Sleep Tight, Don't let the...

You know the rest of that little rhyme, “…don’t let the bed bugs bite.” What does that even mean?

Who knows why parents sometimes say things to kids before tucking them into bed. That little phrase rhymed. That’s all that mattered.

Yet bed bugs really are a serious problem that can infest homes, hotels, hospitals and nursing homes. Once in the door, they can spread like crazy. That’s bad news for both recipients of bed bug bites and the people consigned to protect their guests, patients and the elderly from bedbugs.

The problem often starts when bedbugs are transported into an environment by riding on a person’s clothes and then escape onto mattresses, bedding and other locations. Bed bugs bite in order to feed, just like mosquitoes. A bed bug bite can also be an itchy affair, showing up as a raised red lump that when scratched can open up into a sore and a way for disease to enter the body.

That’s particularly problematic at hospitals, where potent infections only need a sliver of opportunity to grow on a patient’s body. Nursing homes are also seeing an increase in bedbug infestations.

Obviously neither of those facilities wants to be known for having bed bugs. Reputations and real money are on the line. The serious issue of patient risk is in play as well.

100,000 or more patients die in US hospitals every year from infections. Those risks add about $30B per year in medical costs. Medicare has decided to stop paying for certain infections picked up in hospitals. That means there is tons of pressure to eradicate infectious “bugs” like bacteria or viruses or anything that can increase the risk of patient infection.

Then along come bed bugs and sirens go off in the heads of hospital administrators and nursing home managers everywhere.

Some hospitals are taking the aggressive technological route, importing UV robots that zap germs and bugs in critical areas of patient contact.

Yet for all the technology thrown at bed bugs and other pests invading public spaces, the best prevention may be a more patient, thorough approach to patient safety. There’s no substitute for straight-on human effort, which may mean that Handheld UV Sanitizers that kill bed bugs, dust mites and a whole range of germs and viruses are likely to become standard equipment for hospitals, hotels, nursing homes and residences seeking safe, effective treatments for bed bugs and the germs and viruses they might bring about if, as you mother used to say, you let the bed bugs bite.

New Strain of Bird Flu in China is Not Good News

It is easy in today’s age of medical technology and ranking of international health care systems to assume that everything on the flu front is under control. The trouble is, flu bugs have very little respect for public health policies and international virus controls. In fact, the very idea that viruses can be absolutely contained is an illusion. New strains of viruses, bacteria and other infectious agents are evolving all the time. That’s the way nature works.

In fact, if you study nature at all, you know that the scariest diseases for humans generally come from the creatures with which we share the earth. The blood disease we call AIDS migrated from primates to humans. Mice transmit the deadly Hantavirus. Insects carry malaria, West Nile virus, and other infections known to kill human beings. Even healthy ones.

So when we hear about a flu that evolves among chickens we should not just cluck and forget about it. These viruses are so creative and prevalent, the best we can do is assign a letter and number system to categorize them. The newest flu variety threatening to make people sick and die is called H7N9.

Medical officials in China think the chicken flu virus has been percolating for nearly 2 years in the country. Sometimes the transmission of such viruses is confined to those who handle the chickens infected by it. But when that same virus makes a jump from one person to another, that’s when things get unhappy and more interesting than we’d like.

As cases of the virulent H7N9 flu migrated out of the country (unlike the chickens, which can’t really fly) and people actually died from the infection, health officials around the world took note. It is hard to predict what or when the next deadly flu virus will become a pandemic. The tough thing about flu viruses is that sometimes a vaccine is weeks away from creation. During that period people are highly at risk of infection. And that can mean millions of people getting sick and many dying.

One of the first points of defense against any flu is good personal habits like washing hands in public places and even protecting yourself with masks if necessary. Should a flu pandemic ever break out in America, it is unlikely most people will know the best first steps to take. So here, as a bit of public service, is a list of preventative measures you can take to protect yourself if the Chinese Bird Flu ever does some calling in America.

1.      Air purifiers can filter out airborne germs, viruses and allergens. Travel Air Purifiers are even more specific. The Wein Mini-Mate Wearable Air Purifier literally filters air in your breathing zone.

2.      Allergy masks are worn by many people who live in societies that live in close quarters.

3.      UV Sanitizers are used by hospitals and other healthcare agencies to kill germs and viruses as well as bed bugs and dust mites that can cause wounds or allergies that weaken your immune system. The Baby Bottle Nipple UV-C Sanitizer keeps baby’s bottles and pacifiers, teething rings and more safe from germs.

4.      The NANO UV Water Disinfection and Surface Sanitizer enables you to disinfect a surface or water with the power of Ultraviolet light.

5.      The Zadro Nano-UV Disinfection Light Scanner is a cell-phone sized handheld sanitizer you can take anywhere to scan anything you touch.

You do have weapons of defense against Chinese Bird Flu if the H7N9 virus ever comes calling. Best to be prepared!

Recommended Nebulizers for Asthma Treatment

People with asthma know what works for them, and what doesn’t.

The trio of nebulizers we’re about to share with you are proven products that have been prescribed by physicians, appreciated by patients, and sold with confidence because they work and have features that make them both efficient and effective, and, therefore, are worth every penny.

But a nebulizer does not have to be expensive to be good. The PARI LC Plus Nebulizer is one such product. At only $17.95 the PARI LC Plus has long been prescribed by physicians because of its value to asthma patients. The unique construction of this nebulizer prevents wasted medication with open and close valves that respond to patient breathing and keep medication inside the nebulizer until it can be inhaled. This maximizes effectiveness, delivering more than 65% of prescribed medication in the respirable range. The Clear-View Window enables you to see how much medication remains during treatments, which typically run six to seven minutes. PARI LC Plus nebulizers have been tested effective through clinical trials.

The next affordable wonder to consider is the nifty PARI LC Sprint Nebulizer. The enhanced design of the PARI LC Sprint provides equal if not greater efficiency to its predecessor, with a valve that opens and closes. But the Sprint is just a little quicker, so treatments don’t take quite as long. Thus, the PARI LC Sprint Nebulizer is great for children who might not have the patience to sit still. It’s about 20% faster and comes with its own cup, valves, mouthpiece, tubing and instructions.

The MicroElite Miniature Nebulizer is your “on the go” partner. The Compressor/Nebulizer system combines to deliver medication swiftly, quietly and effectively, great for discretion, but also for complete and nearly wasteless delivery. The MicroElite Lithium Battery is rechargeable, yet this unit is very light and fits in the palm of your hand.

Having the right asthma strategy on hand and ready to go is a quality of life as well as a health issue. At Allergy Asthma Technology these products come highly recommended because they use proven technologies that our customers know and trust.

FAQ: Dust Mites

It seems a little strange to think about Frequently Asked Questions regarding dust mites, because asking questions about a creature too small to be seen without a microscope--that eats human skin cells as its main diet and that lives in your bed--seems a little “all over the map.”

But if you suffer from dust mite allergies, it pays to know a little bit about dust mites and how to prevent them from setting off allergy or asthma symptoms.

Where do dust mites come from?

They’re everywhere around the world, and they live in almost every home. So the answer to the question “Where do dust mites come from” is better asked in a different form, as in, “Is there anywhere safe from dust mites?”

The answer to that question is, not really. Dust mites thrive on human existence, and with more than 7 billion people in the world and lots of dust and human skin cells floating around, the entire earth is pretty much a banquet for dust mites.

Dust mites actually exist by the millions on your pillow alone, chomping up tiny bits of human skin shed from your body. But that’s where the problems begin, because their dust mite feces contain enzymes that contribute mightily to allergic reactions when breathed in, especially among children and the elderly. About 10% of the American population exhibits dust mite allergies, which in combination with spring allergies can make a person really miserable.

Dust mites particularly like humid atmospheres, yet drier climates play host to dust mites as well. So the next real question is more practical:

With dust mites living just about everywhere, what can you do to deal with them?

#1: Kill them

You can attack dust mites head on using Handheld Sanitizers like the CleanWave UV-C sanitizing wand. The handheld UV light wand kills bed bugs and knocks dust mites dead. You’ll also like the fact that it knocks out 99.9% of bacteria and mold, and is easy to use everywhere. Some people even take it on the road to hotel rooms to kill all the dust mites that hang out there, as well as for killing germs on the remote.

#2: Lock them out

Dust mites live a strange, little life cycle, hanging out in your bedding, pillows and even your mattress. So you’ve got to go with hypoallergenic bedding products that have a dense enough weave to seal off dust mites. It pays to wash your sheets in hot water to help kill off dust mites. Washing also removes any potential dust mite residues. Don’t worry, dust-mite free bedding is not some clinically sterile product that you’ll hate to use. Consider the Yala Bamboo Dreams Bamboo Duvet Covers. These covers and the matching Yala Bamboo Dreams Sheets are fairly priced, yet so luxuriously soft you’ll be ecstatic that you switched. Best of all, these sheets are environmentally friendly, being woven from the extremely common bamboo plant that is regenerated quickly. The fabric is soft and naturally draws off moisture so you’ll sleep in relaxation and peace.

#3: Clear the air

After you’ve converted your bedding and covers to dust mite free status, why take for granted the air you breathe. Air purifiers can filter the air you breathe to 99.97% purity, eliminating dust mite detritus and airborne allergens. There are many great models of air purifiers for all room sizes and in all price ranges.

Taking these steps can answer your concerns about dust mites and how to combat the allergies they produce for many people. If someone you know is experiencing allergy symptoms that do not seem related to pollen, or get worse when the person is indoors, house dust mites are to blame.

You can enact all these strategies that are good for anyone in the home whether there are allergies about or not. But the idea of killing off dust mites and clearing your bedding and the air is somehow appealing in its own right. Have at it and live healthier!