What are dust mites?

Dust mites are tiny, spider-like creatures. You cannot see them with the naked eye. Dust mites are found all over the world, and there are often millions of them in a house. Dust mites avoid the light. So they tend to hide in the inner fibres of materials in places such as mattresses, cushions, upholstered furniture, carpets, clothing and bed linen.

Dust mites are happiest at room temperature with high humidity. They primarily feed on flakes of human skin, which they find in house dust. They obtain fluids by absorbing moisture from the surroundings. These conditions are most readily found in the bed, which is the dust mite's favourite place. Every night we spend several hours in contact with these creatures. No wonder they provoke allergic reactions to many people.

Dust mites live on average for about a month. In this lifetime, the females lay around a hundred eggs. Their numbers can thus increase exponentially.

Dust mites are one of the most common causes of asthma and allergic symptoms world wide.