Using a HEPA filter in your home can remove most airborne particles that could worsen allergies. In some cases, however, using an air purifier can cause allergies to worsen rather than improve. This is usually due to ionizing units that increase the amount of allergens and dust in the air. Studies have shown that air purifiers can help people with common allergies by trapping pollen and other irritants inside their filters, but there is still little consensus on the subject.
Indoor air quality could be making your allergies worse. Your air conditioner will have to work harder to keep all the particles out of the air and it may not be as efficient. Even for those who don't have asthma, dirty air filters can cause unwanted symptoms, such as coughing, wheezing, sneezing, eye redness, and respiratory tract infections. Using an air purifier can eliminate many allergic triggers. While there is no official recommendation for the use of air purifiers for allergies, many medical experts and research studies point to their effectiveness.
Using an air purifier, along with other preventive measures, can offer a long-term solution that people with mold allergies should consider. If you find that your air isn't as clean as you'd like, or if you've noticed an increase in allergic reactions, you might be thinking about buying a new air purifier. HEPA filters are made of densely packed layers of glass fibers instead of paper, which makes them able to trap more than 99 percent of pollen, dust, and smoke particles and keep them out of the air you breathe every day. However, even if they're clean and new, they can contribute to allergies because they don't filter out all allergens from the air. Particles that cause pet allergies can be removed by using an air purifier equipped with a HEPA filter. The disadvantages of air purifiers include noise, energy consumption, and the cost of replacing filters.
For best results, make sure that the air purifier you have is in the room you spend the most time in, that it has a suitable HEPA filter installed, and that it is running all day. You can also order custom filters that target specific allergens and impurities, such as pet allergy, toxin absorbers, germ defense, or odor-eliminating filters. Using a photoelectrochemical oxidation nanotechnology (PECO) filter is another option for those looking for an effective way to reduce allergens in their home. This type of filter works not only to trap and capture impurities but also to break them down and destroy them.
