iMattress Blog

For asthma sufferers, their personal environment is like a giant booby trap. There are often many factors that can trigger an asthma attack, such as animal fur, smoke, pollution, dust, pollen, mold, chemical fumes, cleaning products, perfumes and air fresheners. That’s a pretty big list. Since we spend roughly 1/3 of our lives sleeping, it’s a good idea to take a look at the factors during sleep that may be controllable in reducing asthma triggers.

A large portion of asthma sufferers (more than 80%!), are allergic to dust mite skeletons and their excrement. Dust mites are microscopic bugs that live mainly on dead skin cells that are shed from people and pets, therefore, your mattress may very well be a place that dust mites find very attractive. A typical mattress may have over 100,000 dust mites! Their droppings and their own shedded skin are what cause allergies in people. Another food source for dust mites are natural fibrous material (such as cotton and wool). That’s where Memory foam and Latex mattresses come in.

The denser the mattress or its padding, the less likely it is to attract and hold on to dust. The less dust there is—the less mites there are. Memory foam and Latex foam mattresses are extremely dense. They also eliminate one of the key factors in a dust mite successfully setting up a habitat in your mattress: food source. Dust mites don’t like to eat memory foam or latex, therefore they do not lend themselves to being a sustainable environment for dust mites.

Limiting exposure to dust mites will greatly help improve an asthmatic sufferer’s symptoms and will also very likely improve their quality of sleep.  Here are some other suggestions to reduce and prevent the build-up of dust mites:

• Vacuum frequently. Vacuum your mattress, the bed cover, carpets and draperies/blinds—at least once a week. If possible, consider removing carpet and replacing with hardwoods or tile.
• Wash all bedding in HOT water to kill any existing dust mites. Sheets should be washed on a weekly basis; bed covers, pillows, blankets, mattress protectors should also be washed in HOT water on a regular basis (monthly).
• Obtain an anti-allergen mattress protector. Ensure that it is recommended for people who are sensitive or suffer from allergies. Look for descriptions such as: allergen proof. It should be bleach, dye and chemical free.
• Obtain vinyl pillow protectors. Vinyl is dense and extremely hard for dust to penetrate or stick to. It is also a good idea to replace pillows on a yearly basis.

Memory Foam vs Latex

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