How to Get Rid of Face Mites

You may have heard of mite infestations in your house as they are a pretty common insect infestation, but what if we were to tell you that there are mites living in your body and particularly on your face. Scary right? Face Mites, also known as Demodex mites are parasitic insects that live and feed on your face.

What is even more startling is that while you are asleep at night, these mites emerge out of the pores of your skin, mate and then go back inside. Then they proceed on laying their eggs on your face as well. These mites lives on pretty much everyone, but a heavy infestation of Demodex mites can bright about itching or even a burning sensation.

Read on below to learn more about Face Mites and what steps you can take to reduce their infestation on your face.

Identification

Before you can carry out a treatment program, it is important to first properly identify Face mites. Misidentification can lead to using the wrong treatment methods, which will just be a waste of time and money. Here are some traits and facts about Face Mites that can assist you with identification.

• Demodex or Face mites are 8 legged arachnids that are found on the human body and are related to ticks and spiders.
• They are classified into two types. Demodex folliculurum (they live in the hair follicles such as eyebrows, eyelashes and scalp) and demodex brevis (on the entire face and outside the ear).
• Face mites don’t penetrate inside the body and they only live within the skin and hair follicles. Face mites eat what is called sebum, the greasy oil our skin makes to protect itself from drying out. Washing your face will not get rid of them as they live under your pores. 
• All humans have face mites but they only become an issue when they increase in number resulting in a condition called demodicosis. Demodicosis is a very distressing skin condition that may be caused by complications of your immune system and will require a trip to the doctor to treat the problem.
• The lifecycle of face mites is quite short and each adult face mite lives no more than 15-24 days on the human skin. This is due to regular cleaning habits but a lack of hygiene or oily glands may cause overpopulation of these mites.
•  Dogs and other wild animals also suffer from this condition and it’s called demodex canis.

Use the image and description above to assist you with proper identification of Face Mites. If you are not entirely sure or would like assistance, contact us and we will help you with identification.

Inspection

Once you have confirmed that you are dealing with Face mites, you can then proceed with an inspection. During this phase, you will examine areas where they may be as well as where they may have been picked up.

Where To Look 

On your face, preferably the cheeks, forehead and chin. They are also known to live on hair follicles on your eyebrows, eyelashes and scalp.

What To Look For

It'll be hard to see Demodex mites on your face without the help of a microscope but you can check for symptoms of overpopulation (demodicosis) which is itchy or scaly skin, redness, increase skin sensitive, a burning sensation, rough skin, or eczema.

Treatment

When it comes to getting rid of Face Mites, using pest control products is unnecessary and are not going to get rid of them. The fact is, we all have thousands of microbes and other organisms living on and inside our body, Face Mites just happen to be one of them. Face mites only become a problem when they overpopulate your skin and cause skin problems such as eczema, rough scaly skin, eyelashes falling etc. as these are signs of Demodicosis.

If you have Demodicosis, then you will have to visit a doctor who will offer treatment options such as a permethrin based medicated cream or tea tree oil.

Prevention

As mentioned earlier, there's no way that you can totally prevent Demodex or Face Mites from living on your skin. They are always going to be there and for the most part cause no problems unless there is an abundance of them living on your face. If you are dealing with skin conditions due to these mites, here are some things you can do.

Wash your face

While this won't totally remove Face Mites, it can help to reduce any skin flare-ups that can be caused by them. Don’t wash your face too often that the skin gets stripped of its natural oils causing dryness or in some cases, excessive oiliness because the sebum produces more oil on the skin if you overwash.  So have a good skincare regimen that includes you to wash your face at least twice a day (or more if you have oily skin). Get a good non-soap cleansing facewash that is made for your skin type and use it daily.

Bathe your pet regularly

You not only have to worry about yourself but also for your dog’s hygiene as well. Bathe your pet in a Tick and Mange Dip periodically to keep them clean and itch-free so they don't transfer any bugs over to you.

Use antibiotic treatment

Ask your dermatologist for the best antibiotic treatment for your skin conditions. These treatments help combat the bacteria and mites that are present on the skin and relieve you of any skin problems.

Change your bed linen and pillow covers often

This is also an effective way to stay clean and not have any face mite infestation on your skin as they can lives and move around on your bedding and are active while you sleep.

Key Takeaways

What are Face Mites?

• Face Mites are parasitic insects that live on your face and hair follicles and eat our skin oils.

How To Get Rid of Face Mites

• There is nothing that can be done to totally eliminate Face Mites, but they are not a problem anyway unless there's overpopulation that causes itchy rashes and other skin symptoms. When examining yourself or other personal belongings we recommend wearing a pair of gloves. 

Preventing Face Mite Reinfestation

• Reduce the chances of overpopulation on your face with routine face washing and general cleanliness.