How can house dust mite allergies be prevented?
House dust mite allergies can be easily prevented by removing the house dust mites. There are many ways to go about doing this.
House dust mites thrive at temperatures around 25 degrees Celcius and 75 % relative humidity. An easy way to stop them forming new colonies would be to lower the temperature of the house (and wear more clothes if you are cold) and lower the humidity. You can easily control the temperature of your house and save some money making it a little cooler too. Controlling the humidity is more difficult. You can buy a dehumidifier, which can cost between £25 for a very basic model to near £1000 for very advanced models with lots of controls. There are some dehumidifiers that can even turn water vapour in the air into drinking water. It is important to get any sources of leaking water fixed. It might also help to open windows and ventilate the house often. An added bonus of reducing the humidity and temperature will be a decreased chance of moulds colonising your house. Moulds can also cause allergies, which can have similar signs and symptoms.
It is also important that you clean your house regularly (especially surfaces that trap dust easily and places that might be a home for the house dust mites). Dust can be seen on smooth surfaces like wooden or glass tables, television screens, and bathroom tiles, and such surfaces should be wiped down regularly. It is less obvious when dust gets trapped in upholstery and soft surfaces, such as sofas, carpets, rugs, curtains, mattresses, duvets, and soft toys. You can wash some of these items, such as curtains, soft toys, bed sheets, and duvet and pillow covers, and you can leave these outside too for a short amount of time each day (or as often as is practical). When washing these items, use a high temperature (such as 60 degrees Celcius) to kill off all the house dust mites and destroy their eggs. Woollen blankets or sheets can trap a lot of dust and can be a good home for house dust mites – cotton or synthetic sheets are much less likely to have a colony of house dust mites living in them. Sofas and carpets can be harder to clean in this way, although you can vacuum-clean carpets to remove dust and house dust mites and their eggs and faeces. You can also vacuum-clean sofas and buy special cleaning solutions for them too. It is also a good idea to use a cheap mattress and exchange it for a new mattress frequently. You can also buy house dust mite-proof mattress covers, which may be a cheaper option.
It is important that you forbid smoking inside the house. When cleaning old and dusty areas, you may want to wear a dust mask and possibly eye protection, but if possible, ask someone else to touch and handle very dusty objects.
Finally, air purifiers and air sterilisers can reduce house dust mite populations and remove their faeces from the air. Air purifiers can range in price from £50 to over £100. Buying equipment like air purifiers and dehumidifiers can get expensive, and there are cheaper ways of ridding your house of house dust mites.
House Dust Mite allergies Guide Index:
- What are house dust mite allergies?
- What are house dust mites?
- What are the symptoms of house dust mite allergy?
- How can house dust mite allergies be prevented?
- Are there any medications that can help with the symptoms of a house dust mite allergy?
- What else could be causing my symptoms?
ALLERGIES GUIDE
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