A lot of people were not aware that thousands of mites might have been residing on their faces. Our naked eyes might not be able to see it but you can see it using a microscope. These mites are closely related to spiders and ticks.
According to a mite scientist at the US Department of Agriculture, Ron Ochoa “99.9 percent of humans carry them,” and most abundant on our faces, but live in the hair follicles all over our bodies, and shockingly a single person may harbor more than one million of them in total.
Scientists said that there are two types of face mites, D. brevis, and Demodex folliculurum. They explained that they have a worm-like shape and short legs. D. brevis are found inside of the sebaceous glands in the skin. Demodex folliculurum is found inside of the hair follicles.
Watch it here: Your Wild Life Project/Youtube
Though studies are not sure about what the face mites feed on to survive they do believe that they can feed on skin oil and dead skin cells. They may also eat bacteria that is on the skin. Even if one keeps their skin very clean, they may still have face mites. There is a video on YouTube showing the actions of face mites under a microscope. It has been viewed over 225,000 times.
“These are things that live on us — they’re intimately associated with us — but they’ve not really been studied,” says Holly Menninger, who’s part of a North Carolina State project that’s sampling the mites that live on hundreds of volunteers. “It’s kind of crazy.”
Her team is among the few that trying to learn more. Here’s what little we do know so far about the mites you carry every day.
Nearly all adults carry these mites, but children usually don’t — and only about 70 percent of 18-year-olds do. It’s still unclear how we initially pick them up. Many scientists believe we somehow acquire them from our parents — Ochoa thinks they first latch on to us when we breastfeed as babies — while others hypothesize that we acquire them from sexual partners.
Face mites are tiny creatures that live in the pores and hair follicles of the face. They are harmless and typically go unnoticed, but they can sometimes cause problems like acne or skin irritation.
Here are some of the ways you can follow to get rid of face mites:
- You can use a face wash that contains tea tree oil, which is a natural anti-microbial agent
- You can also try using an over-the-counter acne treatment product that contains benzoyl peroxide or salicylic acid.
You can also use several home remedies to get rid of face mites:
- Apple cider vinegar has antifungal and antibacterial properties that make it effective at killing mites.
- Bleach is another option; the strong oxidizing agent kills microbes on contact.
- Lemon juice is also effective against these pests, due to its acidity and citric acid content.
Once you feel that you might be having face mites, it’s important to get rid of them as soon as possible to prevent them from multiplying even more and to prevent acne breakouts and other skin problems. You may try using the methods above that could help you to get rid of these pests.
Sources: Sharesploison, Vox