A person does not think about being close to microscopic mites until an allergic reaction occurs. These synanthropic organisms have long settled in our homes. Here they found favorable conditions and food in the form of particles of human epidermis. Mites in pillows, blankets, and upholstered furniture are not visible to the naked eye, but for sensitive people their presence results in a bouquet of various diseases from dermatitis to bronchial asthma.
Description of the parasite and causes of appearance
Feather mites are widespread throughout the world. The life cycle of these insects is 65-80 days. During this period, the female lays 60-200 eggs.
Ticks live in pillows and mattresses filled with down and feathers. This allows them to easily find food and actively reproduce. Ideal conditions for this: temperature within +18...+250C degrees and air humidity above 55%. Insects prefer places with a lot of dust, so pillows, mattresses and upholstered furniture are ideal places for them to live.
What does a feather mite look like?
Feather mites are arachnid parasites whose size does not exceed 0.5 mm. They have a round, convex body of a light color, completely covered with small bristles. The parasite has four pairs of legs, at the ends of which there are suction cups that help it stay on the surface.
The oral apparatus of insects is well developed. It consists of claw-shaped gelicera designed to grind dead particles of the epidermis.
Appearance of an insect
Manifestation of symptoms
With severe infections, a person not only feels discomfort, but pronounced symptoms appear. Irritation, reddened areas, and rash appear on the skin. Acne or even ulcers may appear on the face, which are most often not associated with mites and the correct treatment is not applied, which leads to complications. In the affected areas, the skin peels off and becomes dry.
Allergy sufferers suffer the most, since terrible itching, conjunctivitis, and cough are added to the general symptoms. The parasite causes demodicosis, which requires proper treatment, since the disease is dangerous with complications. Therefore, if you notice any of the symptoms, you need to consult a doctor and undergo examination to identify the parasite yourself, it is almost impossible. Therefore, only a doctor can diagnose and prescribe treatment.
How to understand that these are ticks?
It will not be possible to see feather mites in pillows and mattresses with the naked eye due to their microscopic size. And even with significant growth of the colony, it is not possible to detect signs of these insects.
It is possible to identify parasites in bed only by the characteristic symptoms in a person, since their vital activity negatively affects his health.
Among them:
- annoying itching, worse at night;
- significantly enlarged pores on the scalp;
- increased fat content of the epidermis due to disruption of the sebaceous glands;
- rash;
- redness;
- excessive hair loss.
Negative signs of the vital activity of these insects appear gradually as human immunity declines. This subsequently leads to the development of serious complications.
To dispel doubts about the true source of danger, you need to temporarily change your sleeping place and bedding. If in this case the unpleasant symptoms disappear, then they are caused by parasites living in pillows and mattresses.
Treatment
Feather mites cause harm to the entire body; in order to be completely cured, a set of actions is required. These include the fight against the number and reproduction of individuals, as well as drug treatment of skin diseases.
First of all, you need to contact a specialist to establish a diagnosis and take tests; only in this case can the doctor prescribe individually suitable therapy.
Typically this is:
- course intake of vitamins and minerals;
- anti-inflammatory ointments;
- soap that gets rid of ticks on the skin;
- in rare cases, the doctor may prescribe antibiotic treatment.
On average, it takes from 1.5 to 2 weeks to eliminate external manifestations of a tick infestation.
Harm to humans
It is not the feather mites themselves that pose a danger to human health, but their metabolic products. Insect feces contain special food enzymes Der p1 and Der f1, which break down particles of the epidermis and hair. It is these proteins that are the strongest allergens.
Conjunctivitis
Therefore, feather mites in humans cause:
- bronchial asthma;
- atopic dermatitis;
- rhinitis;
- conjunctivitis
However, any treatment will only bring temporary relief. Until the allergen is eliminated from the apartment, health problems cannot be avoided.
ethnoscience
Many people prefer to turn to alternative medicine methods to treat feather mite bites.
- One of the most effective recipes for parasitic effects is calendula infusion. The product is applied to a cotton pad and treated for skin inflammation.
- You can use aloe juice as a compress: apply to a bandage and apply to the skin.
- In case of severe damage to the skin, mix castor oil with trichopolum and apply a bandage for 8-10 hours daily.
How to get rid of mites in feather pillows?
To get rid of mites in pillows, as well as their metabolic products, it is necessary to take comprehensive measures.
Main methods of struggle:
- Take feather pillows and mattresses outside in cold or hot weather. When exposed to low temperatures and ultraviolet radiation, parasites die. The duration of the procedure is 2-3 days.
- Wash clothes, mattress covers and bed linen using special anti-acaricidal additives "Allergoff".
- Regularly carry out wet cleaning with special All-Rug shampoo. This product is suitable for cleaning the pile of carpets and upholstered furniture, and also quickly and effectively removes dirt and mold.
- Be sure to iron all bedding and underwear after washing with a hot iron.
- Periodically treat upholstered furniture with anti-parasitic spray "Akarosan", the active substance of which is capable of penetrating the chitinous shell of mites and causing their death.
- Periodically, 2-3 times a month, wipe upholstered furniture, toys and surfaces where dust usually accumulates with a saline solution at the rate of 200 g of component per 1 liter of water.
Why are bites dangerous?
As it turned out, dust mites do not directly interact with humans, but they can cause enormous harm to health. An adult parasite defecates up to 20 times per day.
Human skin, coming into contact with tick feces, becomes covered with red spots - an allergic reaction occurs. Manifestations of allergies can be different, even bronchial asthma is a consequence of human contact with ticks.
In rare cases, scabies develops as a result of contact with mite feces. A person's skin becomes covered with red sores. Scabies is always accompanied by itching. Sometimes an increase in temperature can be observed.
Parasites can carry various diseases, but linen mite bites do not infect humans. Apparently nature took care not to destroy the constant source of their food, because if a person dies, the population of parasites will disappear.
The effect of bites on humans:
- Depending on the immune system, each organism reacts differently to tick bites. Many people experience unbearable itching, hives, and rashes. The most dangerous outcome of an allergic reaction may be Quincke's edema. In such a combination of circumstances, a fatal outcome cannot be ruled out, so at the first sign of an allergy, you must call an ambulance. Each person is an individual, so it is impossible to predict how the body will react to an insect bite.
- Parasites are nocturnal, so they cause a lot of trouble. A person bitten by a tick cannot fall asleep for a long time, his mental balance is disturbed.
- After scratching, the wounds may fester.
If you don't fight dust mites, there can be so many of them that it will be very difficult to deal with them. Frequent bites can lead to iron deficiency anemia.
Caring for feather pillows
To prevent mites from infesting feather pillows, it is necessary to properly care for them. To do this, in addition to seasonal drying in the sun and winter freezing, it is necessary to carry out special cleaning of down products.
Allergoff
In this case, once every 2 years, the contents of the pillow should be shaken out into a fabric bag and tied tightly. Then prepare a solution in a basin by adding 100 g of grated laundry soap and ammonia to 10 liters of warm water. Immerse the bag of feathers in the resulting liquid, mash it a little and leave for 4 hours. At the end of this time, rinse well, changing the water several times. After this, you need to dry the feathers thoroughly.
It is also recommended to wash the bedsheet with the addition of an acaricidal agent, and after drying, iron it with a hot iron. Then you should assemble the pillow and use it for its intended purpose, no longer fearing for your health.
You can simplify the procedure for caring for down products if you periodically take them to dry cleaning.
Conclusion
A feather pillow is an environmentally friendly product, so to speak. It has a number of worthy qualities, thanks to which the product served our ancestors for many years. Now scientists are attributing more and more shortcomings to it, proposing to replace natural feathers with a synthetic analogue. However, the point is omitted that synthetic fillers also have a number of positive and negative characteristics.
By choosing a high-quality feather pillow, the buyer receives a natural product that, with proper care, will last a long time.
Sources
- https://FB.ru/article/411724/perevoy-klesch-lechenie-i-simptomyi-u-cheloveka
- https://StopKlopam.com/kleshhi-v-podushkah/
- https://misterklop.ru/klesshi/kleshhi-v-podushkah-perevye-kleshhi-prichina-bessonnitsy-kto-takie-otkuda-berutsya-opasny-li-dlya-cheloveka-i-kak-ot-nih-izbavitsya- foto-pod-mikroskopom
- https://like2sleep.com/postelnye-prinadlezhnosti/podushki/kleshhi-v-podushkakh-kak-izbavitsya-ot-nep.html
- https://dezvredexpert.com/kleshhi/vidy-kleshhej/kleshhi-v-podushkax/
- https://sichovka.ru/parazity/kleshchi-v-podushkah.html
- https://DobryjSon.ru/spalnoe-mesto/uhod/kleshhi-v-podushkax.html
- https://beetlestop.ru/kleshi-v-podushkah/
- https://polzaivredno.ru/perevye-podushki-chem-vredny-i-chem-polezny/
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Replacement of down and feather
There are many vegetable and artificial fillings for pillows that do not harbor ticks. Therefore, people with increased sensitivity to dust and parasite waste products should avoid using feathers and down.
So, which pillows do not harbor ticks? These are products from:
- buckwheat husk;
- bamboo fiber;
- latex;
- comforts;
- holofiber;
- padding polyester.
For children, it is better to choose fillers of plant origin, due to their fragile immune system.
What should not be done if an infection is detected?
A person who has discovered a feather mite infestation should absolutely not:
- squeeze pimples with your own hands, this way you can introduce infection into the deep layers of the skin and blood;
- use decorative cosmetics - mite larvae may remain on it, which in the future will lead to re-infection;
- use creams, since the parasite’s habitat improves and the infection spreads throughout the face;
- carry out cosmetic procedures such as scrub, massage, cleansing and masks;
- visit the swimming pool, sauna, solarium;
- wash with hot water.
In addition, it is highly recommended to review your daily diet. Avoid processed foods, canned, smoked, spicy and fried foods. Add less salt and spices to food. Avoid alcohol during treatment. You can eat chocolate and drink coffee in reasonable quantities.
Preventive actions
It is impossible to completely eliminate the possibility of parasites appearing in pillows, but it is quite possible to minimize the risks. To do this, it is necessary to adhere to certain preventive measures.
Among them:
- Dry clean pillows and mattresses once every 2 years, or wash them yourself using acaricidal agents.
- All bed linen, pajamas, bedspreads should be washed and dried outside often, and then be sure to iron.
- Periodically treat soft toys, furniture and carpets with special anti-mite sprays.
- Carry out wet cleaning, paying special attention to places where dust usually accumulates.
- Ventilate the apartment regularly to control air humidity.
- Periodically throw away old and unnecessary things.
Chemical method
Traditional methods are effective only if a small number of insects live in the home. To destroy large quantities of them, it is necessary to use insecticidal agents, the composition of which includes toxic substances.
During the treatment, people and pets are advised to leave the premises. After disinsection treatment, you need to ventilate the apartment and do wet cleaning. It is advisable to repeat the procedure after two weeks; this measure will help prevent the reappearance of bloodsuckers inside the home.
Delta zone
Delta zone is a highly effective insecticidal preparation, presented in the form of microcapsules. The product has a detrimental effect on synanthropic parasites.
The drug is a highly concentrated solution that must first be diluted with water for pest control treatment.
When preparing the solution, it is important to follow the recommendations specified in the instructions. Deviation from these rules may lead to a lack of positive results.
Get total
Get Total insecticide is a highly effective new generation drug. A distinctive feature of the product is the absence of negative effects of toxic substances on people and pets.
You can use Get to treat an apartment without temporarily evicting household members. To carry out the procedure, the concentrate must first be diluted with water. When applied to exposed surfaces, Get retains its insecticidal properties for several weeks, eliminating the need for re-treatment.
Xulate micro
Xulat micro is an effective insecticidal preparation intended for the destruction of synanthropic insects in residential premises. The composition of the drug includes three main active components, which eliminates the development of addiction in parasites.
Cucaracha
Cucaracha is an insecticide developed to combat bedbugs and other types of synanthropic insects. It has a high level of toxicity and is intended for treatment of residential premises.
Due to the presence of a strong unpleasant odor in the product, residents should leave the apartment during the procedure until the toxic substance has completely evaporated.
Cifox
Despite the high level of effectiveness, the drug Tsifoks is extremely rarely used to treat residential premises infested with insects. This is due to the high level of toxicity.
To remove blood-sucking insects, you need to prepare an aqueous solution of an insecticidal agent, and then treat all surfaces with it. After completing the procedure, you need to wait some time, then thoroughly ventilate the room and carry out wet cleaning.
