Can we talk sinus problems due to dry air

[Mama Geek]

I have forever had sinus problems at least partly due to allergies, but now I am thinking that also partly due to change in humidity levels.  I live in the south and just this week has it gotten cold enough to run the heat everyday for several days.  I was fine until the last 2 days or so.  Now I am sneezing, itchy eyes, stopped up and have cracked lips likely all due to the dry air.  I started taking benedryl thinking it was allergies, but now I don't think it is and if it is due to being to dried out it might be making it worse, plus it makes me really sleepy.

 

Short of buying a whole house humidifier what have you done that really helps?  I am thinking I might buy a drying rack and dry my clothes  on it instead of in the dryer.  What other great ideas would help?

[Pawz4me]

IME just running a small humidifier in your bedroom at night can help.  Our house is about 2800 square feet and I keep four small humidifiers going -- two upstairs and two downstairs.  It's enough to keep the humidity up enough that we don't get static build up, and it seems to help keep our skin from getting itchy dry.  I use the inexpensive Vicki's warm mist humidifiers.  They're much easier to keep clean than the more expensive models I've had.

 

FWIW, we had a whole house humidifier before and didn't like it.  It was a long time ago, and I've forgotten a lot of the details except that every time we pulled the filter out it was nasty.  And we did it a LOT more frequently than was recommended.  But that was pre-2000, so the technology may be better now.

[Onceuponatime]

The old fashion way is to keep a teapot simmering on the stove top for steam. But you have to remember it is there and to refill it periodically before it runs dry, and turn it off when you leave the house. 😊 We heat with a wood stove during the day and I keep a steam pot on it.

 

Other things that help a lot are to keep drinking liquids throughout the day like tea and water, and use less or no soap on your body. We use a moisturizing hand soap at the sinks. Anti- bacterial soap is horrible on winter hands.

 

I hate to say it, but lowering the thermostat also helps.

Edited January 13, 2016 by Onceuponatime

[Tap]

I run a humidifier in the living room and bedroom.  

Take extra krill oil (fish oil).

Cook with a bit extra olive oil (purposefully make fried chicken when I feel drier than usual, fried potatoes etc) 

Coconut oil in smoothies.

Drinking extra fluids to keep hydrated.  

Avoid antihistamines at almost all costs.

Take mucinex

Edited January 13, 2016 by Tap

[Mama Geek]

Dh is totally against humidifiers and vaporizors.  He is concerned about what too much humidity will do as far as mold goes.  We had the heat lower and were both still cold even wearing jeans, heavy socks and sweatshirts.  We are both totally adjusted to warm climate.  We were wearing shorts and t-shirts a little more than a week ago.  Dd swam in the pool on New Years Day.

 

We just put an inch or 2 of water in each bathtub and dh is doing experiments with wet bulb and dry bulb temperature to find relative humidity in the house.  He is doing a trial run and wants to repeat it with dd when she gets up.

Edited January 13, 2016 by Mama Geek

[Zebra]

I swear by Simply Saline nose spray.  The stuff is magic, no preservatives, just water and salt nasal mist.   

 

It helps snoring, dryness, allergies, when I feel a cold coming on, and as a dessert topping..... :lol:

 

And yes I am kidding and dating myself.

[Pawz4me]

Dh is totally against humidifiers and vaporizors.  He is concerned about what too much humidity will do as far as mold goes.  We had the heat lower and were both still cold even wearing jeans, heavy socks and sweatshirts.  We are both totally adjusted to warm climate.  We were wearing shorts and t-shirts a little more than a week ago.  Dd swam in the pool on New Years Day.

 

We just put an inch or 2 of water in each bathtub and dh is doing experiments with wet bulb and dry bulb temperature to find relative humidity in the house.  He is doing a trial run and wants to repeat it with dd when she gets up.

 

I'm pretty sure our average humidity here during the summer is around 1000 percent.  And not much less inside with the central AC on all the time.

 

I figure I'd have to constantly run about a hundred humidifiers during the winter to come anywhere close to that. ;)

 

So I don't think the four I do run are going to make any difference as far as mold growth.

[Tap]

Dh is totally against humidifiers and vaporizors.  He is concerned about what too much humidity will do as far as mold goes.  We had the heat lower and were both still cold even wearing jeans, heavy socks and sweatshirts.  We are both totally adjusted to warm climate.  We were wearing shorts and t-shirts a little more than a week ago.  Dd swam in the pool on New Years Day.

 

We just put an inch or 2 of water in each bathtub and dh is doing experiments with wet bulb and dry bulb temperature to find relative humidity in the house.  He is doing a trial run and wants to repeat it with dd when she gets up.

Do you run an air conditioner in the house? Do you have a large aquarium, boil liquids for long periods of time, take a showers all day long? If not, then your house should be about the same humidity as the outside.  For us, Wunderground is pretty accurate online weather website.

[Onceuponatime]

Put a t shirt or tank top on under the sweatshirt and put slippers on your feet, over the socks. It makes a difference.

[Lanny]

Yes. I believe that *many* health issues are caused by heating and/or air conditioning. For almost 21 years, I have lived in a Tropical Valley, where we don't have heating or air conditioning equipment (or expense) and there is a lot of fresh air in the house at all times. Also, we have tile floors, not carpeting. My health is much better here.  When you run heating equipment, the air does dry out. I believe that is bad both for people and for the furniture in the house.  I have far fewer allergy problems here, than I had when I lived in the USA.    I remember  checking into a hotel in Miami, in 1997, after flying there from L.A.  My hands were so cracked, from the dry air in the aircraft, that there were cracks on my hands that were bleeding. The clerk noticed that and gave me 2 or 3 Band Aids for my hands.  A Room Humidifier in your bedroom might help you?  

 

ETA: Having all the Windows closed exacerbates this, but obviously is necessary, if one is running Central AC or Central Heat.

Edited January 13, 2016 by Lanny

[Angie in VA]

The old fashion way is to keep a teapot simmering on the stove top for steam. But you have to remember it is there and to refill it periodically before it runs dry, and turn it off when you leave the house. 😊 We heat with a wood stove during the day and I keep a steam pot on it.

 

Other things that help a lot are to keep drinking liquids throughout the day like tea and water, and use less or no soap on your body. We use a moisturizing hand soap at the sinks. Anti- bacterial soap is horrible on winter hands.

 

I hate to say it, but lowering the thermostat also helps.

 

 

We too heat w/ wood and have 2 pots on top of the stove to add moisture. It really helps. ITA w/ drinking enough fluids and boo hiss to a/b soap.

 

 

I swear by Simply Saline nose spray.  The stuff is magic, no preservatives, just water and salt nasal mist.   

 

It helps snoring, dryness, allergies, when I feel a cold coming on, and as a dessert topping..... :lol:

 

And yes I am kidding and dating myself.

 

 

This reminded me that my mother got good results w/ Aquaphor in her nose. Just put a dab in and pinch your nose to spread it.

 

 

Yes. I believe that *many* health issues are caused by heating and/or air conditioning. For almost 21 years, I have lived in a Tropical Valley, where we don't have heating or air conditioning equipment (or expense) and there is a lot of fresh air in the house at all times. Also, we have tile floors, not carpeting. My health is much better here.  When you run heating equipment, the air does dry out. I believe that is bad both for people and for the furniture in the house.  I have far fewer allergy problems here, than I had when I lived in the USA.    I remember  checking into a hotel in Miami, in 1997, after flying there from L.A.  My hands were so cracked, from the dry air in the aircraft, that there were cracks on my hands that were bleeding. The clerk noticed that and gave me 2 or 3 Band Aids for my hands.  A Room Humidifier in your bedroom might help you?  

 

ETA: Having all the Windows closed exacerbates this, but obviously is necessary, if one is running Central AC or Central Heat.

 

 

ITA, but I usually open a window once a day to get fresh air in even while the wood stove is in use. Fresh air heats up faster than stale air (for lack of a better term) and I think it's just good to get fresh air in. We get back up to a comfortable temp quickly. I realize I'm weird this way and myriad other ways.

[Mama Geek]

We have tile floors and no rugs and try to keep the dust down and that usually helps a lot with allergies, after talking to dh we also decided to turn the ceiling fans on low because our heat vents are in the ceiling and we have high ceilings.  It has already made the room more comfortable and I turned the heat down a couple of degrees.

[Pawz4me]

We have tile floors and no rugs and try to keep the dust down and that usually helps a lot with allergies, after talking to dh we also decided to turn the ceiling fans on low because our heat vents are in the ceiling and we have high ceilings.  It has already made the room more comfortable and I turned the heat down a couple of degrees.

 

Just remember to set them for winter (most ceiling fans have a button that controls that direction the fan rotates).  If it's not marked you may have to look it up.  I forget which way they're supposed to rotate for which season.  We figured it out years ago and change ours regularly to match the season.

[Mama Geek]

Just remember to set them for winter (most ceiling fans have a button that controls that direction the fan rotates).  If it's not marked you may have to look it up.  I forget which way they're supposed to rotate for which season.  We figured it out years ago and change ours regularly to match the season.

Thanks, I didn't know that.  Dh might but has never said anything about it and as far as I know has never changed them.

[Angie in VA]

We have tile floors and no rugs and try to keep the dust down and that usually helps a lot with allergies, after talking to dh we also decided to turn the ceiling fans on low because our heat vents are in the ceiling and we have high ceilings.  It has already made the room more comfortable and I turned the heat down a couple of degrees.

 

Ditto here: hardwood and tile floors, no carpet and very few rugs.

 

 

Just remember to set them for winter (most ceiling fans have a button that controls that direction the fan rotates).  If it's not marked you may have to look it up.  I forget which way they're supposed to rotate for which season.  We figured it out years ago and change ours regularly to match the season.

 

Clockwise in winter. Counter-clockwise in summer (above the equator). Look here.