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American Morning

Tips to Control Dust Mites in Your Home

Aired August 06, 2001 - 11:50   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
LEON HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: They make us itch. They make us cough. They make us wheeze and sneeze. We're talking now about dust mites. They can be an allergy sufferers worst nightmare. But some simple tips to control them apparently do the trick.

And our medical correspondent Rhonda Rowland is here with some of that for us.

RHONDA ROWLAND, CNN CORRESPONDENT: And, Leon, as you know, these dust mites reside in the home. And before you say, hey, I don't have dust mites...

HARRIS: Everybody has them?

ROWLAND: Well, at least half, half of households. Yes, a reason to pay attention to it. And as you alluded to, the reason dust mites are a problem, is that they can trigger, asthma, hay fever, and even exzima (ph).

The question is, what do you do about the dust mites? Now a study published in the online version of "the Journal of the National Institutes of Environmental Health Sciences" finds, there are some simple low-cost solutions that actually work, and we have a list of them.

The first is: use allergen-proof mattresses and pillow covers, wash bed linens weekly, and vacuum and dry steam clean carpets and upholstery.

Now, Leon, the study was done in low-income housing to see if these low-cost strategies actually work. But keep in mind, there are about 22 million homes where the dust mites levels are high enough to trigger asthma-susceptible people.

HARRIS: Yes, but first of all, back up about half a step here. Tell us, first of all, I mean, you were telling some things off camera here about what these things are and what they actually eat.

ROWLAND: I don't know if you want to know this right before lunch. But I will tell you, you don't know if you have dust mites, and that's because they are microscopic spider-like creatures, and again, they hide off in the upholstery and bedding, and they feed off of human skin, and the thesis, that's what causes the allergic reaction. So there is a picture, so that should give you a little incentive to do something about these dust mites, not pretty.

HARRIS: Now I'm assuming that's the point of a pen or something.

ROWLAND: Right, they are microscopic. That's right. You can't actually see them.

HARRIS: All right, you looked at the different strategies that people can use to get rid of them or at least hold them at bay. Which ones actually work, and how do you find them.

ROWLAND: Well, first of all, all of these will, which ones work, if you get the bed coverings, which you can get in big stores like Linens 'N' Things, Bed, Bath & Beyond, those kinds of stores, that they actually significantly reduce the dust mite levels. Now if you vacuum your carpet real well, it will lower the levels for about a month. If you steam clean, about eight weeks. So you just want to really be vigilant around your house.

HARRIS: All right, since those dead human skins are more on your bed or on the floor?

ROWLAND: Probably all places. You want to get rid of them anywhere. But you might want to start with your bed, because you spend a lot of time there.

HARRIS: That's a good point.

ROWLAND: Rhonda Rowland, thank you very much for giving us all the willies. We'll see you later.

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