you have severe allergies, do it when others are away, and an hour or two after you dust each room run the vacuum to collect any dust that will have settled into your floors.
• Don’t forget to clean out your refrigerator and freezer after the parties have finished. You’d rather toss it now than in a month when it’s become a science project!
• Does your oven need a good scrub after all your holiday baking? Mine sure does! Good for you if you have a self-cleaning oven. If not, you don’t need a harsh oven cleaner. Just grab a good degreaser (Simple Green works well, as does Bon Ami and Bar Keepers’ Friend). Spray or sprinkle on, let sit a while, and then scrub away. It may take a few rounds, but it’ll be well worth it.

And may the New Year bring you renewed organization, healthy motivation, and a good balance of relaxation and good times with good friends!

Cleaning sprays and air fresheners contain chemicals such as ammonia, chlorine-releasing agents and sodium hydroxide. Researchers suggested that the chemicals being released into the air in spray form significantly increased their exposure to people.

We here at Broom Huggers know that, and it’s why we use exclusively natural products. Chemical free translates to asthma free.  There are lots of natural products at your supermarket – try Method, Seventh Generation, Ecover, or plain old vinegar and water.

I read somewhere that you can put Vicks VapoRub on your kids’ feet (or your own) to stop the coughing. Cover with socks or footed onesie pajamas, and you’re good to go.  I tried it last night – both on myself and my 3 year-old. And guess what? Her incessant coughing stopped. Coughing that the inhaler didn’t work on, and that the humidifier didn’t help. About 5 minutes after I slathered some on her feet she’d stopped coughing and was fast asleep. And me? I slept pretty well too, but then I wasn’t coughing to begin with. I’m just one of those weird moms that doesn’t like to try things on my kids unless I’ve tried it myself.

Anyhow, you can read more about VapoRub on the soles of the feet here (and other entirely weird uses for the Vick’s goop).

I tried it. It’s a foaming sanitizer, feels all nice and silky on the skin. And it has a nice fresh scent. But unfortunately, I can’t give it any more kudos. The active ingredient is Benzalkonium Chloride (BAC). There’s some good information about Benzalkonium Chloride here, but to give you the long and short of it, BAC is one of a group of germicides known as “Quats.” They’re found in tens of thousands of cleaning products and are accumulating in alarming rates. There’s a recognized causal relationship between BAC and asthma, chronic dermatitis, and other immune system disorders.

Scientists and manufacturers cling to tests that say there’s no harm involved when these products are used as recommended. The amount of exposure is minimal and shouldn’t be associated with increased risk of the above problems. Unfortunately there’s no proven way to test for hazards associated with accumulation over time through multiple uses of multiple products. Our advice: Read labels. Know what you’re exposing yourself and your family to. And if you’re pregnant or have small children, avoid the Quats:

Parasterol or benzalkonium chloride, Benzethonium chloride, Cetalkonium chloride, Cetrimide, Cetylpyridinium chloride, Benzyldimethylstearylammonium chloride, Dimethybenzyl ammonium chloride