The Many Things Hiding In Your Carpet That Can Cause You Harm
Vacuuming and showing care with your carpet helps, but it doesn't fully deal with all the possible things that hide in your carpet. To truly rid your carpet of the microscopic dangers that lurk there, you will need a professional cleaning. Here's a look at the things in your carpet that can make you and your family ill.
Dirt and Debris
Every time you or someone else steps on the carpet, there's a transfer of dirt. This transfer increases directly in correlation to the amount of foot traffic your carpet receives. If you have pets, that transfer increases even more.
All of that dirt that comes off shoes and clothes accumulates in your carpet. You can also add into this category things like dead skin cells, hair, dander, liquid, and food particles.
Possible harm – Accumulation of dirt and dust can eventually produce an unpleasant odor that's hard to get out. It can also spread to furniture and other areas of the home.
All that dust, dirt, and debris will work to increase allergic reactions and agitate any respiratory conditions. The main problem with dirt accumulation however, is the other things that come with it.
Living Things
With dirt and debris come other, more problematic residents in your carpet.
- Tiny bugs can show up for the free meal of food and liquid particles.
- Bacteria can grow and proliferate from the debris left in the carpet.
- Tiny creatures that eat bacteria can show up.
- Mold and fungus can grow from spilled liquids and moisture.
- Viruses, such as the norovirus, can live in the carpet.
You can have a literally toxic carpet and not realize it for some time. A whole ecosystem can form in there, effectively making you and your family sick.
Possible harm – The issues that can come from things living in your carpet can vary from annoying to hazardous.
- Your immune system can slowly weaken.
- Asthma attacks can rise.
- Infections can occur.
- Skin conditions, such as eczema, can develop.
You can find yourself becoming sick or feeling ill more frequently. Keep in mind, all of this can occur just from your day-to-day activities.
Professional Cleaning Can Help Lower Health Risks
You should maintain your carpet as best you can. You should definitely vacuum often. Clean all spills or drops immediately. You can also cut down debris from foot traffic by adding rugs or other carpet coverings. While these things can help a lot, they're not foolproof against many of the smaller, microscopic things that can grow in your carpet fibers.
You need a professional carpet cleaning service to deal with many of the pathogens and other things that can cause you harm. If you haven't had your carpet cleaned in a while, or ever, then you should contact a carpet cleaning service immediately.