the thought of dust mites living on me literally makes my skin crawl.. what's the best way to get rid of them?

Question

short of removing all fabric from the house, including carpeting, upholstered furniture, bedding and perhaps lasering all the hair on my body.. are there any commercial detergents, or body washes that will prove fatal to these microscopic pests?...

Answer 1

Me too. I use Febreeze Anti-Microbial and Allergen Reducer spray on my sheets and all fabrics everyday. One of them is supposed to kill the dust mites.

Answer 2

Dust mites are everywhere. Short of having tons and tons of air-filtering systems, there is no way really to get rid of all of them.

You could try to use an air-cleaner or two: Those are good at removing stuff from the air.. Otherwise, you would simply have to keep your home extremely clean. Use a slightly damp cloth to dust: That way you'll actually trap the dust instead of kicking it back into the air. And remember to clean out the dust trap of your vacuum cleaner regularly too.

Good luck.

Answer 3

You'll never be able to get rid of all the dust mites in your house, short of burning it down. They're designed to survive and follow us wherever we go.

That being said, they perform plenty of useful functions, mainly breaking down dead skin cells. It's a symbiotic relationship, not parasitic. You feed them, and they help keep you clean. Unfortunately, the dust they make is a problem for some people. I recommend a good air filter, and remember to vacuum and dust often.

Answer 4

Put a few (3-4) of drops of eucalyptus oil in with your laundry. You can find it in the beauty section of your local health food market. It's supposed to kill the dust mites and it will leave your laundry smelling wonderful. A friend of mine told me that because she had some pretty bad allergies.

Answer 5

I couldn't agree more. The very idea creeps me out.

Wash every washable thing regularly. You can put plastic covers on pillows and mattresses to protect them.

I use a scrub brush on my own skin in the shower. It exfoliates and I feel, gets rid of anything. (God forbid)

Use hot water and hot dryers. Use bleach on what you can. Have fun washing.

Answer 6

I always vacuum the mattress and spray with Lysol before putting clean sheets on; I don't know if it works, but it does make me feel better; I feel Lysol can kill most anything!

Answer 7

See below for an URL that will help YOU to reduce dust mites and indoor allergens in your home. My company cleans mattresses professionally and I sell mattress cleaning equipment to those interested in getting into business for themselves.

Dust mites, themselves alone, are completely harmless and it is totally impossible (literally) to get rid of them. On average, every person inhales 2 tablespoons of dust per day. The good news is that you do not inhale live dust mites. The bad news is, you do inhale dead dust mites, pieces of dead dust mite bodies, and dust mite feces, the most unhealthiest of all the things you unknowingly inhale. Dust mites do not typically live on you. They may use you as a form of transportation but they do not live on you, unlike the other type of mites that do live on your eyelids.

Please do not develop a phobia concerning dust mites or another type of mites that live on your eyelids.

KNOWLEDGE WILL SET YOU FREE!

The allergens caused by dust mites and in particular, the protein "guanine" which is found in dust mite feces and dead dust mite bodies, is harmful to the cells in your lungs. When inhaled, the allergen attaches to, smothers and suffocates your healthy lung cells. A dust mite defecates 20 times per day at minimum. On average, there are 2 million dust mites in a 2 year old mattress...doing the math, that's 40 trillion dust mite fecal pellets deposited in your mattress each day. If your are allergic to dust, suffer from allergies or have a respiratory illness such as asthma or bronchitis you should have a professional mattress cleaner service your home at least twice per year. Each service should cost about $120-$150. Every home in the U.S. has dust mites and approximately one half of all homes are infested with dust mites.

Other Dust Mite facts:

The American College of Asthma, Alergy and Immunology (ACAAI) has recently reported that 50% of ALL illnesses may be due to unhygienic mattresses. It's very important to sleep on a clean mattress!

30,000 dust mites can live in 1 ounce of dust!

On average, Indoor Air Quality contains at least 5 x's and sometimes as much as 100 x's or even 500x's, the amount of allergens than does the Outdoor Air Quality.

Pillows infested with dust mites and other allergens will increase in weight by as much as 25% within two years of the purchase date.

Mattresses infested with dust mites and other allergens can DOUBLE in weight in 10 years.

Mattress manufacturers' can and will, void your warranty due to an "unhygienic condition" if you do have have your mattress cleaned.

Recent research reported at the 56th Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology (AAAAI) shows that synthetic pillows, often referred to as "hypoallergenic" may contain MORE pet allergens than feather pillows.

Dust allergy and dust mites are the #1 source of Indoor Air Pollution and the most common cause of year-round allergy and asthma. About 20 million Americans suffer from dust mite allergy.

EVERYONE is SUSCEPTIBLE (especially young children and the elderly) to the ill-effects of dust mite allergens (DMA's), be it just a daily discomfort for some, but for others, a serious PERMANENT, LIFE-LONG health hazard.

Children spend approximately 90-95% of their time indoors.

Don't FREAK OUT dust mites are everywhere we live, just like water, air, or gravity!