You may be leaving your bed sheets on for too long – expert shares top tips

Nothing is better than jumping into a freshly made bed with soft-to-touch sheets along with the soothing smell of clean linen – but at times it can be hard to find the motivation to change your bed.

Some people have admitted they even go for up to five weeks without changing their sheets.

And, leaving on dirty sheets for that long period of time could even be making you ill.

But fear not, sleep expert April Mayer from Amerisleep revealed her top tips on bed sheet changing etiquette, that can get you a better nights sleep and avoid ill health.

The expert told the ECHO: "The typical adult sheds 1.5 grams of dry skin a day, and with a large amount of time spent in bed, a high amount is found in the bedsheets.

"These skin flakes attract dust mites, one of the most common causes of asthma and allergies, including coughing, runny nose, sneezing, and itchy mouth, eyes, nose, or skin.

"Dust mites have an ideal temperature of 15-21 o C, which is also the recommended temperature for getting sleep.”

Unfortunate for us, but good for the dust mites, this makes bed sheets a perfect environment for dust mites to live and thrive.

So cleaning your bed sheets often will keep the pesky mites at bay.

How many times should you wash your bed sheets?

To make sure dust mites are not causing you any bother, it is suggested by experts that you wash your bed sheets once a week.

However, if you sleep by yourself it is advised to clean them once every fortnight .

"If your bedsheets aren’t cleaned regularly, you will still be sleeping on dirty sheets full of allergens, which could cause coughing, sneezing, watery eyes, runny nose, and itchy skin.

"The high number of dust mites might also provoke asthma and lead to an asthma attack.

"Sweating at night would result in moisture, increasing the humidity in your room and providing a perfect environment for fungi and bacteria, potentially worsening allergy reactions,” April Mayer explained.

The best method to wash your sheets?

To really make certain you are seeing the last of all the bacteria, dead skin and dust mites put your sheets through a hot water wash.

Then, you should put your sheets in the dryer on the highest setting or, if we are lucky to see some sun anytime soon, you should hang outside as the sun rays have antimicrobial properties which help rid of any pathogens clinging on.

And, if you can’t or do not have access to hot water, then warm water is fine to use.

If warm water is not available to use then if you leave them in the sun and iron when dry, the heat will disinfect the sheets.

However, make sure you always read the label on your bed sheets before you give them a hot spin as some more fragile and coloured materials may be tainted in the hot water.

Don’t forget the pillows!

We rest our heads on pillows every night so you think they would be an often addition to the washing pile.

It is recommended that pillows should be washed at least once a year to keep up with a good level of hygiene – but some experts suggest they should be washed twice a year.

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