Becoming an Allergenius

how to be an allergeniusLast week we were invited along to find out more about common household allergies, with ao.com and Hotpoint. As a family, we do have our fair share of allergies, so I was keen to find out more. The Husband has hayfever with grass pollen, whilst I have it earlier in the year with tree pollen. We’re both allergic to cats, and more mildly to rabbits. Both of the kids had mild eczema when they were little, with Little Man’s still flaring up in the colder months. I wasn’t allergic to anything as a child, but have acquired these problems as an adult, so I know there’s still a chance that the kids will get allergies, too. Obviously I’d like to do what I can to mitigate against them, so went along to find out more.

The kids got busy crafting pretty paper flowers (these are not likely to cause hayfever!), then colouring in those pesky dust mites…

allergenius crafting

…before searching them out in a little mocked up living room area. They had to think about where dust mites might be hiding in the home and then hunt for them. They loved that game!

hunting for dust mites

Things that I now know about reducing dust mites:

– I need to wash our duvet and pillow cases at 60 degrees. I do this with our sheets, but tend to wash the duvet sets at 40. This gets rid of the allergens but won’t actually kill off the mites.

– Using allergen proof barriers on mattresses, pillows and duvets will prevent the escape of house dust mite allergen.

– Ideally, don’t have carpets. We only have it in our lounge downstairs, and then our bedrooms. This being the case, vacuuming regularly with a high-filtration vacuum cleaner will help, along with a high temperature steam cleaner to kill the mites.

– Wash curtains regularly – I know, I know, I need to do this!

– Wash soft stuffed toys regularly at the same temperature as the bedding, just check to ensure they are washable. If not, they can be popped in a plastic bag and put in the freezer for 12 hours, and then washed at normal temperature.

– Hotpoint make products to help with all aspects of reducing allergies, such as washing machines, tumble dryers and vacuum cleaners.

I am now thinking about house dust mites way too often, and am not liking the thoughts!

Then we were off to the Think Tank. This was our first visit, and having only heard good things, I was really looking forward to seeing what the kids would make of it. And they absolutely loved it….

Think Tank

It was great to see a couple of the Big Hoot owls there, too..

The Big Hoot owls

I think we’d make so much more of it if just Boo and I went, as Little Man was all about pressing buttons rather than stopping to understand or read anything, as you’d expect a two year old to be. They adored it, but we whizzed round it chasing the two of them as they darted this way and that. I want to take Boo back, just the two of us, so that we can properly take everything in and talk about all that she’s seeing and discovering.

So it was a day of exploring and learning, the very best of days as it was all good fun and Boo does now proudly tell people that she is an allergenius! Oh, and it’s made me start working on the Husband for a tumble dryer…..

Disclosure: We received complimentary tickets into the Think Tank as part of our Allergenius day, though all words and opinions remain my own

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