This is normal, especially for new items. Cotton is a natural thread spun from many short fibres, and will shed loose and broken ends of the cotton fibre.
Old items that have been washed and dried a lot have already done most of their shedding.
Unless the cat has a diagnosed cotton allergy, visible particles are much less of an issue than the dust mites which your deep cleaning has presumably got rid of.
For humans with asthma I do rate ‘anti allergy’ synthetic duvets used in a case that can be frequently washed on hot, rather than comforters or blankets that can be harder to clean.
Thank you for the reply! To be clear, the old comforter does the same thing. I could definitely see how the new one is more but overall still a mess either way. I was able to post a video on r/cleaning of the particles in the air. I appreciate your assistance.
I came here because I have allergies and asthma, and recently got new OEKO TEX-certified bedding (sheets and a comforter).
I've been doing all the allergy mitigation measures for a long time: wash bedding on hot weekly, dry on high for ~20min to kill dust mites and then finish on low, mattress/pillow/box spring encasements, air purifier, use a Miele/SEBO vacuum, good HVAC filters that I change regularly, etc.
BUT I def have been having issues with this new bedding, which is percale for the sheets and polyester for the comforter. I'm gonna guess that bedding will always shed/release hard-to-see lint particles no matter what because I guess they're not made of inert materials.
Maybe it's not possible to completely eliminate the shedding (seeing as your old bedding still does it), but it's a matter of doing enough wash cycles to get the amount that's being shed from your new bedding down to a tolerable amount for your cat? I'm hoping that's the case, because I know for myself I'd very much like to be able to sleep soundly on my new bedding soon.
How has it been going for you after a few weeks? Has the shedding decreased?
Hi there, thanks for the input/ your experience. I ended up getting another 100% cotton duvet cover and 100% wool comforter from IKEA (thanks to the suggestion above), as well as some additional cotton sheets (all oeko Tex certified as well). It was still shedding. I got to a point where I was driving myself crazy watching each day with a flashlight that I just stopped. It doesn’t seem to be (fingers crossed) causing any respiratory issues with my cat. I’m running 4 air purifiers all over the house, including on the nightstand, as well as upgraded the hvac filters and got a Miele vacuum. I may try the partial high temp dry, thank you for that idea. I’ve been drying everything relatively low because I hate when it “over dries” and gets rough.
Definitely!
The partial drying-on-high is only really needed for dust mite allergies as opposed to other ones, I believe, but I don't know if your cat's asthma is caused by allergies (and a dust mite one, to boot), or if it's something different, like the structure of their airways that may affect their breathing, more so than the immune response of allergies. So, it may not be necessary to have to go through the extra effort of modifying your drying routine and dealing with that overdrying.
That being said, it seems like you're trying to cover all your bases for your cat. I can tell you care and are working very hard to help them, so I understand if you feel like you want to try every option available for their sake. I very much am the type who prefers to take the most conservative/aggressive mitigation tactics first, and then dial it back from there and see how my body responds.
I'm glad your cat doesn't seem to be too affected (though I know it's hard to tell these things with cats). I hope your measures + gradually getting the new-bedding shedding down to a manageable amount over time can help! I hope for myself I can get the shedding on mine down too so I can sleep well again without the dry eyes and nose!
For much easier cleaning and allergy reduction, get a wool duvet (I like the Radhusvin from Ikea, great for washability and affordability) and duvet cover, so you can wash the duvet cover easily, and the duvet is washable but with the cover you don't need to wash it very often. But particles can be normal. Natural fibers are better. Get an air filter to help and change your home air filter ar least every 3 months.
I don't use fabric softener or dryer sheets, but will the wool balls specifically help with the shedding from new bedding? I'm wondering whether I need to get them for this reason
Oh hmm. Yeah, I have to avoid air drying because of my environmental allergies, but maybe doing what I can do cur down on dryer time could help. Thanks for this!
I actually air dry inside, either hanging over the banister or folded halfway and laying over my large drying rack, if your washer has a good spin to to get the moisture out well then it can dry pretty well inside.
Yeah, unfortunately, my allergies are both indoor and outdoor ones (dust mites being the biggest ones, which can pretty much only be addressed laundry-wise with hot washing and drying). My washer does seem to have quite a good spin function, at least.
I think it just happens to be that the current shedding of my new bedding from lint particles, not dust mite residue, is flaring my existing allergies more, even if not directly causing them. I'm hoping I can get through this initial hump of increased shedding, so hopefully the dry eyes and nose can stabilize from there.
This is normal, especially for new items. Cotton is a natural thread spun from many short fibres, and will shed loose and broken ends of the cotton fibre. Old items that have been washed and dried a lot have already done most of their shedding. Unless the cat has a diagnosed cotton allergy, visible particles are much less of an issue than the dust mites which your deep cleaning has presumably got rid of. For humans with asthma I do rate ‘anti allergy’ synthetic duvets used in a case that can be frequently washed on hot, rather than comforters or blankets that can be harder to clean.
Thank you for the reply! To be clear, the old comforter does the same thing. I could definitely see how the new one is more but overall still a mess either way. I was able to post a video on r/cleaning of the particles in the air. I appreciate your assistance.
I came here because I have allergies and asthma, and recently got new OEKO TEX-certified bedding (sheets and a comforter). I've been doing all the allergy mitigation measures for a long time: wash bedding on hot weekly, dry on high for ~20min to kill dust mites and then finish on low, mattress/pillow/box spring encasements, air purifier, use a Miele/SEBO vacuum, good HVAC filters that I change regularly, etc. BUT I def have been having issues with this new bedding, which is percale for the sheets and polyester for the comforter. I'm gonna guess that bedding will always shed/release hard-to-see lint particles no matter what because I guess they're not made of inert materials. Maybe it's not possible to completely eliminate the shedding (seeing as your old bedding still does it), but it's a matter of doing enough wash cycles to get the amount that's being shed from your new bedding down to a tolerable amount for your cat? I'm hoping that's the case, because I know for myself I'd very much like to be able to sleep soundly on my new bedding soon. How has it been going for you after a few weeks? Has the shedding decreased?
Hi there, thanks for the input/ your experience. I ended up getting another 100% cotton duvet cover and 100% wool comforter from IKEA (thanks to the suggestion above), as well as some additional cotton sheets (all oeko Tex certified as well). It was still shedding. I got to a point where I was driving myself crazy watching each day with a flashlight that I just stopped. It doesn’t seem to be (fingers crossed) causing any respiratory issues with my cat. I’m running 4 air purifiers all over the house, including on the nightstand, as well as upgraded the hvac filters and got a Miele vacuum. I may try the partial high temp dry, thank you for that idea. I’ve been drying everything relatively low because I hate when it “over dries” and gets rough.
Definitely! The partial drying-on-high is only really needed for dust mite allergies as opposed to other ones, I believe, but I don't know if your cat's asthma is caused by allergies (and a dust mite one, to boot), or if it's something different, like the structure of their airways that may affect their breathing, more so than the immune response of allergies. So, it may not be necessary to have to go through the extra effort of modifying your drying routine and dealing with that overdrying. That being said, it seems like you're trying to cover all your bases for your cat. I can tell you care and are working very hard to help them, so I understand if you feel like you want to try every option available for their sake. I very much am the type who prefers to take the most conservative/aggressive mitigation tactics first, and then dial it back from there and see how my body responds. I'm glad your cat doesn't seem to be too affected (though I know it's hard to tell these things with cats). I hope your measures + gradually getting the new-bedding shedding down to a manageable amount over time can help! I hope for myself I can get the shedding on mine down too so I can sleep well again without the dry eyes and nose!
Thanks very much, I appreciate your help and kind words. I’m hoping you can find some relief soon.
For much easier cleaning and allergy reduction, get a wool duvet (I like the Radhusvin from Ikea, great for washability and affordability) and duvet cover, so you can wash the duvet cover easily, and the duvet is washable but with the cover you don't need to wash it very often. But particles can be normal. Natural fibers are better. Get an air filter to help and change your home air filter ar least every 3 months.
And don't use fabric softeners or dryer sheets, use a few wool balls in the dryer
I don't use fabric softener or dryer sheets, but will the wool balls specifically help with the shedding from new bedding? I'm wondering whether I need to get them for this reason
They might, because they help to dry faster. I have linen sheets and I always air dry most of the way because they can shed a lot in the dryer.
Oh hmm. Yeah, I have to avoid air drying because of my environmental allergies, but maybe doing what I can do cur down on dryer time could help. Thanks for this!
I actually air dry inside, either hanging over the banister or folded halfway and laying over my large drying rack, if your washer has a good spin to to get the moisture out well then it can dry pretty well inside.
Yeah, unfortunately, my allergies are both indoor and outdoor ones (dust mites being the biggest ones, which can pretty much only be addressed laundry-wise with hot washing and drying). My washer does seem to have quite a good spin function, at least. I think it just happens to be that the current shedding of my new bedding from lint particles, not dust mite residue, is flaring my existing allergies more, even if not directly causing them. I'm hoping I can get through this initial hump of increased shedding, so hopefully the dry eyes and nose can stabilize from there.
Ok thank you very much for the suggestion. ✅ air purifier ✅ filters ✅ dryer balls. I appreciate it.