(Target.com)
What do you use for Christmas trees when you have asthma? Do you use a real tree or artificial? Often times, having asthma means you also have allergies, and my kids are allergic to anything that's alive. Well, there is one exception-during my daughter's skin test for allergies, we did find out that's she's not allergic to rats. So Shot Nurse cheerfully told us that we could get a pet rat for our daughter! Pass.
So, back to trees, since the kids (and Hubby and I) are allergic to so many different things (including trees) do we chance trying to use a real tree one year? Son #2 has completed his 5 years worth of allergy shots and daughter Kitty is about 3 years into having allergy shots. We used to get real trees when the kids were little, but they were always sick during that time too. So was it just that the kids were younger and they needed to build up their immune system? Or were they always sick in the winter because of the Christmas tree?
We switched to an artificial tree about 15 years ago. Yes, it's the same tree, and it's a little sparse. Every year Hubby and I say "we should get a new tree! This one is starting to look like a Charlie Brown Christmas tree." But then something else will come along that takes a bite out of our budget. This year it looks like my lovely mini van needs new tires.
We keep the tree carefully boxed up from year to year, and let it air out before we bring it in the house. Sometimes I end up spraying it with Febreeze if it has that 'I have been stored away for a year' smell.
For those of you who have asthma, what do you use for Christmas? A real tree or artificial? Any good (or bad) stories with either kind of tree?
If anyone has any thoughts on this, I would love to hear them.