Pregnancy
Should Carpet Be Removed from Asthmatic Child's Room?
Question: My 12-year-old daughter has asthma; should I have the carpet removed in her bedroom and put in wood flooring?
Answer: It depends on how severe your daughter's asthma is, and what the usual stimulating factors are for her. A large number of children with asthma have allergies to mites and molds that are present in carpets. For these children, exposure to the carpet on a regular basis causes inflammation of their airways, and thus more risk of an episode of asthma. A wood floor would then be a better option.
Some children have asthma that is stimulated less by allergies, and more by exercise or exposure to cold air. For these children, a carpet in the bedroom is probably not a big contributor to their symptoms, and thus there would be no need to remove it. I would talk with your daughter's physician about whether her symptoms are significant enough to warrant removing the carpet and putting in a wood floor.
More on: Expert Advice
Shari Nethersole is a physician at Children's Hospital, Boston, and an instructor in Pediatrics at Harvard Medical School. She graduated from Yale University and Harvard Medical School, and did her internship and residency at Children's Hospital, Boston. As a pediatrician, she tries to work with parents to identify and address their concerns.
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