If you’re one of those people who bounces out of bed and makes it immediately, then we have some bad news for you.
A sleep expert has revealed that making your bed first thing in the morning encourages the bugs that can live in your bed.
Dust mites – tiny microscopic relatives of the spider that feed on the flakes of skin that people shed daily – love warm, moist environments, so when you make your bed in the morning, you’re creating the perfect environment for them to thrive.
While it’s long been claimed that making your bed in the morning is the key to a successful day, Sealy UK‘s Natalie Armstrong recommends you throw back the covers and remove the pillows from your bed for at least 20 minutes every morning.
This will allow moisture to evaporate and get the air circulating, which will help to prevent dust mites.
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And, while we’ve all seen the adverts that advise us to change our mattresses every eight years, we should also be vacuuming them regularly.
Natalie revealed: “There’s no hard and fast rule on how frequently you should clean your mattress, but as a general rule of thumb, you should clean some mattresses every six months to prevent dust mites, dead skin and dirt accumulating.”
People with allergies should do it more often, she revealed, while also saying that Mrs Hinch’s hack of sprinkling her mattress with bicarbonate of soda, before hoovering it off, isn’t suitable for all types of mattress.
Instead, she said: “Firstly, you should use a vacuum cleaner on both sides of the mattress to remove dirt, hair and crumbs from it.”
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She added: “There’s also an old wives’ tale that suggests that sprinkling baking soda onto a mattress, leaving it to air for a few hours, and then vacuuming it off, can help to air it out. However, it’s worth noting that not all mattresses are suitable for this home remedy.”
Firstly, you should use a vacuum cleaner on both sides of the mattress to remove dirt, hair and crumbs from it.
Speaking as part of National Bed Month, Natalie said to keep your mattress clean you should invest in a protector – which will act as a shield against bed bugs and dust mites.
And she suggests banishing pets from the bedroom, too – their fur can be a magnet for pollen, dust and other allergens.
Changing the sheets regularly is another top tip – they should be put on a hot wash every single week.
However, one in 20 Brits have admitted to washing theirs once every four weeks, with more than a third doing theirs every fortnight.
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