How to Get Rid of Dust Mites Naturally

Right when you enter into your humble abode you are immediately hit with allergy attack after allergy attack. It starts with a collection of sneezes and is followed by a tickling cough in the back of your throat – and it persists for what seems like 24/7 while you are within the confines of your home, particularly in your bedroom. What can be the cause of the increasingly troublesome allergy flare that you encounter every time you enter into this personal indoor environment?

Allergens are likely the root cause of your repeating and persisting allergy symptoms inside your home. The reality is that allergens will build-up in your home overtime and will lead to an excess of allergens in an enclosed space that will trigger a severity in allergy symptoms. One of the major allergens inside of a home that can cause real trouble for an individual with allergies is dust mites – microscopic bugs that quickly multiply and cause major issues for allergy sufferers.

In this article we are going to discuss the allergen dust mites, how they compare to other house allergens, and how you can effectively get rid of dust mites naturally in a home.

What are Dust Mites?

When we think about allergens that can float in our air and that can develop on the surfaces of a home, dust is probably the first allergy source that we think about. Dust can build up inside of a home quickly and will multiple when conditions are right, and a lack of cleaning has occurred in the environment. As dust accumulates inside of a home, dust mites will form and reproduce within the indoor space. Dust mites are tiny organisms that are barely visible to the human eye, and this allergen feeds off of house dust and moisture that is present in the air.

According to the American College of Allergy, Asthma, & Immunology, dust mites are one of the most common indoor allergens and present symptoms all year-round. Dust mites, also referred to as bed mites, will live and multiply easily in warm, humid conditions where temperatures are at or above 70 degrees Fahrenheit. When dust mites accumulate inside of the home, they will elicit sneezing, wheezing, coughing, itchy and watery eyes, and stuffy nose due to their body parts and feces which are considered allergens that will trigger allergy symptoms.

What Do They Look Like

The elusive dust mites are an allergen that we cannot visibly see, and therefore it is an allergen that can buildup in an indoor environment rapidly and leave you with significant health issues and exacerbated allergy-symptoms. The dust mite actually belongs to the subclass acaris, which falls under the arachnid class (spiders) – and as such it has two body segments and eight legs, without an antennae or wings.

Dust mites are typically creamy white in color and are identified by their globe shaped head and their pointy mouth and legs. However, the only images you will be able to gather from these allergens is from an electronic microscope that shows them in one color.

Dust Mites Size

You may be wondering why haven’t you ever seen a dust mite in your home before? Dust mites are very small allergens that are not visible to the human eye. Their size mixed with their translucent bodies are barely observable to humans. Typically, a dust mite measures at 0.2 to 0.3 millimeters in length and can only be seen through the use of a microscope.

Bed Bugs vs Dust Mites

When it comes to little critters that can enter into your home and start major issues with your health, bed bugs and dust mites will each strike up specific symptoms when present in the environment. Bed bugs are critters that are reddish-brown in color and are longer than dust mites, about one-fourth of an inch long. These types of bugs are commonly found in beds and will be located in seams and folds in the mattress. Bed bugs will completely infest your bed and will bite humans to feed on their blood as they act like a parasite.

Whereas dust mites are allergens that appear in your home from other sources like dust. Dust mites will exacerbate allergy symptoms and will lead to a multiplication of these dust mites when left untreated in a home. This type of allergen, in comparison to bed bugs, does not bite human skin and only feeds on dust, pet dander, and dead skin from people in the environment.

How Do I Know If I Have Dust Mites?

Identifying dust mites within your home is a complex task, due to their size and ability to be disguised in the environment. Often times the first sign of dust mites in a home will be from allergy symptoms that are occurring within the body. When dust collects and gathers on surfaces and in the air of this environment it will promote the expansion and broadening of dust mites in this space. Really, though, to be able to physically see dust mites in your environment you will have to take samplings of your surfaces like your pillow or sheets and place it under a microscope to be able to determine if you have dust mites in your home.

Where Do Dust Mites Live in a Home

Fabric and upholstery are favored by these allergens and are the environments where they like to make home inside your home. Carpeting, bedding, mattresses, drapes, and upholstered furniture are the main areas where dust mites will settle onto and wreak havoc inside your home. Basically, anywhere in your home that contains a soft surface could be potentially harboring dust mites within its surface, but the main area to be on high alert is in a bed. Beds are covered with sheets, blankets, and pillows that can be the perfect environment for dust mites to settle onto.

How to Get Rid of Dust Mites Home Remedies

Dust mites will travel in your home unknowingly and settle onto surfaces, causing allergic flare ups in those who are allergic to dust and dust mites. The process of removing these allergens from your home and reducing exposure is accomplishable through the use of different effective home remedies. Whether it be utilizing an air purifier to clean the air and remove traveling dust, or even implementing an effective air filter that is capable of trapping and removing dust and dust mites from the personal indoor environment.

Do Humidifiers Help with Dust?

The growth of dust mites in a home is caused by a number of reasons including excess moisture in the environment. When moisture is present in the air it can actually create more harm than good, especially when dust and dust mites are in excess in the environment. Dust mites thrive in moisture climates and thus adding more moisture into the air will only promote the growth of these allergen critters. The battle between an air purifier vs humidifier is something that is often debated, particularly when it comes to dust. Therefore, a humidifier is not the best choice when it comes to removing dust and dust mites from the surfaces and air in an environment. It is recommended to keep humidity levels in your home to between 40 and 50 percent – this will be the ideal climate for your indoor space to limit and minimize allergen growth from dust and dust mites.

Air Purifier for Dust Mites

Dust mites will travel from surface to surface traveling throughout your home’s air. These allergens typically settle on soft surfaces like bedding, sheets, pillow, carpeting, and upholstered furniture – so it will be best to treat these areas separately by washing these surfaces and linens in hot water to effectively kill the dust mites. Once you effectively wash these surfaces and rid them of the dust mites you will still need to properly treat the air in the environment for potential dust mites that are suspended in the air.

An air purifier for dust mites will be the ideal solution for ridding the air of these potential allergy-triggering critters. When it comes to air purifiers, there are many various air purifiers available for consumer use and each can vary in effectiveness against different allergens or pollutants in the air. A HEPA filter is known to be the most ideal filtration for the removal of allergens in the air and utilizing an air purifier with HEPA filtration will be the most effective option for dust mite removal.

The EnviroKlenz Air Purifier is a great option for dust and dust mite removal from the air in an environment. EnviroKlenz utilizes a two-stage filtration for both VOCs, noxious odors, and particulate removal (including allergens). The first stage filtration is the EnviroKlenz Air Cartridge that uses the EnviroKlenz patented technology that is able to effectively neutralize and/or breakdown a broad spectrum of chemicals and noxious odors from the air. The second stage is a hospital-grade HEPA filter that is able to capture particulate matter larger than 0.3 microns in size at a 99.97 percent efficiency – this means that allergens will be no match for this High Efficiency filter.

Air Filter for Dust & Dust Mites

The central air system can be your worst nightmare when it comes to dust and dust mite collection. Airborne dust mites will circulate throughout the air of your home and can wind up spread throughout the entire indoor space- such as your bedroom. Also, when dust mites are filtered into the central air system’s air filter it will create a buildup on the filter and as this filters media becomes full it will be unable to collect further dust and dust mites and can actually lead to the release of the collected dust mites back into the air.

Instead of opting for a cheap, pleated filter that will only last in your air handling system for 30 days, try to use a higher-grade air filter for dust and dust mites that can effectively remove a variety of pollutants from the air such as noxious odors, chemicals, and allergens. Some air filters are able to stay effective for a longer duration of time – and can even last as long as 6 months in your A/C system.

Dust mites can rapidly spread throughout your home’s environment – it can settle onto surfaces or it can become airborne and travel from room to room in your home. Ultimately, the increase in dust mites will lead to a spike in allergies that you have likely never experienced inside your indoor personal environment. By implementing these effective home remedies, you can effectively get rid of dust mites naturally inside your home or other indoor personal environment.