Here’s The Horrific Reason You Should Wash Your Pillows As Well As Your Pillowcases

Here’s a fact of life that comes from a place of care and not one of judgement: girl, you need to be washing your sheets at least every two weeks, if not more.

You spend around a third of each day in bed, and you wouldn’t wear the same clothes for three weeks running, so why would you sleep in the same sheets?

Now that we’ve cleared that up though, there’s another PSA to deal with. Apparently it’s not just your pillowcases and bed linen that need regular washing, but the pillows themselves too.

According to a new Dow Polyurethane study spotted by PopSugar, the weight of a pillow is made of one-third dead skin, bugs, dust mites, and their droppings after just two years of use. Considering most of us wouldn’t even think of buying a new pillow until around two years in, the study is pretty sobering.

Around 10% of adults – and 80% of adults with allergies – are allergic to the proteins found in the remains and waste of dust mites, meaning that by not washing your pillows you’re putting yourself at risk of decongestion, skin rashes and troubled sleeping overall.

The expert advice? Throw your pillows into the washing machine every three to six months, and choose memory foam or machine washable pillows for ease of cleaning. Then get back into bed and catch some allergen-free ZZZZZs.

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