For individuals with asthma, festive decor like trees and tinsel can pose hidden health risks during the holiday season.
While decorating for Christmas is a cherished family tradition, for some, it can trigger severe asthma attacks, turning the holiday into a hazardous time. For those with asthma, exposure to real Christmas trees and dusty decorations can bring on life-threatening asthma episodes. One woman shares her personal struggle with asthma during the festive season, where a simple Christmas tree or a few decorations can lead to emergency hospital visits instead of holiday joy.
As a child, she frequently suffered asthma attacks around Christmas, later linking it to her family’s real tree, which carried mold and pollen that triggered her condition. Although she switched to an artificial tree as an adult, she was unaware that accumulated dust on fake trees and decorations could also cause dangerous symptoms. In 2014, a dust-triggered asthma attack landed her in the hospital, underscoring the risks holiday decor can pose to those with respiratory issues.
For those with asthma, the holiday season requires extra precautions to minimize exposure to these potential triggers.
