House dust mites are the most common trigger of asthma. These are the mites that live in house dust. It is the feces of the dust mite that is the actual allergen that causes breathing problems. Dust mites produce feces about 20 times a day. Aside from being an allergen, the feces of the dust mite is light enough to float in the air, so it is easily inhaled by those of us who occupy homes and buildings. Then, when you consider there are about 40,000 dust mites per speck of dust, you can imagine (even if you'd rather not) just how many of these dust mite feces enter your respiratory system every time you take a breath.

Your indoor environment is especially vulnerable to dust mites if you live in a humid area, or if your home is subject to humid conditions for whatever other reason. Humid environments create the ideal habitation for dust mites, primarily since they result in a greater food supply for dust mites. Staples of a dust mites diet include plant materials, molds, and fungi, all of which thrive in humid conditions. Dust mites also feed on a less commonly-known but very prevalent airborne particulant: dead human skin, found in every home.

That "dust" you see in a shaft of sunlight coming through your window? Yep, mostly dead human skin, and you just can't avoid it. And dust mites love the stuff.

Based on the facts mentioned above, you can see why it is so critical to take action for the specific purpose of minimizing dust mites in your home, particularly if someone in your home suffers from asthma. In which case, we have compiled a list of 6 ways you can reduce the dust mites that reside in your home.

6 ways to reduce house dust mites:

1. Casings.

Bedding is the favorite home of the dust mite. Half the weight of the average pillow is dust mites! If you're allergy prone, you should encase your bedding and pillows with impermeable rubber or vinyl plastic wrappings and clean them frequently.

2. Washing

You should wash clothes and bedding regularly. Washing in 60oF water is effective, but 130oF water will kill all dust mites. Washing in cold water kills about 90% of dust mites.

3. Dry Cleaning

Dry cleaning kills all dust mites.

4. Heating

Any type of heat will help minimize dust mites. Some examples include steam-cleaning carpets, tumble-drying (drying machine), direct sunlight exposure, and electric blankets.

5. Air Conditioning

Air conditioning will dry out your indoor environment, which will reduce the food supply for dust mites, resulting in reduced dust mite populations. However, air conditioning strips beneficial negative ions from the air.

6. Air Purification

In spite of your best efforts to remove dust mites from your home or other indoor environment, dust mites are simply too numerous and reproduce too frequently to keep their numbers lowered without the aid of a quality air purifier. It's important to know that an air purifier is MUCH different from an air filter (e.g. HEPA). HEPA and other filtration-type air cleaners will not make much of a difference. First of all, most dust mites are too small to be captured by even the best of filters - even a really good filter can only get particulates larger than .3 microns. In addition, most dust mites will not even pass through the filter's screen anyway. Despite manufacturer's claims that their units complete so many air exchanges per hour, or filter so many square feet per hour, these are mostly based on theoritical calculations. The reality is that most pollutants in a given room or home will not pass through a small, stationary filter.

You are better off with a negative ion and ozone generator. Negative ions and ozone are much more effective at purifying air than a filter, due to the fact that they can remove pollatants from the air that are as much as 300 times smaller than the smallest particle a filter can remove. Plus, they can be emitted throughout your home, so they are more thorough in the area they cover. Negative ions and ozone are also capable of penetrating walls, furnishings, bedding, etc. to destroy dust mites and their feces.