Washing dusty stuffed animals
Why is this stuffed bear sticking out of my washing machine? It's about to get washed! Muhahah!
Stuffed animals can cause problems with asthma, but most people don't know that. How? Well, Horsey looks cute sticking out of the washer, but he is full of dust. So are the other stuffed animals on my daughter's bed. I only let her have 2 or 3 of her favorite stuffed animals on her bed-and they have to get washed regularly.
Have you ever seen a bed that has so many stuffed animals in it that there is no room for the child to sleep? I've also seen a net that hangs in the corner of a child's room, above their bed, where they can put all of their stuffed animals. Can you imagine sleeping under all of that dust? No wonder kids are sneezing and wheezing. Then there are book cases, shelves and window ledges lined with stuffed animals
Don't get me wrong, I love stuffed animals (as did my kids when they were little) But how often do you wash your kid's stuffed animals? I try to make sure the kids are washing their bedding once a week. But my daughter only washes her stuffed animals once a month.
I have heard of people putting their kids stuffed animals in the freezer over night-it's supposed to kill the dust mites. We live in a fairly dry climate, so I'm not worried about the dust mites as much as the actual dust.
My daughter gets upset if I wash her stuffed animals and it ruins the fur on her animals. How is Horsey going to look if his mane is all matted?! One thing that seems to help is to put the stuffed animals in a net bag before I put it in the washer. I've also tried putting it inside a pillow case, folding the end over and securing it with multiple safety pins. It seems to help so the fur wasn't as matted. But no system is perfect.
You'll have to see what works for you, but think about washing your kid's stuffed animals on a regular basis. And limiting how many your kids have on their bed, maybe just 2 or 3, and then you can rotate those with their other stuffed animals.
Every person with asthma and allergies has different triggers that make their symptoms worse. But dust seems to be one of those that affects a lot of people. So, if your kids are sneezing and wheezing during the night, try washing and removing some of their stuffed animals and see if it makes a difference.
Stuffed animals can cause problems with asthma, but most people don't know that. How? Well, Horsey looks cute sticking out of the washer, but he is full of dust. So are the other stuffed animals on my daughter's bed. I only let her have 2 or 3 of her favorite stuffed animals on her bed-and they have to get washed regularly.
Have you ever seen a bed that has so many stuffed animals in it that there is no room for the child to sleep? I've also seen a net that hangs in the corner of a child's room, above their bed, where they can put all of their stuffed animals. Can you imagine sleeping under all of that dust? No wonder kids are sneezing and wheezing. Then there are book cases, shelves and window ledges lined with stuffed animals
Don't get me wrong, I love stuffed animals (as did my kids when they were little) But how often do you wash your kid's stuffed animals? I try to make sure the kids are washing their bedding once a week. But my daughter only washes her stuffed animals once a month.
I have heard of people putting their kids stuffed animals in the freezer over night-it's supposed to kill the dust mites. We live in a fairly dry climate, so I'm not worried about the dust mites as much as the actual dust.
My daughter gets upset if I wash her stuffed animals and it ruins the fur on her animals. How is Horsey going to look if his mane is all matted?! One thing that seems to help is to put the stuffed animals in a net bag before I put it in the washer. I've also tried putting it inside a pillow case, folding the end over and securing it with multiple safety pins. It seems to help so the fur wasn't as matted. But no system is perfect.
You'll have to see what works for you, but think about washing your kid's stuffed animals on a regular basis. And limiting how many your kids have on their bed, maybe just 2 or 3, and then you can rotate those with their other stuffed animals.
Every person with asthma and allergies has different triggers that make their symptoms worse. But dust seems to be one of those that affects a lot of people. So, if your kids are sneezing and wheezing during the night, try washing and removing some of their stuffed animals and see if it makes a difference.
I use an asthma zipper pillow case and we put the beloved bunny inside of it to sleep with. It's the only way I feel comfortable with her having a stuffed animal in bed with her and it's been a great solution (bunny is getting old and I fear to many washings will destroy her)
ReplyDeleteI know what you mean, my daughter's favorite little Kitty is getting very threadbare. I'm afraid the kitty's little tail is going to fall off the next time I wash her!
ReplyDeleteHaha. The beginning of this post is hilarious, love the picture. You can always count on My Life as an Asthma Mom to have an asthma-friendly home and asthma-friendly stuffed animals!
ReplyDeleteI do have a sense of humor.......you have to with asthma. Some days you could laugh, or you could cry. But crying gives me a headache!
ReplyDeleteGlad I can entertain and inform! :)