Sponsored by: AllergyDirect.com

Do you know who you are sleeping with? Did you know that literally millions of dust mites live and breed in your sheets, pillows, mattresses, and bed springs?

If you are an allergy sufferer, this could be the reason your wake up every morning sneezing, and wheezing with your eyes burning and nose running. There are over 50 million allergy sufferers in the U.S. and 85 percent of those people have dust mite allergies. Dust mites are virtually everywhere, and they thrive all year round. They especially like to live in fabrics like linens, upholstery, drapes, and carpets. Everyday, dust mites produce 200 times their body weight in waste products, and it is these waste products that cause most of what we call "dust". This dust also contains allergens that cause sneezing, wheezing, watery eyes, and many more allergic reactions.

Although there are products and medications that can help treat these symptoms, the NIH recommends a strategy of avoidance and prevention. This includes frequently cleaning and vacuuming the home, weekly washing of bed linens, replacement of heavy fabric drapes with lightweight ones, replacement of carpets with wood or tile, no pets in the bedroom, and elimination of furniture with fabric upholstery.

Many people are also using mattress and pillow covers to help shield themselves from exposure to the dust mites living in their bedding. AllergyDirect.com is a website that is rich in information about allergies and their prevention. It features mattress and pillow covers made from an innovative fabric called ePTFE . This is the same material that is used in Teflon pans, surgical instruments, and even space suits. This fabric is cross-stitched so tightly that the smallest dust mite cannot pass through; however, air and perspiration can. Unlike plastic covers, these can feel as cool and comfortable as fine cotton linens.

Allergy sufferers should not have to wake up in the morning fighting miserable symptoms. By taking a few preventative steps, they can sleep better and wake up feeling refreshed.