bacteria and allergies?
in [Sleep Disorder]
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From: Brenda on 15 Aug 2008 13:16 Thanks, that all sounds like good advice and most I already do but maybe not as diligently as I should. I have allergies year round and this problem really started up in January. Weird isn't it? I am leaning toward the filter being a culprit and will be keeping a closer eye on it. Brenda <magesteff(a)comcast.net> wrote in message news:bdcb9d61-c1c5-4384-84f8-6ebadad97519(a)c58g2000hsc.googlegroups.com... On Jul 30, 7:20 pm, "Brenda" <dixiesug...(a)yahoo.com> wrote: > I understand that bacteria can form in my bipap equipment if not cleaned > regularly. Question is: can bacteria cause allergies to flare up with > sniffles, sneezing, watery eyes, etc. I asked my bipap provider and they > say no but no matter what medication I take, my allergies act up every few > days and this has been going on for several months. > > Brenda I'd ask if you can get the paper allergy filters for the air intake on your xPAP. If you are using distilled water (which reduces the chance of something growing since there are no particles of anything in the water) and cleaning your water reservior out every few days to make sure mold does not grow inside it (I have a terrible allergy to molds), I can't see it being from the equipment directly. However, pollen can get through the general air filters, so if you have allergies, asking for the pollen filters would help you out. I can't see enough bacteria growing in just a few days to make a big difference in your allergies. If you wash your water reservior, tubing and mask in hot water with a litle baby shampoo, about once a week or so, you might want to clean you mask more frequently due to facial oils building up on the mask, but that will be enough to keep bacteria and mold at bay. This time of year, I find there are a lot of weeds and grass pollen around, you might want to check on your locatl levels to see if there is something blooming currently that might be setting off your allergies.
From: magesteff on 21 Aug 2008 10:18 On Aug 15, 1:16 pm, "Brenda" <dixiesug...(a)yahoo.com> wrote: > Thanks, that all sounds like good advice and most I already do but maybe not > as diligently as I should. I have allergies year round and this problem > really started up in January. Weird isn't it? I am leaning toward the > filter being a culprit and will be keeping a closer eye on it. > Allergies are one of my biggest problems. If I notice that I am sneezing more than normal, I try to check weather.com for the local pollen indexes. I don't know if ti does it internationally, but it does track pollen in most major US cities. Even with taking massive amounts of prescription anti-histamines, my reactions to certain things still overwhelms them sometimes. Have you seen an allergiest? There are lots of good medications out now for allergies. Zyrtec and Claritin are available off the shelf now, and Benadryl (anti-histamine alone without the added decongestant) has been around for a while. My allergist tole me that if the allergies were acting up even while taking the script, I could add Benadryl to my routine for a short period to help get through a bad spell. I have to be dilegent about the filter too, I have to change the paper one at least once a month. NOTE: I Am Not A Doctor, and Your Milage May Vary
From: Karen C. on 22 Aug 2008 14:12 <magesteff(a)comcast.net> wrote in message news:ff6956ed-10c5-4d14-9cf7-f0494d69c80b(a)x35g2000hsb.googlegroups.com... >>>>>Allergies are one of my biggest problems. If I notice that I >>>>>am sneezing more than normal, I try to check weather.com for the local pollen indexes. I don't know if ti does it internationally, but it>>>>> Good to "see" you Lee! You need a Neti-Pot (aka SinuCleanse at Walgreens--costs about $15). When you're first feeling yourself getting the sniffles, grab a Neti Pot. It looks weird, I know, but it really does help. (I've been using it for a couple of years now, and I haven't had an asthma flare since that time. I used to have them at least a couple times a year.) Karen C.
From: Karen C. on 22 Aug 2008 14:16 Oops! I forgot to include a link to show how the Neti Pot works. http://www.himalayaninstitute.org/NetiPot/NetiPotInstructions.aspx Karen C.
From: magesteff on 24 Aug 2008 17:52
On Aug 1, 5:33 pm, "Hal S." <h.sand...(a)comcast.net> wrote: > "Andy Hall" <an...(a)hall.nospam> wrote in messagenews:48937214(a)qaanaaq... > > On 2008-08-01 20:54:41 +0100, normc <nor...(a)socal.rr.com> said: > > >> This assumes that you are using distilled water. Although I am no > >> chemist, it just seems to make sense to me that inhaling chlorine and > >> florine vapors, and whatever else is in tap water, all night just isn't a > >> good idea. > > > You won't be. All that is required is to allow the water to stand for a > > few minutes and dissolved chlorine etc. will be driven off. > > >> In addition, when I tried tap water, at Andy Hall's suggestion, last > >> year, the tap water corroded through the aluminum base of the chamber. > > > I hope that you're not drinking that tap water. I've had no problems > > at all with humidifiers having aluminium or stainless steel bases using > > tap water from all over Europe and for that matter a number of places in > > north America. No pitting, no corrosion, zippo. > > > I would suggest taking the humidifier back because it should not corrode > > with tap water. After all, aluminium kitchen utensils don't. > > >> There are reasons that the manufacturers of the machinesm and apnea > >> professionals, say, in writing, to use distilled water. > > > That may depend on where you live. The manuals for each of my > > humidifiers don't specify that distilled water be used. > > > Having said that, if the individual wishes to use distilled water, that's > > fine by me if it makes them happy, but it isn't necessary. > > -------------------------------------------------- > > Oh, Andy! Oh, Andy! > > I used tap water last night. Is it gonna kill me? ;-) > > Good grief, I can't believe how often this subject comes up and how folks > get so compulsive obsessive about it. > > One would think simple logic would make it obvious that if the water is > drinkable it is not going to cause medical problems for the XPAP user.- Hide quoted text - > > - Show quoted text - Not so much the disloved minerals in tap water. However, Tap water does contain *some* micro-organisms, by law it has to be below a certain level, but if you leave the left over water in the humidifier, not only will you get mineral buildup, but the bacteria and molds have a better starting colony to work from. Distilled water has nothing the bacteria can grow on, plus, the distilling process rids the water of any bacteria present. Granted the bottle the water comes in *may* have a few bacteria in it, but the bio-load is going to be a lot less than tap water. |