Sometimes dust mites can cause skin allergies, a flare up of atopic dermatitis, or eczema.
Lifestyle and home remedies
Avoiding exposure to dust mites is the best strategy for controlling dust mite allergy. While you can’t completely eliminate dust mites from your home, you can significantly reduce their number. Here’s how:
Use allergen-proof bed covers
Using allergen-proof bed covers can reduce dust mites and therefore, reduce any skin allergies that come from those tiny creatures. Keep your mattress and pillows in dust-proof or allergen-blocking covers. These covers, made of tightly woven fabric, prevent dust mites from colonizing or escaping from the mattress or pillows.
Wash bedding weekly
Dust mites are microscopic and can’t be seen with the human eye.
Wash all sheets, blankets, pillowcases and bedcovers in hot water that is at least 54.4 celsius degree to kill dust mites and remove allergens. If bedding can’t be washed hot, put the items in the dryer for at least 15 minutes at a temperature above 54.4 celsius degree to kill the mites. Then wash and dry the bedding to remove allergens. Freezing non-washable items for 24 hours also can kill dust mites, but this won’t remove the allergens.
Keep humidity low
Maintain a relative humidity below 50% in your home. A dehumidifier or air conditioner can help keep humidity low, and a hygrometer (available at hardware stores) can measure humidity levels. However, at a tropical countries like Singapore is quite hard to keep the low humidity, so a daily air purification schedule is also an alternative to reduce dust mites floating in the air.
Vacuum regularly
Vacuuming carpeting and upholstered furniture removes surface dust — but common vacuum cleaner isn’t effective at removing most dust mites and dust mite allergens. Especially in Singapore, we recommend using a water based vacuum cleaner with a high-efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filter to help decrease house-dust emissions from the cleaner. A water filtration vacuum like Lura Premium can be used for your mattress as well. If your skin allergies are severe, stay out of the area being vacuumed while someone else does the work. Wait about two hours before going back in the vacuumed room.
A water filtration vacuum like Lura Premium can reduce skin allergies by removing dust mites in your mattress
Choose bedding wisely
Avoid bed covers that trap dust easily and are difficult to clean frequently (such as woven, thick blanket..)
Buy washable stuffed toys
Wash them often in hot water and dry thoroughly. Also, keep stuffed toys off beds.
Remove dust
Use a damp or oiled mop or rag rather than dry materials to clean up dust. This prevents dust from becoming airborne and resettling.
Cut clutter
If it collects dust, it also collects dust mites. Remove knickknacks, tabletop ornaments, books, magazines and newspapers from your bedroom.
Install a high-efficiency media filter in your furnace and air conditioning unit
Look for a filter with a Minimum Efficiency Reporting Value (MERV) of 11 or 12 and leave the fan on to create a whole house air filter. Be sure to change the filter every three months.
If you suspect you might have dust mites in your home that are contributing to your allergies, visit Ocean Clean. With our reliable expertise and knowledge in the cleaning sector, we are strategically positioned to help you improve the living quality and reduce your time and costs as we are thankful to all our customers, treating them as part of our family.
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