Proper Indoor Air Quality to Prevent a Dry Cough
With the new virus outbreak, people are more health-conscious than ever. Unfortunately, the scare hit about the same time as seasonal allergies and colds. As a result, people who suffer from non-viral coughs are too terrified to go out in public for fear of being stigmatized as “infected.”
What most people don’t know is that their indoor air quality can cause, or at the very least aggravate, the symptoms of seasonal colds, allergies, or sinus problems. By taking care of your indoor air quality you can minimize the severity of your symptoms and soften the stigma of coughing.
Common Causes of Coughing
Coughing is a symptom that something is wrong in your respiratory system. It is also a method that your body uses to protect you from the damage of respiratory infections. Your body induces coughing when it senses that your lungs have come into contact with potentially harmful pathogens or allergens.
Normally, a protective layer of warm, moist mucus lines your lungs with the purpose of catching and destroying pathogens and allergens.
However, when this lining is compromised your body resorts to coughing as a means of protection. Cold, dry air can compromise this mucus lining, causing your lungs to lose their basic security system and you’ll start coughing as a result.
Proper Home Temperature
If you’re experiencing dry coughing, the best thing to do may be to raise the temperature in your home. Keeping a warmer temperature does a couple of things. First, warmer air can carry more humidity. More humidity is better to protect the lining of your lungs. With a stronger lining, you are less likely to resort to coughing to protect yourself.
Furthermore, air conditioners remove moisture from your air under normal operating conditions. Turning your temperature up has the dual purpose of allowing more moisture to be present while also removing less of it.
Second, by raising the temperature on your thermostat, you are subjecting yourself to fewer blasts of cold air from your air conditioner. Cold air currents damage the lining of your lungs by drying them out and stirring up new dust and allergens that may contribute to your problem.
The depleted lining of the lungs and introducing new pollutants is a recipe for respiratory illness. By maintaining warmer air in your indoor environment you can prevent blasts of cold air from depleting your lungs and bombarding them with new contaminants.
Using a Humidifier
Air conditioners remove humidity from your air as they cycle off and on. Over time, your indoor air can become very dry. Dry, cool air is the worst on your lungs. Humidifiers work by pumping moisture back into your air.
Humidification can be done with small, individual units or it can be done for your whole house. The added humidity will help your body maintain the lining of your lungs.
By providing your body with what it needs to bolster its own immunities, you are reinforcing your first line of defense against respiratory problems.
About Korte Does It All, Inc.
Korte Does It All, Inc. is an electrical, plumbing, and heating and air conditioning contractor servicing the New Haven, IN area since 1965. With emergency services and access to all trades, they have the expertise to handle any problem or installation, start to finish.