Healthy living – The 7 golden rules of proper bed hygiene
Every week, you spend between 42 and 56 hours with your much loved bed. We shower/bath daily, and wash our clothes regularly, but how many of us pay the same attention to bed hygiene?
To be fair, thinking about the creepy crawlies and other unwanted bed guests is far from pleasant, but to overlook them risks several health problems, including allergic reactions, fevers, eczema, itchy bites and irritated skin. Breathing in mould spores isn’t exactly great for even the healthiest of lungs either.
The stuff you’d prefer not to know about
Before getting into the hygiene tips, here’s some motivation to take the issue seriously…
- Mould and fungi – body sweat (predominantly) seeps into your mattress, and if it isn’t well ventilated, mould and fungi will likely grow. In this case, as removing mould and fungi is virtually impossible, prevention is the only cure. Here, ventilation is key.
- Dust mites – these critters make a meal of your dead skin cells, and are the most common villains you’ll come across in your mattress. Considering the fact that your mattress is capable of building up kilograms of dead skin cells over the years, dust mites can become a real problem (and aggravate asthma, allergies and fevers). A quality mattress cover and pillow protectors will go a long way to controlling the problem.
- Bed bugs – these are the blood sucking fiends whose bites cause itching and swollen red skin. They can be found in the mattress, the bed frame/base and headboards. Vacuuming and bed covers/protectors will play a role in dealing with this.
How to keep your bed as clean as possible
1.) Make sure your mattress cover and pillow protectors are both waterproof and ventilated.
2.) Wash your sheets, duvet, pillow cases, pillow protectors and mattress cover at least once a week. Wash these items alone (i.e. without other laundry items) at a temperature of 60 degrees Celsius or higher. Use an anti-bacterial additive and make sure they’re completely dry before fitting them.
3.) Ventilate your mattress as often as possible – this includes opening your windows and folding your sheets and duvet back (or even removing them from your bed completely). Cool, dry conditions prevent mould and fungi growth.
4.) Vacuum your mattress regularly. Given the importance of bed hygiene, it’s worthwhile to invest in a powerful vacuum cleaner with a HEPA-filter (this filter is able to effectively trap a large amount of very fine particles, more so than normal vacuums).
5.) Never wet your mattress.
6.) If you use a professional service, which is suggested, make sure the provider cleans via a deep extraction vacuum and other dry methods instead of wet methods, like a steam clean. Moisture from steam can get trapped in the mattress and can damage the expensive fabrics, foam layers and springs.
7.) For stains, use blotting tissue before applying a baking soda paste. You’ll need to blot the paste, too, and finally “rinse” the area by using a barely damp cloth.
We certainly hope our tips will help keep your mattress in the healthiest and cleanest of conditions!
