Are you thinking about putting your home on the market? But you're a little concerned about some little things that might downgrade your curb appeal? Maybe there's a little problem with mold from when your basement flooded last year. Or maybe your pets have had some accidents and that carpet still smells no matter what you do. There's an easy solution. You can use a state-of-the-art air purifier that can clean up those smells and mold and have your home in tip-top condition and ready to get top dollar.
How does it work? The air purifier uses activated oxygen that automatically combines with particles in the air to drop these impurities from the air, leaving clean, fresh air. For more information, see http://www.ecobusiness.com/cmacdonald/overview-air. This site includes the scientific studies as well.
The machine is also great if you have asthma, allergies or breathing issues. There's nothing like having clean air to breathe. The machine is surprisingly affordable. For more information on pricing and how to order, go to www.myvollara.com/chuckmacdonald. Realtors in Anne Arundel County Maryland who have access to this equipment, include Gary Haynes, Long & Foster, Next Step Partners 443-534-6124 gary.haynes@nextsteppartners.org Brian Arnold, Carruthers Realtors 410-647-8000, Brian@TheArnoldTeam.com
Breathe Free with Fresh Air Chuck MacDonald 301-343-2078
Saturday, November 13, 2010
Thanksgiving is coming.Will guests be coming to your home and notice that your home has a smell to it?A smell that's different from the turkey and dressing in the oven?
You might find those smells annoying, but difficult to get rid of.You have tried masking it with some kind of fragrance to cover it up.But it's too much. There's a better way. a quality air purifier can get rid of those annoying smells, including smoke. Perhaps one of your family members (or Thanksgiving guests) is a smoker and you don't want to endure the annoyance, and health effects of second-hand smoke. A quality air purifier (not air filter) will use ionization to cause the particles in the air to drop out of the air, leaving behind clean, fresh air.
For real estate agents and property managers this air purifier can be a money maker for you. It can prevent potential buyers or renters being turned off by the smell at a property. It doesn't take much for buyers or renters to decide to go elsewhere. Take that obstacle away. An air purifier can clean up those smelly listings and turn a listing into a sale.
Do you want to see how a quality purifier can clean up a persistent smell?Go to
I heard a friend yesterday talking about dealing with asthma as a kid. It was rough. Breathing was difficult. And other people's pets were a problem for him. He's not the only one. An estimated one in 10 Americans may be allergic to pets, according to the American College of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology (ACAAI). So what can you do if your pets -- or your roommate's pets (lovable little darlings)-- want to cuddle, lick, slobber, paw, scratch, or just be around you? And pets can cause your allergies to act up?
An article from today's (8/14) AOL gave some clues.
1. Avoid the main pet allergy triggers. Humans are most sensitive to proteins found in the animal's saliva, dander and urine, so petting and snuggling with your pet can really set off your allergies. Depending on the severity of your condition, that may mean cuddle time to a minimum and making sure you wash your hands thoroughly when you're done.
2. Keep Fido or Fluffy away from the bedroom. Because pet dander can float in the air, collect in clothing and furniture fabric and stick to the walls long after a pet has vacated the room, Ricardo Tan, M.D. of California Allery & Asthma Medical Group recommends keeping them out of the rooms allergy sufferers spend the most amount of time in, especially the bedroom. According to the AAFA's website, humans spend from one-third to one-half of our time in this part of the house, so keep the door closed at all times. To further protect your place of rest, the American Academy of Family Physicians website suggests using allergen-resistant bedding.
3. Clear the air. Installing an air cleaner with HEPA filters (high efficiency particulate air) can help your breathing by removing allergens from the air, says Dr. Tan. Other options include using an air cleaner that has an "electrostatic filter which will remove particles the size of animal allergens from the air," according to the AAFA's website. Remember that even if you have been careful to keep pets in certain parts of the house, central air conditioning and heating vents can spread pet allergens from the rooms your pet can access to the ones it shouldn't. Consider covering the vents in pet-restricted rooms with a "dense filtering material like cheesecloth" to keep the new allergens from being blowing into the room and make sure to keep litter boxes out of the reach of vents that circulate air to the rest of the home.
4. Clean your house often. Because air filters can't remove pet allergens from the surface of walls, carpets and furniture, you'll have to do your household chores regularly. Dr. Tan recommends vacuuming twice a week. If the sufferer is doing the cleaning, he or she may want to wear a dust mask to vacuum since cleaning stirs up allergens, according to the AAFA's website.
5. Clean your pet occasionally. "Wash your pets every three to four weeks" to help reduce their allergy proteins, says Dr. Tan. More often than that, however, and you'll dry out the protective oil in their skin and cause dry skin, he warns.
6. Go carpet-free. The American Academy of Allergy Asthma & Immunology and the AAFA both recommend this as one of the best strategies for allergy sufferers. If you can't stand entirely bare floors, consider getting rugs that can be washed in hot water to stop the spread of offending pet dander, offers the AAFA.
7. Leave the real dirty work to someone else. The ACAAI advises sensitive cat owners to have someone else change the litter and allergy organizations across the board recommend that you get someone else to groom your pet.
8. Give medications a try. If you've kept a clean house and pet, and still you're experiencing reactions, you have a variety of medications to chose from, says Dr. Tan, including antihistamines, nasal sprays and decongestants, and appropriate asthma medications. Sometimes over-the-counter remedies are all it takes to keep the more annoying symptoms in check. It is important to consider that allergy sufferers with pets will probably have to take medications for life. "You can weigh the benefits of having the pet, which of course are enormous, against having to take medication for it," says Dr. Tan. The good news, according to Tan, is that, "Most allergy medications are relatively safe."
9. Get serious about treatment and find an allergist. "If your symptoms are increasing in terms of worsening nasal or eye irritation, or if you experience any shortness of breath around the animals," it's time to call a doctor, says Dr. Tan. The allergist can asses the severity of your symptoms and give more detailed advice about your situation.
10. Consider trying immunotherapy. This is a series of allergy shots that expose the patient to the dog or cat allergen to help them build a lifelong resistance to pet dander, saliva and urine and is the only reliable way to desensitize yourself to the allergens, says Dr. Tan. "As the dose increases, the patient becomes desensitized to whatever animal protein is in the shot," Dr. Tan explains. "These shots will be administered once a week in the beginning and once a month as time goes on. At the very least this procedure should be done for two years."
Clean the Air
For more than 20 years the company I am working for has been producing state-of-the-art air purifiers. The purifiers use ionization to knock particulates our of the air and an active pure cell to rid the air of germs and bacteria for a double whammy. So if you absoultely must have pets around even if they cause you discomfort, you might consider one of these air purifiers to eliminate the pet dander and keep it out of your breathing zone. For more information, go to www.ecobusiness.com/overview-air. Or you can call me, Chuck MacDonald, at 301-343-2078.
Saturday, August 7, 2010
Thunderstorm in a box
We have been having thunderstorms in the Baltimore-Annapolis-DC area recently.Some of them have been quite severe. But anice thing about a thunderstorm is that after it's all over and you walk outside, the air smells so fresh and clean.
I am marketing a product called the Fresh Air Surround by Vollara.It is a thunderstorm in a box, using UV rays and electricity to send out needle-point ionization into the air. This causes all the particles in the air --dust, mold, pollen, pet dander, smoke--to be attracted to each other. Very quickly the particles become too heavy for the air to support and simply fall to the ground. Like a thunderstorm, this process leaves behind clean, fresh-smelling air. It's great for everyone, but especially for people who suffer from asthma, allergies, and breathing issues.
I had a customer recently tell me that when she brushes her long-haired dog, the hair generally floats in the air for some time.That's not good for people. It can make breathing difficult for children, adults, or aging parents. When using the air purifier, however, she noticed that the hair fell straight to the ground out of the breathing zone. When regular vacuuming takes place, the hair, pet dander, and other particles from the air, are swept up removing them from the circumstances.
Clean air is a valuable commodity, especially in these days when Americans spend 90% of their time indoors. As I tell people, "Breathe free with Fresh Air!"
Statistical information demonstrates that asthma is an epidemic that is both serious and widespread, and that it has been growing rapidly. The disease affects all age groups: infants, school children, young adults, baby boomers, and seniors. Nearly one in every 13 people in the United States has the disease, and the growth of asthma among children is particularly alarming. Other little known facts include:
The cost to society of asthma is approximately $20 billion in direct and indirect healthcare costs annually.
Childhood asthma has sky-rocketed in the inner city. Asthma disproportionately strikes the poor, who are at least 50 percent more likely to have the disease than those not living in poverty. While the reasons are not completely clear, research by the Environmental Protection Agency and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention demonstrates that a combination of poverty-related issues trigger attacks.
Michelle's Law helps college students "Michelle's Law", a federal law permitting college students to take up to a year off of school for medical reasons and remain on their family's health insurance plan, took effect in October. The law is named for the late Michelle Morse, who continued her college studies while battling colon cancer in order to remain on her parents' health insurance plan.
Asthma makes breathing difficult for more than 22 million Americans. Asthma symptoms can include coughing, wheezing, and chest tightness. Asthma in children is on the rise, but with proper treatment kids and adults can live a productive life.
Foods That May Worsen Pollen Allergies
Allergic to pollen? You may want to watch out for these trigger foods.
What do yet get when you cross a cantaloupe with a ragweed plant, or an apple with a birch tree? An itchy mouth.For many people with hay fever, eating cantaloupe can cause itching or hives in their mouths. Eating uncooked apples may do the same to people with birch pollen allergy.
They have oral allergy syndrome. So do up to a third of pollen allergy patients, notes the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma, & Immunology (AAAAI). Most cases are mild. But some can be an early warning sign of a serious or even life-threatening allergic reaction called anaphylaxis.
Research Finding Could Revolutionize Asthma Treatment
Use of Beta Blockers May Have Long-Term Benefits
The American Asthma Foundation announced a research breakthrough suggesting that, contrary to popular belief, drugs commonly used to treat high blood pressure may also bring relief to many asthma sufferers.
Seth Feldman, Executive Director of the American Asthma Foundation (AAF), said, “Drugs known as beta blockers have long been used to treat high blood pressure. However, they have historically been forbidden for patients with asthma, because they may make the symptoms worse. Now, however, results from a research study funded by the American Asthma Foundation suggest that, over the long run, asthma may well improve with low daily doses of beta blockers.”
Clean Air Helps Asthma
Asthma sufferers find that clean air helps their breathing. A state-of-the-art air purifier that uses ionization to drop particulates from the air, is bringing relief. It also kills germs carrying flu, salmonella, and e coli.
» 23 Million Americans suffer from asthma.
» More people have asthma than cancer or coronary heart disease.
» Asthma is only partially controlled by the best treatments now available.
» There has been no improvement in treatment in over 50 years.
(source: American Asthma Foundation)
There is no place safe from allergies in America, and some cities are more problematic than others. The Allergy Capitals is an annual research project of the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America (AAFA) to identify “the 100 most challenging places to live with allergies” in the spring and fall seasons each year. The rankings are based on scientific analysis of 3 factors for the 100 largest metro areas in the U.S. Number of allergy specialists per patient
New research shows that kids who eat three or more burgers a week have a higher risk for developing asthma and wheezing than kids who eat fewer burgers.
Conversely, asthma risk was lower for children whose diets more closely adhered to the Mediterranean way of eating -- with plenty of fruits, vegetables, and fish.
The research is based on data from about 50,000 children living in developed, middle-income, and low-income countries.
While diet did not appear to influence the risk for common non-food allergies, such as those triggered by tree or grass pollen, diet did appear to play a role in asthma risk.
But whether the role is direct or indirect is not clear, study researcher Gabriele Nagel, PhD, of Germany's Ulm University tells WebMD.
Nagel says it may be that some fats, such as omega-3, are protective against asthma, while others, like the saturated fat in burgers, promote asthma by causing inflammation.
(www.webMD.com
Common House Dust Mites Trigger Asthma Attacks by Tricking the Immune System
San Francisco, California, January 6, 2009: The American Asthma Foundation announced a research breakthrough that explains why tiny, household pests called dust mites are a major source of airborne allergens for patients with allergic asthma.
Seth Feldman, Executive Director of the American Asthma Foundation, explains “that although dust mites are known to trigger asthma attacks, until now we did not know why the allergic response to the mites was so strong.” The mystery was solved as a result of research funded by the American Asthma Foundation’s
Research Program. The results were published December 7, 2008 on www.nature.com, the on-line edition of Nature, a prestigious scientific journal. The lead investigator, Dr. Christopher Karp, and his colleagues found that house dust mites trick the immune system into believing that it is facing a bacterial infection. Thus misinformed, the immune system
mounts a strong allergic response to the mites, a response that can trigger asthma attacks.
