My Education on Dust Mites… Yuck!
My son has always seemed to have allergy problems, he coughs, sneezes, and has watery eyes ALL THE TIME!
After months of watching him be miserable I finally decided we needed to be doing something more than what we were already doing for him. Yesterday was his appointment at the Allergist to have him tested for various allergens. After a not fun skin testing process we discovered that the only one he has is a severe allergy to dust mites.
I had heard of dust mites before… but the education that I received yesterday was a little more than I ever wanted to know. I am sharing the basics with you because I wish now in hindsight I would have understood better before Andrew was feeling sick.
Dust mites are tiny, microscopic bugs that like to live in warm, dark, humid areas. This makes mattresses, pillows, blankets, stuffed animals, and clothing a perfect home for them. They feed off of the dead skin cells that we all shed each day… they do not bite humans.
People that have a dust mite allergy are not allergic to the bug but to the waste and dead bugs that stay in our mattress and pillows… Yuck! I learned that even in the cleanest of homes there can be more than a million dust mites in a single mattress! Double Yuck!
So what in the world to do about these nasty little bugs? Well I learned that there is a series of steps that every person can take, even those that aren’t allergic, to help them breathe and sleep easier.
♦ Clear stuffed animals off of children’s beds… if your children are like my son that is easier than it sounds. My son sleeps with at least 20 stuffed animals on his bed so the allergist told us that we could put them in a plastic container or plastic bag and freeze them once a week. Freezing will kill the dust mites because they cannot live in cold temperatures.
♦ Encase mattresses and pillows with zippered covers. This will prevent the dust mites from having any food source so they will not survive in their homes. I found them at Bed Bath and Beyond, Wal Mart, Target, and I am sure other similar stores will have them.
♦ Wash ALL bedding once a week in hot water to kill dust mites in the bedding.
♦ Carpet is another major home for dust mites, if children are allergic or sensitive to them… you will need to either replace it with another type of flooring or use a specialized allergy cleaner for the carpets.
These are just a few of the tips that I received yesterday about dealing with dust mites, that I am passing on to you and your families in hopes that you all breathe a little easier too. If you have other tips about dealing with dust mites, I would love to hear them… we are trying everything at our house and I am sure other parents in this situation would too.
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April 5th, 2009 at 4:35 am
These are great tips! I am also allergic to dust mites, and we do take measures to prevent it. I had a severe reaction to it a few years ago that required an Emergency room visit. And I am now really very careful with prevention at home. I wish you all the best.
May 29th, 2009 at 9:40 pm
My son and I both have dust mite allergies, so I feel for ya! Thanks for the reminder on managing the dust mites. The freezer thing is such a great tip!