Myth: Dust mites are harmless
Dust mites are extremely small insects, measuring less than 0.3 millimeters in size. They cannot be seen with the naked eye because they are so microscopically small that they are hidden from normal view.
However, despite their miniature size, these microscopic creatures can pose a serious threat to your home and health. After all, if there is dust in your home, it is likely that mites are also here, since dust is their main source of nutrition and habitat.
Every day, an adult exfoliates up to 1.5 grams of skin, which is enough to feed millions of dust mites. These microscopic creatures are extremely small, invisible to the naked eye, do not bite, do not penetrate the body and are not parasites, which can create the illusion that a person is getting used to their proximity. However, there is always one “but”.
The waste products of dust mites and fragments of their bodies are a strong allergen. When you inhale dusty air, these microscopic particles settle on the mucous membranes of the nose and throat. In some people, the immune system reacts too violently to such dust – an allergic reaction occurs.
Dust mite allergies are most often experienced by children and young adults due to their more sensitive immune systems at their age. It is not always possible to completely get rid of these mites, since they can be found almost everywhere, especially in upholstered furniture, carpets, and bedding.
However, there are a number of measures that can be taken to reduce their number and minimize allergens in the air. Regular house cleaning, ventilating rooms, using air filters and periodically cleaning carpets, furniture and bedding can help with this.
It is also useful to use hypoallergenic materials for bedding and furniture, and also to avoid excessive humidity in the premises, since dust mites prefer humid conditions for reproduction.
Myth: Bed bugs carry diseases
Bed bugs are insects that can cause fear and anxiety as they can infest indoor spaces, enter bedrooms and feed on our blood while we sleep.
However, if you analyze the most common myths about bed bugs, you can see that they are hardly as dangerous as they are attributed to.
If your apartment is infested with bedbugs, you will feel itching, have problems sleeping, and may also develop allergies. But compared to other blood-sucking parasites, bed bugs spread virtually no diseases to people.
Bed bugs are associated with dirty places, but in fact, what they are looking for is heat and carbon dioxide, and this is what every person emits, regardless of the conditions in which they live.
Myth: Bed bugs can fly
Good news: they can’t fly. They do not have wings with which they could attack their victims or move from house to house.
Myth: Cereals with bugs should not be eaten
If beetles get into the cereal, it should first be sorted and sifted, and then processed in the oven at a temperature of at least 120 degrees. After this, the cereal can be used, although it is recommended to do this as soon as possible.
Getting beetles into cereal by mistake does not pose a health hazard. However, if beetles are present in large numbers in the cereal, you will have to get rid of the product.
Store cereals and flour in a dry, cool, and ventilated place, such as glass jars with airtight lids. In winter, it is better to store them on the balcony.
If you find bugs in one of the cereals, check all supplies and thoroughly disinfect and ventilate the kitchen cabinet. To clean the cabinet from bugs, you can use a saline solution with the addition of soda.
It is important to observe the shelf life of cereals: rice and buckwheat can be stored for up to six months, millet – no more than three months, and flour is not recommended to be stored for more than a year.
An effective remedy for bugs is grated nutmeg. Place it on the shelves of the kitchen cabinet where cereals are stored, and it will help get rid of unwanted guests.
