How To Keep Dust Mites Out Of Your Bedroom

If you suddenly start sneezing, get watery eyes, or experience other allergic reactions when lying in bed but don't know why, it may be due to dust mites. With a diminutive size of only a quarter of a millimeter, you can't see dust mites with the naked eye, but you can feel the results of their waste products. Despite feeding off of your shedded dead skin cells, they aren't directly harmful to people — but that waste is responsible for triggering allergic reactions.

Focusing on removing the dust in your bedroom can help ensure a comfortable sleep uninterrupted by allergic coughing, since as many as 19,000 dust mites can live on 1 gram of dust! Get rid of dust mites in your home by regularly cleaning your mattress and all bed linens. That extensive cleaning should also extend to carpets and upholstered furniture; vacuuming and steam cleaning your bedroom can help reduce and kill mites.

As you create a dust mite-proof bedroom, don't just focus on one form of control. In addition to cleaning upholstered material in the bedroom, protect your bed by using mattress and pillow covers — plastic or tightly woven ones are best for this problem. If your bedroom is humid, now is the time to get a dehumidifier, since the mini arachnids thrive in warmth and humidity. In addition to investing in a good vacuum cleaner with upholstery attachments, you may want to get one specifically for your bed. Consider the highly rated JPHYLL Mattress Vacuum with UV 16Kpa Suction HEPA Filter for $129.99 on Amazon.

If you suspect you have dust mites, give your bedroom a refresh with deep cleaning and reorganizing. Some people have tried spritzing mattresses with hydrogen peroxide — which may or may not kill the mites. Thankfully, there are other ways to freshen up your space and banish dust mites. Do you dream of sleeping on silk sheets? This fabric isn't only luxurious but can also be a bedding material that keeps dust mites away. Fine-woven fabrics like silk have a small pore size that blocks dust allergens. Bamboo fabric also has hypoallergenic and naturally moisture-resistant qualities to repel mites.

A HEPA filter can clean the room's air, but think about the flooring you place it on. That carpet may be soft and warm to walk on but can harbor several thousand times more bacteria than a toilet seat, in part due to allergens like dust mites and pet dander. A HEPA air purifier can disturb other carpet allergens and set them into the air, so consider carpet removal in exchange for hard surfaces like wood. According to Angie's List, carpet removal alone can average $280. That's not including the cost of replacement flooring like wood, which ranges from $6 to $12 per square foot, or laminate, which costs $3 to $8 per square foot. If you don't want to let go of carpeting for good, at least consider replacing synthetic materials with wool carpeting, since dust mites don't easily take to its drier environment. Finally, replace those dusty fabric drapes with venetian blinds, and minimize other soft surfaces where dust (and dust mites) tend to cling.

Getting rid of dust goes beyond keeping your bedroom and the rest of the home looking nice. Making adjustments to floors, washing linens weekly in hot water, and using mattress covers and air filters can help more Americans prevent asthma attacks. Almost 28 million people in the United States are living with asthma, according to the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America, and sleeping in a bedroom filled with dust mites can trigger symptoms. Even without asthma, dust mites are among the top indoor triggers for respiratory allergies. Mild symptoms of exposure to dust mites include runny nose, watery eyes, and sneezing, while more severe reactions include congestion, facial pressure, constant coughing or sneezing, and yes, severe asthma attacks.

Quality sleep is essential for physical and mental health, yet it's hard to get deep sleep when dust mites — which are more active at night — are disturbing you. Allergic sinus rhinitis (inflammation inside the nose and sinuses) is highly associated with nocturnal awakenings, difficulty falling asleep, and overall poor quality of sleep, according to a 2017 study published in the journal Allergy, Asthma & Clinical Immunology. Take steps to avoid such disturbances with a new bedroom cleaning plan and by switching old items out.