Most of the time, when we think about carpet cleaning, we think about removing stains, tidying up the carpet and making it look better.  All of these are important reasons to have your carpet cleaned.  But there’s an even more important one - health and hygiene.

Did you know that your carpet could harm your health?  It could be aggravating or causing a host of health issues but regular cleaning will remove these.  Let’s look at why carpet cleaning is important for hygiene.

The threat of dirty carpets

According to a study by Allergy Awareness Week, 41% of British adults have never had their carpet washed or done it themselves - that’s some 2million carpets out there that have never had the cleaning they need.

The same study also found that 84% of people don’t think their carpets are unclean. However, if they overlap with that 41%, there's a strong chance that they will be unclean, no matter how great they look!

What kind of problems lurk in carpets?

Perhaps one of the big reasons that so many people are confident in their clean carpets is that most of the problems can’t be seen.  A dirty stain may not seem likely to cause a health problem and an invisible allergen certainly doesn’t.  But both can and will lead to health problems without cleanings.  

Let’s look at a few examples of the kinds of health issues that carpets can cause if not cleaned properly.

Respiratory issues

One of the most common issues is respiratory problems.  All kinds of allergens can get trapped in carpet fibres from dust and dirt to skin cells, pet hair and mould.  Then when you walk on the carpet, these can be thrown up into the air and inhaled.

For people with respiratory problems and breathing issues, these things can all cause their condition to act up.  And even without an existing condition, too much of this kind of debris can lead to problems for some people.

Allergies

Probably the most common health problem caused by carpets is allergies.  If you are allergic to any of those things we just mentioned as well as things like pollen, when these are in the carpet, you will suffer.

Even if you don’t know you have an allergy but keep waking up with allergy-like symptoms, it could be that carpets could be the cause.  Vacuuming can often trigger an attack too because those allergens are disturbed and released into the air.  So if you sneeze after vacuuming, this could be a sign of an allergy issue.

Skin irritation

Sometimes allergens don’t cause you to sneeze but instead to have skin irritation or reaction when they come into contact with you.  Everything from skin rashes, itchy patches, athlete’s foot and even eczema can be caused by things like dust mites in a carpet.

If you have sensitive skin, these even just normal household dust or pet debris can cause a reaction.  You might sit on the floor then notice a skin irritation where the skin has come into contact with the carpet.  This means something in there is causing it.

Pet germs

If you have pets, they inevitably bring with them germs, bacteria and allergens.  It isn’t that they aren’t clean, it is just one of those things.  Bacteria attach to their fur, they roll on the carpet and spread it.  Or tiny flecks of faeces cling to their paws and get tracked into the carpet weave.

Sometimes just being outside and tracking in mud and moisture on their feet can cause problems. These repeated damp spots can allow mould to grow and this leads to allergic reactions.

Stomach problems

While this is less common, it is possible to get an upset stomach from certain moulds that can grow in a carpet.  Mycotoxins cause stomach irritation and even infections and are extremely hard to spot in a carpet.

Another bogeyman of the bacteria world can also appear on the carpet.  Salmonella is a food-borne disease but if food falls into the carpet, then this can develop.  If you then come into contact with it, without realising it, you could then get the illness.

Weaken the immune system

Again, this is a more extreme example but one that can happen.  If there are lots of toxins and bacteria in the carpets, these are constantly bombarding your body.  Over time, this can lead to a weakened immune system and mean you can’t fight off infections as well.

Or if someone has a weakened immune system, this could make them more vulnerable to illness.  Babies, the elderly and people with conditions like diabetes are more at risk for any kind of bacteria.

Feeling bad for no reason

Apart from specific health issues, sometimes you just feel bad for no reason.  Only, there is always a reason, we might not know what it is immediately.  If you have carpets that haven’t been cleaned recently, your feelings of off-ness may be related to this.

Professional carpet cleaning

So, while this demonstrates the need for regular carpet cleaning, it is also worth mentioning why it is best to have professional carpet cleaning, rather than a DIY job.

Carpet cleaning is a bit more complex than people realise.  For example, if the carpet gets too wet, this creates the perfect place for mould to grow.  So the very act of cleaning creates the problem you are trying to avoid!

When you use a professional carpet cleaner to handle the cleaning, there’s no concerns about making this worse. By ensuring that carpets are cleaned correctly for the material they are made from and that stains and allergens are cleared, you have carpets that look and smell clean.  But that is also free from any elements that can lead to health issues.

Here at A Cleaning Service, we offer carpet cleaning services for all types of carpets, in homes and businesses. If you need to have your carpet cleaned or even a quick assessment carried out, give us a call to book an appointment today.

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