WARNING: What you're about to read might keep you up at night. Or at least keep you away from your bed for a while.
 
The reason is dust mites -- those tiny bugs that live in linen and pillowcases and feed on your dead skin -- and the problems they can cause when you press your face into them for months at a time.
 
"Taxonomically, they're related to spiders, which always grosses people out," says Dr. Michael Bykowsky, a Columbia allergist.
 
The Mayo Clinic estimates the average bed contains between 100,000 to 10 million dust mites.
"Your bed is especially inviting to dust mites," the clinic's Web site cautions. "To them, it's a warm, cozy, all-you-can-eat buffet that's restocked every night with yummy food."
 
Bykowsky explains the critters' fondness for bed sheets this way: "They like a warm, humid environment," he says. "When you're in your bed, it's both warm and humid there, so they thrive."
 
An allergy to dust mites, or to the feces or decaying body parts they leave behind, can make life miserable. Like allergy season, only worse.
 
"The biggest difference is, pollen is seasonal," Bykowsky says. "And you can control your exposure just by not going outside."
 
Dust mites, however, scurry over mattresses, bed sheets and pillows year-round, and they're generally more irritating than other allergens.
 
Studies have linked dust mite allergies with seasonal pollen allergies. Experts theorize that dust at home might cause chronic inflammation, making sufferers more susceptible when allergy season rolls around. And in a home, mites are often everywhere.
 
"If it's a fabric or material, dust mites can live in it," Bykowsky says.
 
So what can you do about it?
A new mattress isn't necessarily the answer, Bykowsky says, as studies have found mattresses come with dust mites already living in them.
 
The solution is allergen-proof encasements -- zippered cases made of vinyl or tightly woven fabric that act as barriers against dust mite allergens.
 
"Their pores are so small that fecal particles can't get through," Bykowsky says. "Typically, we tell people to put these on and leave them on, and you don't need to take them off and wash them regularly."
 
Bykowsky recommends encasing pillows, mattresses and box springs. He also encourages people to wash their linens weekly in hot water, "and hot is greater than 130 degrees Fahrenheit."
 
Bykowsky says doing so will dramatically cut down on the effects of dust mite allergies, a problem many people don't know they have.
 

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