By Beth DeCarbo
No matter your relationship status, you never go to bed alone. Nestled within your sheets are countless intruders. For an explanation, we turned to Philip M. Tierno Jr., director of clinical microbiology and immunology at New York University's Langone Medical Center.
How often do most Americans change their sheets?
It varies. Most people have a standard of once a week. But many people go three weeks, a month or more. "Younger people seem to leave their sheets on the bed longer," Dr. Tierno says.
How often should they change their sheets?
Wash sheets and pillowcases once a week, and you'll eliminate that debris that has accumulated in the bed for that week. You'll be safer from breathing in that material.
Debris? How can sheets possibly get that dirty?
Human skin cells become food for dust mites. That is one of the biggest problems associated with bedding. Mites accumulate, along with their feces. But there is also animal hair, dander, fungal mold, fungal spores, bodily secretions and bacteria. Also: dust, lint, fibers, particulates, insect parts, pollen, soil, sand and cosmetics. "One person can perspire as much as a liter in a night—even more if you have a lot of covers," he says. And, of course, people eat in bed as they watch TV.
