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Now that the seasons are once again changing, people waking up with stuffy sinuses and allergic symptoms are simply attributing them to the start of summer.  Although this could be part of the reason for these reactions, there could be a more sinister explanation. Dust mites are a major cause of allergic reactions in the home and their favorite place of residence is in mattresses and pillows, where you spend a large chunk of your day. Most people are aware that dust mites are disgusting and are a hinderance on your health, but many may not know what exactly they do or how to keep them away from where you sleep. Note: This is not meant to scare anyone but to inform you of how to deal with this very common problem.

Dust mites are tiny bugs that thrive in humid, moist areas. They survive on dander from human skin and excrete a substance called Der p1, a very potent allergen. People sensitive to this allergen experience sinus headaches, itchy eyes, sneezing, fatigue, and even depression. The dust that accumulates in your mattress and pillows are contaminated with dust mite feces and are often the cause of these early morning allergic reactions.

The favorite hangout for dust mites, as mentioned before, is your bed. More specifically though, dust mites tend to thrive in coil or spring mattresses. The reason for this is the inner section of a spring mattress acts as a perfect space for dust mites to survive and multiply. The body heat that you provide acts as an incubator where mite feces and dead skin cells accumulate. This warm environment also often causes mildew and mold to grow which is often the reason your mattress will gain weight from the time that you first purchased it. Dust mites also reproduce at an extreme rate, making the problem exponentially worse the longer it is ignored.

Luckily there are several things you can do to prevent, or at least limit, dust mites in your sleeping area. The first and most obvious solution is simple cleanliness. Be sure to wash your pillow cases and bed sheets every week and your comforter at lease once every 2 months. Use warm water when washing your bedding since cold water will not get rid of dust mites. Also, clean your mattress at least once a year, preferably between winter and spring. This will ensure to kill all of the surviving mites from winter which will cripple their numbers going into the hot summer months. The best defense against dust mites, however, is to buy a mattress without an inner cavity within which mites thrive. If you have a latex or memory foam mattress you dont give dust mites an incubated area to multiply and accumulate harmful allergens. Luckily Mattresses for Less has a huge selection of such mattresses, all at very reasonable prices. So don’t make any more excuses for your beat up coil mattress, and instead spring for a new, dust mite-free mattress from Mattresses for Less!