If your child suffers from asthma, summer can be a difficult season. Pollen levels are soaring in Saint Augustine, Florida. And frequent traffic coming in and out of the house can easily track these irritants indoors. It’s important to find the proper balance of summer fun and healthy breathing for your family. Use the following smart tactics to manage your child’s asthma carefully without sacrificing any of the much-anticipated physical activity, outdoor explorations and other fun that comes with this season.

Track Your Child’s Symptoms

Tracking your child’s asthma symptoms is a crucial part of successfully managing his or her asthma. You can use a portable handheld meter to track the severity of asthma symptoms from day to day. Document these symptoms along with other relevant information, such as where your child was and what allergens he or she was exposed to.

Over time, this log will paint a valuable picture of your child’s asthma. Reviewing the log will help you identify key triggers so that you can avoid them in the future. It can also help you come up with other action plans to help you minimize symptoms and increase comfort throughout the day. If symptoms are worse at home, focus on cleaning your living space. Issues at the park might mean looking for a different play space.

Avoid Viral Infections

Viral infections can act as triggers and are often responsible for causing some of the most severe asthma attacks. Hospital admissions for asthma are most often the result of a viral infection causing asthma to flare up. Take as many precautions as possible to avoid viral infections so that your child can steer clear of these types of asthma attacks.

Review proper hand-washing procedures with your child. Provide helpful reminders throughout the day to continue this task. Make sure your children never share cups or eating utensils. Keep sick family members away from asthma sufferers in the household as much as possible.

Installing an advanced air cleaner in your HVAC system can help, as well. Many of these systems are capable of capturing germs and bacteria, as well as dust and pollen, to prevent circulation of irritants throughout the house.

Get Plenty of Exercise

Physical activity can often act as a trigger. As a result, it discourages some asthma sufferers from exercising. Unfortunately, not exercising can do more harm than good.

Getting regular exercise is healthy for many reasons. Among them are strengthened breathing muscles and an improved immune system. If your child’s asthma is under control, supervised exercise should be fine. Make sure a rescue inhaler is on hand and encourage proper warm-up and cool-down procedures to help avoid an asthma attack.

Speak with your pediatrician about the best and safest way for your child to regularly exercise. Your doctor can help recommend safe options that’ll allow your child to enjoy all the benefits of physical activity without any unnecessary dangers.

Keep the Home Clean

Dust, pollen and other triggers often collect inside the sealed environment of your house. As a result, they can cause uncomfortable issues for asthma sufferers. Minimize these irritants with smart cleaning routines and careful preventive measures.

Cover your child’s bedding with allergen-proof covers to keep dust mites from settling into mattresses and pillows. Keep toys and out-of-season clothing in lidded plastic bins so that allergens can’t settle on these items.

Vacuum, sweep and dust regularly. Keep your air conditioning system’s fan on while you perform these activities so that it’ll continually pull air through the filter. This action will help reduce dust and dander as they’re stirred up during your cleaning. Scheduling regular duct cleaning will help keep those unseen airways clear in your home so that the HVAC system registers provide fresh, breathable air throughout the house.

Dealing with asthma doesn’t have to put a damper on your summer. With the right strategies in place, your child can enjoy a healthy and happy summer with minimal discomforts. If you’re looking for powerful air-cleaning solutions to keep irritants at bay in your home, contact Ocean State Air Conditioning & Heating at (904) 574-5619 to learn more about how we can help.

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