If you are dust-sensitive, especially if you have allergies and/or asthma, you can reduce some of your misery by creating a "dust-free" bedroom. Dust may contain molds, fibers, and dander from dogs, cats, and other animals, as well as tiny dust mites. These mites, which live in bedding, upholstered furniture, and carpets, thrive in the summer and die in the winter. They will, however, continue to thrive in the winter if the house is warm and humid. The particles seen floating in a shaft of sunlight include dead mites and their waste products. The waste products actually provoke the allergic reaction.

The routine cleaning necessary to maintain a dust-free bedroom also can help reduce exposure to cockroaches, another important cause of asthma in some allergic people.

You probably cannot control dust conditions under which you work or spend your daylight hours. To a large extent, however, you can eliminate dust from your bedroom. To create a dust-free bedroom, you must reduce the number of surfaces on which dust can collect.

In addition to getting medical care for your dust allergy and/or asthma, the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases suggests the following guidelines.

PREPARATION

• Completely empty the room, just as if you were moving.
• Empty and clean all closets and, if possible, store contents elsewhere and seal closets.
• Keep clothing in zippered plastic bags and shoes in boxes off the floor, if you cannot store them elsewhere.
• Remove carpeting, if possible.
• Clean and scrub the woodwork and floors thoroughly to remove all traces of dust.
• Wipe wood, tile, or linoleum floors with water, wax, or oil.
• Cement any linoleum to the floor.
• Close the doors and windows until the dust-sensitive person is ready to use the room.

MAINTENANCE

• Wear a filter mask when cleaning.
• Clean the room thoroughly and completely once a week.
• Clean floors, furniture, tops of doors, window frames and sills, etc., with a damp cloth or oil mop.
• Carefully vacuum carpet and upholstery regularly.
• Use a special filter in the vacuum.
• Wash curtains often at 130 degrees Fahrenheit.
• Air the room thoroughly.

CARPETING AND FLOORING

• Not as effective as removing the carpet
• Is irritating to some people
• Must be applied repeatedly

BEDS AND BEDDING

• Lower temperatures will not kill dust mites.
• If you set your hot water temperature lower (commonly done to prevent children from scalding themselves), wash items at a laundromat which uses high wash temperatures.

FURNITURE AND FURNISHINGS

• Avoid upholstered furniture and blinds.
• Use only a wooden or metal chair that you can scrub.
• Use only plain, lightweight curtains on the windows.

AIR CONTROL

CHILDREN

• Keep toys that will accumulate dust out of the child’s bedroom
• Avoid stuffed toys
• Use only washable toys of wood, rubber, metal, or plastic
• Store toys in a closed toy box or chest

PETS

MORE INFORMATION

NIAID is a component of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), which is an agency of the Department of Health and Human Services. NIAID supports basic and applied research to prevent, diagnose, and treat infectious and immune-mediated illnesses, including HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases, illness from potential agents of bioterrorism, tuberculosis, malaria, autoimmune disorders, asthma and allergies.

News releases, fact sheets and other NIAID-related materials are available on the NIAID Web site at http://www.niaid.nih.gov.

Prepared by:
Office of Communications and Public Liaison
National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases
National Institutes of Health
Bethesda, MD 20892