They’re nasty little microscopic creatures that feast out on our dead skin cells. We’re talking about dust-mites. They love dark, warm places to hide with plenty of food which means our beds in winter is tropical holiday for dust-mites. If the idea of sleeping with dust-mites isn’t bad enough, now consider that they poop up to 20 times a day, with all of this poop accumulating in your bed.
Do you seem to have a cold that won’t go away this winter with sore eyes, a runny nose and scratchy throat? If you’re feeling under the weather, then chances are you’ve actually had a reaction to the dust-mite droppings accumulating in your bed.
The best way to tackle dust-mites is to open up the windows and let the sun-light in. This is because UV light is the best natural way to kill dust-mites, but opening up the windows isn’t so practical on a cold winters day. As a result, dust-mite populations can grow to the hundreds of thousands in a single mattress over winter.
Why do dust-mites make us sick?
It’s actually the dust-mite droppings and not the dust-mite themselves that creates health issues for humans. Dust-mites excrete up to 20 times a day and their poop is microscopic in size (5 to 40 microns), meaning that it’s small enough float around in the air, ready for us to breathe it in. Dust-mite excrement contains 17 separate allergens and 7 different active enzymes that enter our lungs and respiratory system, generating a histamine or allergic reaction that usually mirror cold and flu symptoms such as a runny nose and sore throat. Dust-mite droppings are also known as a trigger for snoring and can lead to more serious reactions in asthmatics.
So, how do we put a halt to the dust-mite menace?
Step 1 - If the sun is out, then strip the bed and open the windows to let the natural UV light do it’s thing.
Step 2 - Use a high power HEPA filter vacuum with a beater bar to vacuum your mattress a. This will remove much of the dead skin (the dust-mites food source) and dust-mite droppings. You’ll need to spend 10 – 15 minutes on each side of the mattress for good effect
Step 3 - Buy a UV light and hang it in the room above the bed (once the sheets have been removed for washing). 20 minutes of exposure should do the trick
If you’re out of time to follow these steps yourself then the E-Dry Healthy Mattress system is the best way to go. E-Dry’s mattress cleaning process includes:
1. Your mattress is vacuumed using a HEPA filter vacuum with a beater bar to to remove the dead skin cell and dust-mite droppings.
2. A dry cleaning solution is used to remove body oils from the mattress
3. We treat the stain with our mattress and pillow stain remover.
4. The E-Dry Healthy Mattress Solution is applied to the mattress to treat the dust-mites, germs, mould and fungi and keep them away for up to 6 months.
At $105 for a Queen mattress, an E-Dry Healthy Mattress clean could be the key to your best sleep this winter.
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