Getting a good night’s sleep is important for your health, but all those hours spent in the comfort of your bed can leave your sheets less than clean. The general consensus among experts is that washing once a week is ideal for removing unsanitary buildup from bedding, but a 2017 study found that in the US, sheets are only changed once every 24 days, on average.
What happens if you don’t wash your sheets once a week?
But what exactly happens when you pass that seven-day mark? Read on to find out what happens when you don’t you wash the sheets every week.
Accumulates a lot of dirt
If you’re getting the recommended hours of sleep per night, that means you spend between 49 and 63 hours in bed each week. During that time, your bedding accumulates sweat, dirt, dust mites, dead skin cells, and more. That’s why most experts, from The New York Times to Good Housekeeping, recommend washing your sheets once a week.
Mites in dirty sheets cause itching
If you don’t stick to the once a week rule, the dirty sheets They can cause itchy skin, asthma attacks, seasonal allergies, or rashes. And while accumulated dirt and sweat can contribute to these symptoms, dust mites and their fecal matter are often the culprits.
Dust mites are microscopic creatures that are very common in most homes. They don’t bite, but they can cause skin rashes and irritation, and can make allergy symptoms worse in many people.
Dust mites can reproduce at a prolific rate and can live solely on dead skin cells. At any given time, there can be tens of thousands, even hundreds of thousands, of dust mites living in your mattress and bedding. Even if you’re not allergic to dust mites, you probably don’t want to share your bed with thousands of them. Wash the sheets regularly it can help.
Some people should wash their sheets more often.
Washing once a week is a good foundation for most people who spend an average amount of time in bed. However, experts say that you may want wash the sheets more often if you allow pets to sleep in your bed or if you have known allergies or asthma.
In these cases, washing every three to four days can help improve symptoms and lower the risk of health problems.
If you plan to wash your sheets As often, it’s best to use sheets that have a high thread count and are made of durable materials (Egyptian cotton, for example) that can withstand regular washing and drying cycles.
This is the best way to wash your sheets
To make sure your sheets stay in top shape while you wash them regularly, you’ll want to start by pre-treating any stains before you begin. You can even use dish soap to do this, working on the affected area (you may want to wear gloves, depending on the product you use).
Then, put your sheets through the wash cycle at a low temperature: 4 degrees Celsius is considered ideal for weekly washes. However, if it’s cold and flu season, or if your sheets have gone more than a week between washes, you may want to turn up the heat to kill germs.
Try to avoid using fabric softeners and dryer sheets, or at least don’t use them for every wash. Fabric softeners leave residues that decrease the breathability and wicking of the fabric. And if that residue builds up over time, you might end up feeling overheated in your sheets.