The terrifying reason why you should change your bed once a week

Crawling into bed and sleeping: for many people it is the moment of happiness after a busy day. But you’ll sleep a lot better at night if your blankets are properly washed. Good hygiene solves a frightening problem.

A person spends an average of 56 hours in bed in a week. During that time, all sorts of things can accumulate in bed. Think of bacteria from sweat or skin flakes. Although it is common knowledge that you should wash the sheets every week, the average person only does this once every 24 days. And that is anything but hygienic. This is what happens when the sheets are not cleaned often enough.

This is what’s in your bed if you don’t clean enough

If you don’t keep up with the weekly chore, dirty fabrics can accumulate in your bedding. The most common are sweat, dead skin cells, skin oils, residue from makeup and skin care products, and dust mites. The latter causes an annoying side effect.

Unlike dander, for example, you cannot see dust mites without a microscope. The insect-like creatures live in warm, moist environments and feed on dead skin cells. Your bed is therefore one for the critters Walhalla. Fortunately, house dust mites are not harmful to humans, but their waste product, dust, can cause allergic reactions. For example, if you often wake up sneezing or stuffy, chances are dust mites are to blame.

Allergic reaction

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) warns that an allergic reaction to the dust mite can also lead to asthma attacks. To best protect allergic people, the CDC recommends purchasing allergen-resistant mattress and pillowcases for your bed.

The specialists also recommend changing the sheets of your bed once a week. For people with sensitive skin, allergies or hyperhidrosis (excessive sweating), washing more than once may be beneficial.

And what about the rest of the bed?

But what about the rest of the bedding? The National Sleep Foundation recommends the following washing schedule:

• Pillowcases: once a week
• duvet cover: once every two weeks to a month
• Duvets: once every two to three months
• Blankets: once every two to three months
• Pillows: once every four to six months

With a regular routine like this, you can be sure not only that your bedding looks squeaky clean, but that it really is clean. That’s a good thing, because a balanced night’s sleep is very healthy. There are certain things you can eat to sleep better. You can read it in this article.

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