What You Don't Know About Dust Mites Might Be Hurting You

You've probably heard of dust mites before and it's possible you even know that they are not good for you but how much do you really know about these microscopic critters? Dust mites are more than just wee little dust particles floating through the air.

These tiny eight-legged creatures are a relative of the spider and they breathe in air just like any other animal. They feed off the dead skin cells of both humans and pets, while defecating all over your home!

And they are in every home to some degree, whether you want to think about it or not. Millions of these tiny dust mites get into your bedding, furniture, stuffed animals, clothing and carpets and more. These startling but true facts about dust mites are something every family needs to be aware of.

This makes dust mites a serious problem for many people, particularly if you already suffer from allergies. It can cause symptoms to flare up more often and be worse than normal. You can also have an allergy to the dust mites themselves, like me and my children do.

It's technically not the dust mites that cause an allergy in people, but the feces that they leave behind. Everyone will react to it in some way but those with severe allergies to it can have it affect their day to day life.

For myself and my older children, we will sneeze, cough, itch and have cold-like symptoms. My younger two have eczema that breaks out bad from the dust mites and all five of us have asthma that is affected by it. Getting rid of dust mites completely is unfortunately not possible but there are some things we do to reduce our exposure.

For example, we sleep on allergen pillows and change our pillowcases daily. We change our bedding about every other day as well. It's more work but it pays off when we feel better and are not bogged down by the allergens.

We also clean and dust regularly with a damp dusting cloth that picks up the dust instead of just stirring it around. We use allergen filters in our AC/heating unit and we keep the ceiling fans free of dust as well. It's a never ending job due to the fact that dust is always there.

Dust mites also reproduce rather quickly. In fact, the female dust mite can lay up to one hundred eggs during its lifespan, which averages about two months or less depending on the environment. Imagine millions of these tiny creatures leaving behind sixty to a hundred eggs every couple of months. That's a lot of eggs!