Do dust mites live in your mattress?
Dust mites are very tiny creatures and almost impossible to see in direct sight of a human. However,
they can be anywhere; on your couch, bed, upholstery chair, etc. One of the major houses of
breeding of dust mites is your mattress. What if I tell you that every time you go to bed, there are
thousands of dust mites sleeping with you? Yes, it is disgusting and gross, and it is true.
Skin cells are often concentrated in your sofa, mattresses, frequently used furniture and your carpet,
these items often harbor large numbers of these microscopic mites. Since the average human
sloughs off 1/3 ounce (10 grams) of dead skin a week. That gives dust mites a lot to eat. Cats and
dogs create far more dander for dust mites to eat.
A typical mattress can contain tens of thousands of dust mites. Sick yet? Did you know a single dust
mite produces about 20 waste droppings each day, each containing a protein to which many people
are allergic. Yuck! The proteins in that combination of feces and shed skin are what cause allergic
reactions in humans. Depending on the person and exposure, reactions can range from itchy eyes to
asthma attacks.
There are many ways of removing these tiny creatures. However, one-time mattress cleaning will
not be enough because they can come back and breed again. You need to follow these effective
cleaning instructions on a regular interval:
Use a clean mattress cover. Make sure that you are not using too old cover.
Wash the mattress cover every week or at least biweekly. It will remove dead skin cells to
reduce the food source of mites which may get them out of your bed.
Daily, or as frequently as you can, open the windows to get sunlight inside your room. Dust
mites cannot stand UV lights emitted by the sun.
Put your mattress in direct sunlight for an hour. Do this at least once in a quarter. You do not
need to flip the side as the sun rays are enough to get those dust mites out of it.
For mattress cleaning, use a rotating brush that beats it and gets mites out.