A dehumidifier is a device that can reduce the level of humidity in the air by removing excess moisture from it, thus making the environment of your place pleasant and comfortable.
People often suffer from headaches when the level of humidity is high in the surrounding air, so dehumidifiers are used to remove moisture from your place thus reducing the level of humidity and lowering the risk of headaches due to high humidity, and other high humidity related issues. But a dehumidifier can also cause headaches in a few ways.
Ways In Which A Dehumidifier Can Cause Headache
- If a person is exposed for a prolonged length of time to dry air having no or very low humidity, and the fresh air does not enter the room, he or she can experience nasal dryness. The mucus membranes may dry out and crack of the membranes may occur, and they may become inflamed thus triggering a headache later on. This type of headache is termed a sinus headache. These inflamed membranes can resist the blood flow through the sinus cavities thus leading to a condition called a pounding headache.
- Dehumidifiers offer significant benefits to control allergies due to mildew, mold, and dust mites that are caused due to humid environmental conditions. Moreover, dehumidifiers also reduce the pest-related problems by controlling the moisture levels. Thus, people can enjoy a relaxed and comfortable environment at the reduced energy costs.
- The general household items such as furniture fabrics, shower curtains, and paint contain harmful chemicals that remain trapped on the surfaces as long as the air has sufficient moisture and can also be smelt sometimes, but when the air gets dried as a result of using a dehumidifier for a prolonged period, these harmful substances evaporate thus tainting the surrounding the air. and breathing in such a tainted air can trigger headaches.
- Running a dehumidifier for a long time can make you suffer from pneumonia. And pneumonia often causes headaches. So, a dehumidifier can be a cause of headaches in this way.
- It is often asked, can a dehumidifier cause cough? If you often use a dehumidifier but don’t stay well hydrated, you may have a dry cough, and using a dehumidifier meanwhile, can pose more harm. You may also suffer from a headache that a dry cough might cause.
- If you are sensitive to noise then the mild noise produced by your dehumidifier can make you suffer from headaches although it is not a commonly observed issue and, occurs only exceptionally.
Disadvantages Of A Dehumidifier
Even though a dehumidifier offers you several benefits, there are also some disadvantages of a dehumidifier. Dehumidifiers produce noise like other electrical appliances. The noise produced by dehumidifiers often ranges from 30Db to 55Db. Using a dehumidifier on regular basis consumes a considerable amount of electricity. A desiccant dehumidifier produces heat that often becomes a problem at some places where it is not possible to efficiently discharge it. Although you don’t need to carry out the maintenance of your dehumidifier frequently, still general maintenance is necessary. General maintenance of dehumidifiers includes removal of water from the tank, filter replacement, and cleaning of the exhaust grilles and condensing coils. Running a dehumidifier for a prolonged length of time can make you sick.
Humidifier And Headaches
People often ask that, should a humidifier causing headache to be used or abandoned? A humidifier does not directly cause headaches nor does high humidity do so. The mold growing as a result of running a humidifier for an extended period along with the microscopic dust particles allowed by the humidity to clump up causes sinus and allergy issues. Hence a pressure builds up in your sinuses thus causing a strain later on, and you experience a headache in this way.
Dehumidifier And Dehydration
It is frequently asked that; can a dehumidifier dehydrate you? A dehumidifier does not dehydrate you even if it is kept running for the whole night. Dehumidifiers are designed in such a way that they can absorb humidity from the air, so if you set a humidity level between 30-50%, the dehumidifier will not let the humidity level fall below that point. You may feel dehydrated after you wake up from a prolonged nap, due to dry air, lack of water, food allergies, climate, or illnesses, but you may think that perhaps you are feeling so because of running your dehumidifier throughout the night. But your dehumidifier is not responsible for such a feeling.
Dehumidifier And Sinus Issues
Many people are of the point that, can a dehumidifier cause sinus problems? A dehumidifier can remove moisture from the air thus partially or completely drying it. Dry air irritates nasal passages, which can lead to sinusitis or sinus infections.
Low Humidity And Headaches
It is sometimes asked that, can low humidity in the house cause headaches? Low humidity causes nasal dryness, and mucus membranes inflame thus leading to headaches. Also, the low humidity causes the harmful chemicals trapped on the surfaces of different household items to evaporate and get mixed in the air, thus breathing in such air can cause headaches. Pneumonia and dry cough caused by a dehumidifier can also make you suffer from headaches.
Conclusion
Dehumidifiers are used in homes or other places to remove excess moisture from the air. they are efficient machines that keep the air pleasant and comfortable in those areas where excess moisture is present in the air making it difficult for you to live and breathe in that air normally. But running a dehumidifier for an extended period can also cause some problems.
You may have headaches, cough, pneumonia, asthma, and other problems if you keep running your dehumidifier for a long period. It is suggested to devise a schedule keeping all the aspects in consideration such as humidity level, season, dehumidifier capacity, and running duration, etc. This schedule can be followed to use a dehumidifier efficiently without facing any potential side effects.
