WHAT ARE DUST MITES?
“The “Household Dust Mite” is the most prevalent and harmful mite to humans worldwide. They are microscopic organisms invisible to the naked eye and belong to the Arachnida class of animals. Other creatures that belong to this class of animals include spiders, scorpions, and ticks.”¹ Dust mites are invisible, so dont go looking for them! Most of us have been unknowingly “sleeping with the enemy.”
INTERESTING FACTS
Nearly 75% of a dust mite is made up of water. They have a hard outer layer of skin known as an exoskeleton that protects them from external damage. Though they do not possess the ability to see, they have a fantastic sense of smell. A dust mite’s sense of smell helps them to locate food and find a mate. Worldwide, around 10% of people are known to have allergic reactions caused by dust mites. More specifically, they are reacting to an enzyme excreted in a dust mites feces or by parts of the body that have been shed.
THE IDEAL HOME
“The ideal environment for Dust Mites are warm, dark & humid surroundings. They especially thrive, grow and reproduce in dark, hot and humid climates. Temperatures of 20 to 25 degrees celsius and humidity levels between 70 to 80% are the ideal conditions for dust mites to thrive and multiply. Their favourite food is dander. Dander is human and animal skin flakes, or dead skin as more commonly known.”² The more time you spend on our mattress the warmer it gets and naturally becomes filled with more of your dead skin. As a result, your mattress has now made the perfect home for them.
DANGERS
“A typical used mattress contains anywhere from around 100, 000 up to around 10 million dust mites! The average person sheds around 5 grams of dander ( dead skin ) each day. In 1 month, we lose a whole layer of skin. Furthermore, they feed on our dead skin and they then release a dangerous enzyme in the air from their feces. People who are allergic to these mites react to the dangerous enzyme that comes not just from their feces, but also their urine and decaying bodies. Studies worldwide show this to be one of the biggest triggers for allergic and asthmatic symptoms.”³ Along with asthmatics, those that suffer from dust allergies are the most susceptible. “Asthmatic and allergic symptoms from dust mites include:
- Coughing
- Sneezing
- Itchy skin
- Watery, itchy eyes
More serious symptoms, especially for asthmatics include:
- Difficulty breathing
- Chest tightness or pain
- An audible whistling or wheezing sound when exhaling
- Trouble sleeping caused by shortness of breath, coughing or wheezing
- Asthmatic attacks “⁴
CONTROLLING DUST MITES
There are many things one can do to help reduce the “dust mite population” inside your Mattress. Some handy tips in reducing the amount of dust mites inside your mattress include:
- Stop making your bed. Making your bed straight after waking up means your keeping your mattress inside warm. As a result, this contributes to making the ideal home for them as they thrive in warm conditions.
- Sunshine —- they are not fans of light. In fact a major reason they love the inside of a mattress is because of its darkness. It may be time consuming and not possible for many, however putting your mattress in the sun every few days is helpful. Dust mites cannot survive in sunlight.
- Use a dehumidifier near your mattress. Keeping humidity levels inside your mattress below 50% will help towards reducing levels of dust mites. Furthermore, reducing the humidity inside your mattress will prevent the build of mildew leading to Mould.
LONG LASTING SOLUTIONS TO COMBATTING DUST MITES
For asthma and allergy suffers especially, there are only so many DIY tips one can do to these dangerous mites. Besides using everyday, simple solutions to combat these dangerous animals it is vital to use a professional service that specialises in dust mite treatment. In addition to people that suffer from allergies ( especially from dust ) and asthma there are other factors that determine whether or not you should use a professional to eradicate dust mites.
Older mattresses over 5 years are going to have a huge buildup of dust mites as a result of 5+ years of dander. If you have high humidity levels inside your bedroom that will naturally increase the humidity inside your mattress. As a result of this you are helping to create the ideal conditions for them. It is highly recommended if you have young children to ensure their Mattresses are professionally cleaned at least every 6 – 12 months. Young children have developing systems that can be easily compromised. Any type of dust have large amounts of dust mite faeces that can over time actually cause young children to have a sensitivity to household dust. Prevention is better than the cure and as we would all agree this is especially when it comes to our children!
BUFFERBOYS….THE DUST MITES SPECIALISTS
When hiring a professional to kill and remove those nasty mites, it is essential to stick with the tried and tested. Removing them effectively and in a safe manner is no easy task. Steam is the most popular method, however this method is filled with disadvantages. Firstly steaming will not penetrate the whole inside of a mattress; it will kill them near the surface not deep inside thee mattress. Secondly steam creates a lot of moisture inside your mattress. As a result this drastically increases the humidity, allowing more ideal conditions for the mites.
The most effective type of professional cleaning method to remove dust mites inside the mattress whilst not creating conditions to increase them in the long term is “deep dry cleaning and sterilization.” This type of cleaning method kills and physically removes the dust mites and their eggs and feces.
BUFFERBOYS specialises ( amongst other things ) in the deep cleaning and sterilization of all types of mattresses. Because of the thickness of an average mattress, it can be particularly difficult to remove dust mites. By using the KIRBY, that has the ability to extract any physical dirt, mites and there faeces around 6 inches below a surface this impossible task is made possible! We work with a leading laboratory in Malta called Analytical Diagnostic Laboratory Services ( ADLS ) that do scientific testing to ensure levels of mites are low enough to not cause any health hazards.
REFERNCES
1 – https://study.com/academy/lesson/dust-mites-size-life-cycle-facts.html
2 – https://aafa.org/allergies/types-of-allergies/insect-allergy/dust-mite-allergy/
3 – https://www.ehso.com/dustmites.php
4 – https://aafa.org/allergies/types-of-allergies/insect-allergy/dust-mite-allergy/