You know how often you should shower, wash your clothes, clean the bathroom, run the dishwasher… but do you know how often you should change the sheets? It may seem like a minor issue, but two facts help us understand that this is not the case. First, we spend a lot of time sleeping. There are studies that confirm that we spend a third of our lives in dreamland, and that, apart from the occasional nap on the couch or leaning back at the table after dessert, most of this rest has a clear routine: beds.

The second fact focuses on a simple hygiene issue. Even if we are resting, we sweat at night. And not just a little. Especially on hot and humid summer evenings. There are those who speak of hundreds of milliliters per night, which translates into tens and tens of liters throughout the year.

So yes, it is important to know how often to change sheets.

From beds and traditions. Before we get down to business and explain how often we should change the bed, we need to answer an important question… How often do we usually do this? How common is it to take the sheets out and put them in the washing machine or take them to the dry cleaners? Although these may seem like strange questions, there are researchers who have studied them to answer them.

And the results are mind-boggling. A while ago, Hadmonds conducted a survey of 2,000 people to find out the habits of the British and came up with an alarming percentage: 30% admitted to washing their sheets only once a year.

Does it change every four months? In 2022, the BBC reported on a similar study involving 2,250 adults in the UK, and the results were once again alarming. The report found that almost half of single men can go up to four months in a row without washing their sheets, and 12% admit to cleaning their sheets as soon as they remember, which opens up a more uncertain and worrying horizon. 62% of single women said they clean their beds every two weeks, while couples say they clean their beds on average every three weeks.

French Bedroom also conducted its own analysis, stating that 62.5% of those surveyed said they change their sheets every week, while 22.5% change them every two weeks and 2.5% change them every month.

(Much) more than conscience. It is important to know how often to change the sheets. And not just out of guilt. Resting in clean, tidy, hygienic environments also affects our health. When we sleep, we sweat, shed dead skin cells and create an ideal bed (pun intended) for mites: microscopic creatures that resemble spiders.

“If you don’t clean your sheets often enough, dead skin cells will accumulate on them. Not only will you sleep with them and sweat, you will also sleep with mites,” warns Dr. Lindsay Browning to the British network.

This is not your bed, it is you. That’s the basic idea. It’s not just about having a clean and tidy bed, but also the health benefits of this habit. Nine years ago, a group of researchers from the University of Cambridge investigated the “risk factors” for gastroenteritis in childcare centers and discovered that one strategy that helped reduce the prevalence of norovirus was cleaning the bed diary.

Other experts insist that dust mites are bad bedroom companions and can aggravate asthma symptoms. One way to combat them, they insist, is to wash the clothes we cover our beds in hot water.

“Think about what you do in bed”Speaking to the newspaper, Dr. Lisa Ackerley warned that sleeping wrapped in dirty sheets could also affect the health of our skin. Daily mailputs you at risk of contracting viruses and infections. “Think about everything you do in bed. In addition to being where we sleep, it can also serve as a home office, tea room, dining table, and even a bed for your dog or cat,” the expert said. .

“Depending on how it’s used and how clean you are when you get in it, your mattress can get pretty dirty and cause damage.” Keep in mind that mattresses can be ideal for the growth of mites, as well as fungi and viruses. To be more specific, it targets viruses that are spread through contact, bacteria like staph aureus, and conditions like athlete’s foot or candidiasis.

So… How often should you change your sheets? There may be slight differences depending on the source used, but they all generally come to the same conclusion: It is best to change and wash sheets at least once a week or a maximum of once every 10 days. It is even mentioned that in the summer, people sweat more at night and in some cases, such as among people with seasonal allergies, it is seen more frequently with more than one change per week.

According to Dr. Browning, changing the sheets should never be delayed more than 14 days. “Sweat penetrates the sheets,” the expert emphasizes, before saying that bad odor is just one of the problems caused by poor hygiene. And it’s not the most serious. According to him, “we can be a little more lenient in winter,” but “ideal” is still once a week.

Do you sleep with a pet? Good Housekeeping undertakes regular cleaning, which must take into account the specifics of each case: for people with asthma, eczema or allergies to dust mites, general cleaning of bedding is carried out at least once every 15 days, and once a week.

“If you have a pet and they sleep in your bed, the Sleep Foundation suggests it may be necessary to wash their clothes every three or four days,” she explains. She recommends cleaning duvets and pillows at least twice a year.

Image | Jilbert Ebrahimi (Unsplash) and Toa Heftiba (Unsplash)

At Xataka | For years we’ve been thinking we need eight hours of sleep a night. We probably sleep too much.