Also: the allergy, apple, fish and pregnancy link

Got pesky allergens you want to exorcise? Then wash your family’s clothes in water 140 degrees Fahrenheit or higher to get rid of all dust mites, dog dander, pollen, and other culprits that cause sniffles and sneezes, Korean researchers say.

Doing the laundry in just 104-degree water will zap only 6.5 percent of the dust mites. If you’re steamed about running up your utility bill with all that hot water, then wash your clothes in water between 86 to 104 degrees Fahrenheit and then rinse the laundry twice with cold water for three minutes each, says allergy specialist Dr. Jung-Won Park, a professor at Yonsei University in Seoul, Korea.

Reducing asthma, allergy risks

Researchers from Scotland and the Netherlands say women who eat apples and fish during pregnancy may reduce the risk of their children developing asthma or allergies until the kids were 5, compared to children of mothers who had the lowest apple consumption.

What’s more, children of mothers who ate fish once or more a week were less likely to have had the allergic skin condition eczema than children of non-seafood fans. But researchers can't find any protective effect against asthma or allergic diseases from vegetables, fruit juice, citrus or kiwi fruit, whole grain products, or low-fat dairy products.

With the same children, their mothers’ intake of vitamins D and E and the mineral zinc may have made them less likely to wheeze and suffer from asthma.  

Researchers say apples’ benefits may come from powerful disease-fighting antioxidants called flavonoids. The omega-3 fatty acids found in certain fish, such as salmon, may provide seafood with its anti-asthma benefits.
 
The researchers warn, however, that more study is needed before they can recommend how much fish and apples pregnant women should eat. For now, they advise, mothers-to-be should focus on consuming healthy, balanced diets, and use caution with king mackerel, tilefish, shark, swordfish and albacore tuna that may contain too much mercury.