Dust Mites

Eliminating Dust Mites | Tips and Recommendations

Dust mites are tiny arachnids commonly found in homes around the world. Like you, they consider the bed an ideal resting place. Although they are harmless, they can cause respiratory difficulties and allergies. Therefore, it’s important to know how to eliminate dust mites.

 

To help you understand them, recognize symptoms, and learn their general characteristics, we’ve created this article specifically for you. We invite you to continue reading carefully so you don’t miss any details. Additionally, at the end, we’ll show you how to effectively eliminate dust mites.

 

What are Dust Mites?

Dust mites are considered a subclass of tiny arachnids that cannot be detected with the naked eye. However, we coexist with them in our homes daily. The most common dust mites in homes are house dust mites.

Although these mites are harmless, they can cause respiratory difficulties for some people and trigger allergies. Dust mites typically live in homes, specifically in warm, humid environments.

Therefore, one of their favorite places to live is in people’s beds. Like you, they find it a comfortable and cozy space where they can spend a lot of time.

 

How to Tell if You Have Dust Mites in Your Mattress?

As mentioned earlier, dust mites often live in mattresses or beds. Since they are not visible to the naked eye, it can be challenging to know if there are dust mites in our mattress. Here is a brief list of factors to consider to determine if you have dust mites in your mattress:

  • Allergy: If you suffer from allergies, symptoms intensify when you lie in bed. Other symptoms include sneezing, runny nose, chest tightness, and nasal itching.
  • Itching: Excessive itching on any part of the body may indicate the presence of dust mites in your mattress.
  • Eczema: One of the most common symptoms is eczema or rashes. If you wake up with areas of your face or neck covered in a rash, it could be a sign of dust mites in your mattress.
  • Fatigue: Fatigue is one of the lesser-known symptoms associated with dust mites. You may notice that you don’t sleep well.
  • Cough: When you get into bed, coughing begins and may worsen.

 

How to Prevent Dust Mite Proliferation

The best way to prevent dust mites from increasing in number is to create an environment that does not favor their survival and reproduction. Therefore, consider that dust mites like humidity, food sources, and temperate climates. Here are some factors to consider to prevent dust mite proliferation:

 

Ventilate the Bedroom

To prevent dust mite proliferation in your room, we recommend opening the window upon waking to ventilate properly. After sleeping for 8 hours in a closed room, the air becomes stale and needs to be refreshed.

 

This accumulation of stale air increases the room temperature and humidity. It’s also essential for sunlight to directly impact the mattress to eliminate dust mites.

 

Don’t Make the Bed Immediately

After sleeping, allow the bed to air out by not making it immediately. We recommend waiting at least 1 hour to ventilate and eliminate the moisture accumulated during the night’s sleep.

 

Change Sheets Regularly

Although it may sound like obvious advice, it’s undoubtedly the best advice on this list. By changing and washing sheets, you remove dead skin cells that all humans shed daily.

These dead skin cells serve as food for dust mites. Additionally, during the night, sheets absorb sweat and other bodily fluids, which can cause odor and dirt.

 

How to Eliminate Dust Mites from the Mattress

Now that we’ve shown you how to prevent proliferation, it’s time to show you how to eliminate dust mites from your mattress or bed. It’s important to mention that it’s impossible to eliminate dust mites 100%, but it’s possible to reduce their numbers significantly. To learn how to do this, please read the following points:

 

Baking Soda

Baking soda is an ally for getting rid of dust mites. To use it, simply sprinkle it mixed with a few drops of essential oils on the completely uncovered mattress. You can use any essential oils you like, such as rosemary, cinnamon, lavender, etc.

After spreading the mixture, place the mattress in a well-ventilated area where it receives direct sunlight, and let it rest for 2 hours. Remember to repeat this process on both sides of the mattress to ensure you eliminate dust mites.

 

Vacuuming

After performing the previous process, vacuum the mattress to remove excess baking soda. This will remove dust mites from the surface of your mattress. Additionally, if possible, use a vacuum with ultraviolet light to help eliminate other types of bacteria.

 

Anti-Dust Mite Products

There are anti-dust mite products such as sprays ideal for mattresses, upholstery, pillows, curtains, etc. These products are designed for home use and are non-toxic to humans. However, we recommend removing residues of these products using a vacuum to avoid potential allergies.

 

Homemade Mixture

To make a homemade anti-dust mite mixture, use distilled water, disinfectant oils, and a homemade alcohol mixture. Spray the mixture on the mattress to eliminate these annoying arachnids.

To make this recipe perfectly, mix half a cup of distilled water, half a cup of alcohol, and 25 drops of any disinfectant oil. Then apply the mixture and allow it to dry over several hours.

 

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