Nestled in mattresses, carpets, dust or curtains, dust mites are absolutely everywhere. Their ability to adapt makes it possible to find them today in all homes and all environments. Although they are not a problem in normal times, a female can lay up to 300 eggs per month, and tens of millions of mites can thus coexist with us daily, leading to real difficulties for people with asthma. In this case, how to effectively get rid of as many dust mites at home?
Composing a particular taxon of the class of arachnids, mites are arthropods with 8 legs and sporting a very small size, generally between 0.1 and 0.6 mm; as such, they border on the more general category of microfauna. There are more than 50,000 species listed to date, but biologists estimate that the total number of extant species is probably in the order of a million.
Beyond their great diversity, the particularity of mites, compared to other arachnids, lies particularly in the structure of their body, and more precisely in its segmentation. Indeed, where for all other arachnids the body is segmented into different characteristic parts (appendages, mouthparts, legs, etc.), the body of mites is mostly monolithic.
The prosoma, which corresponds to the cephalothorax for other arthropods, is fused with the opisthosoma, the abdomen of other arthropods. So much so that their body appears as a single mass with no visible segmentation. The mouthparts are often variable and adapt to feeding, especially in ticks where the capitulum (head and mouthparts) is separated from the idiosome (rest of the body).
The reproductive cycle is common to that of insects, mites being oviparous. The egg leads to the larva, then to the nymph and finally to the adult stage. The lifespan of an adult mite is between 2 and 3 months. However, this short lifespan is offset by an extremely fast egg-laying rate and reproductive speed, around 300 eggs per month.
The conditions conducive to the reproduction of mites are very general and easily met. To establish and reproduce in a place, the mites need a humidity level between 65 and 80%, as well as temperatures between 20 and 30°C. These environmental conditions are found in most homes, and combined with the rapid reproduction of dust mites, it can become a real problem.
Mites are truly ubiquitous. In homes, they are found in curtains, carpets, bedding, sofas, stuffed animals, clothing, etc. A single gram of dust can contain up to 10,000 dust mites, and a mattress up to 2 million. The soles of our shoes can be colonized by several thousand dust mites.
The majority of food for house dust mites is dander, i.e. debris from hair, nails and skin. During the night, an adult generates about 50 million skin scales. Thus, 0.25 grams of dander can feed up to 10 million dust mites for a period of three months. Dust mites are not normally a problem, but for allergy sufferers they can quickly become a daily discomfort.
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The first direct method is the use of acaricides. Sold in the form of foam, aerosol or powder, these chemicals destroy mite eggs and larvae. Some miticides are even available as a self-acting spray to treat an entire room. All places of colonization must be treated, in particular the mattresses (both sides); the product must act for 2 to 4 hours, and the rooms aired for several hours afterwards.
However, the most effective is definitely frequent deep cleaning of the home. Dust, the favorite place of mites, should be removed with a damp cloth between 2 and 4 times a week, and vacuumed with the same frequency on the various rugs and carpeted surfaces. Carpets should then be brushed and shaken out. Dust should be removed with a damp cloth, as the feather duster may disperse the mites.
The rooms must be ventilated daily for a minimum of 40 minutes, in summer as in winter. Special recommendations must be adopted for the vacuum cleaner; it must be equipped with a high efficiency HEPA filter to avoid rejecting too many dust mites during its operation. To suck up about 20% of mites, the suction must last a minimum of 30 minutes.
Bedding should also be given special attention. A weekly change of sheets is necessary, and these must be washed at 60°C. Cushions, duvets, duvet covers and blankets must undergo the same treatment. Finally, if the room where the clothes are stored is also attacked by dust mites, the clothes should be washed at a high temperature whenever possible.
