Have you ever stopped to think about what lives in your bedroom other than you and maybe your significant other? Think small, probably too small to see without hunting with a microscope. No, we're not talking about the imaginary monsters under the bed. These little monsters are very real. Dust mites, are teeny tiny scavengers that tend to live on discarded skin scales. They thrive in warm, dank, dark and damp conditions and also enjoy dander. Dreadful. Naturally your bedroom and your mattress will serve as an ideal homes to these guys, and, while you may pride yourself on a clean and lovely bedroom, you'd be surprised how clean you need to be, to avoid hosting these "mite-y" critters.



First off, it's important to know why you want to avoid inviting these guys in as regular house guests. Did you know that dust mites are the most common cause of increased asthma rates among children? Furthermore, the most common cause of allergy in asthmatics is the allergic sensitization to the house mite. These allergies are rarely caused by the dust mites themselves, but by their feces. Yes, here are some further facts that'll disgust you, and hopefully motivate you to clean your room. Or heck, give this information to your kids and it might prove to be great incentive to get them cleaning their own rooms. ( but, I doubt it.)

Dust mites make their homes in mattresses, upholstery, rugs, carpets, quilts, pillows, in almost all textile items, and the average bed can be infested with millions of mites! The dust mite is very small, cannot be seen by the naked eye and has a life span of 90-120 days. While the dust mite can leave up to twenty droppings a day, it has the advantage of being able to receive nourishment from its own droppings. Yes, it thrives on its own filth. Unless, you stop them!

Know that the dust mite can produce anywhere from 60-100 eggs. So do the math, and if that's not incentive enough to get rid of these allergy inducing, poo eating, mass producing scavengers, then, what is?

So the question remains: What can you do to prevent dust mite infestation in your bedroom. Here are some steps to obliterate the dusty buggers:

1. You can purchase a dust-mite cover for your mattress and pillows.

2. Many folks have a tendency to hang onto pillows for years, sometimes even decades! ( I've seen the evidence of decrepit pillows hidden beneath lovely pillow case covers- it's not pretty and not good for you!) Let go of pillow sentimentality and splurge for new ones yearly.

3. Set up beds every morning to air them out and rid them of moisture accumulated during the evening.

4. Wash sheets weekly in HOT water, and while they are removed, you can wipe down the plastic mattress cover with hot water and an antibacterial solution.

5. Wash blinds regularly and mop the floor with HOT water and anti bacterial solution each week.

6. If at all possible a wood floor as opposed to carpet is better for the bedroom.

7. Without becoming obsessive about it, pare down the unnecessary toys, books and stuffed animals. If your husband can't part with that one fluffy bear, that's okay. He still needs to sleep through the night, so approach this task with a sense of balance in mind.

8. Keep household humidity below 50%.

Some further tips, that apply not only to the bedroom but to the entire house.

- Never reuse vacuum cleaner bags and try to use a vacuum with a high filtration feature.

- On a regular basis, to kill existing mites on stuffed toys, place them in the freezer or in the dryer on a HOT cycle.

- These mighty critters are not impervious to the sunlight, in fact they can't live in it- so air out your home and hang out rugs, or blankets on warm days.

- Make sure your home's equipped with good fan systems, or that you open a window when cooking or showering to avoid the collection of moisture inside.

Try not to take short cuts as you wage a mighty war against dust mites. They are certainly one of the invisible enemies that lurk in many homes.