Philippine News Today #81 :
(Originally Posted) April. 2009

The human sloughs off millions of dead skin cells everyday, roughly 2 pounds each year. In the evening as we rest on our comfy beds and nestle warmly under the sheets, microscopic organisms that are related to the eight legged arachnids (spiders) feed on the human skin flakes. Some of which are on the sheets and some still attached to the body. Aside from the disgusting fact that we coexist with these microscopic bugs that feed off our skin, these tiny creatures leave a trail of feces or droppings, which causes allergy. It is estimated that nearly 25% of North Americans are allergic to dust mites and 50% of the asthmatics suffer wheezing because of dust mites poops. Dust mites not only survive by eating human dead skin but also animal dander. An animal dander does not only pertain to fur or hair but old skin scales, which constantly shed. Dust mites are everywhere and can be airborne because of their microscopic size. They are in the carpet, the sofa, the bedding, and the curtains, even a child's stuffed animals. Pets have them too.
There are no ways to totally eliminate them in our household but we can certainly minimize them. When my husband starts to sneeze in the morning indicative of an allergy attack, my brains always tells me, it is time to change the linens.
Doctors recommend making sure our home is dry enough to prevent the survival of mites. This may be very unfriendly to our skin but I guess we have to make things work for the good of the majority. According to Dr. Thomas Platts-Mills, a professor of medicine and microbiology, and the chief of the division of allergy, asthma and clinical immunology at the University of Virginia Health System. "Basements are almost impossible to keep dry, so don't work in basements and don't live in basements if you're mite allergic." Dr Platts-Mills recommend that we encase our mattress, duvet and pillows in mite-proof covers like plastic or tightly woven fabric covers. Though many people have stayed away from feather bedding because feathers automatically get linked to "allergies", Dr. Platt-Mills says it actually is a better option. The material used to keep the feathers from poking through the fabric casing also acts as a barrier to mites. I personally prefer to buy the tight woven fabric covers because I hate the smell of feather in my beddings! If your choice is the same as mine, then cloth beddings should be washed weekly in very hot water. He also recommended putting snuggly stuffed animals in the freezer every 8 weeks or so to kill the mites, follow up with a spin in the washer and dryer. It may or may not be an expensive option, depending on the budget, but replacing the carpet with hardwood, tile or vinyl flooring which you can mop on a regular basis will control the population of these pests. Mites spend their two or four months of life eating and reproducing. Each female lays 100 eggs in her lifetime so it is possible that we share our bed with 100, 000 to 10 million and still multiplying creepy crawlers every night. Let us not forget the millions of crawlers on the carpet and furniture, which cannot be removed with a vacuum cleaner because mites have sticky feet which cling to carpet fibers and upholstery.
What else can we do about the sickening fact of being "food" to dus tmites? Aside from what were recommended by Dr. Platt-Mills, I suggest that we do a regular "scrub" on our body when we take a shower. A simple face towel can be a scrub, wet and slathered with soap to produce the "slide" which will prevent abrading the skin. A mitt can be an option but I personally find them too rough for my skin. One may use ordinary salt mixed with baby oil rubbed onto the skin with a gentle pressure. Avoid using salt alone because it could be very drying to the skin. Moisturize the skin after a shower so that we minimize the amount of dead skin we shed off at night for dust mites to buffet on.
There are products like dust mites killer machine that emit UV light, killing bacteria and dust mites at the same time. If you want more info about this topic, go to : http://www.allergicliving.com or http://www.asthma.ca.