Remember, having dust mites doesn’t mean your house isn’t clean. In most areas of the world, these creatures live in every home, no matter how clean. But, you can reduce their effects. There are many changes you can make to your home to reduce the number of these unwanted “guests.”

Studies show that more dust mites live in your bedroom more than anywhere else in your home. So this is the best place to start, then treat other rooms in your house like your bedroom.

• Cover mattresses and pillows in zippered dust-proof covers. These covers are made of a material with pores too small to let dust mites and their waste product through. They are also called allergen-impermeable. Plastic or vinyl covers are the least expensive, but some people find them uncomfortable. You can buy other fabric allergen-impermeable covers from many regular bedding stores.
• Wash your sheets, blankets, and pet bedding weekly in hot water. You have to wash them in water that’s at least 130 degrees Fahrenheit or more to kill dust mites.
• Get rid of all types of fabric that mites love and that you cannot easily wash regularly in hot water. Avoid wall-to-wall carpeting, curtains, blinds, upholstered furniture, and down-filled covers and pillows in the bedroom. Put roll-type shades on your windows instead of curtains.
• Special CERTIFIED filter vacuum cleaners can help to keep mites and mite waste from getting back into the air. CERTIFIED vacuums are scientifically tested and verified as more suitable for making your home healthier. Vacuuming is not enough to remove all dust mites and their waste. A large amount of the dust mite population may remain because they live deep inside the stuffing of sofas, chairs, mattresses, pillows, and carpeting.

Here are more tips:

• Avoid wall-to-wall carpeting, if possible. If you do use carpeting, mites don’t like the type with a short, tight pile as much. Use washable throw rugs over regularly damp-mopped wood, linoleum, or tiled floors.
• Wash rugs in hot water whenever possible. Coldwater isn’t as effective. Dry cleaning kills all dust mites and is also good for removing dust mites from living in fabrics.
• Keep the humidity in your home less than 50 percent. Use a dehumidifier and/or air conditioner to do this.
• Use a CERTIFIED filter with your central furnace and air conditioning unit. This can help trap dust mites from your entire home. Freestanding air cleaners only filter the air in a limited area. Avoid devices that treat air with heat, electrostatic ions, or ozone.

**Information sourced from www.aafa.org