How many times should you wash bed linen? Regular change of bed linen: how to wash, iron and store it correctly. How often should bed linen be changed?

Statistics say that every fifth resident of Europe changes bed sheets once a month. Young single men under the age of 35 do this least often, and on average, residents of large cities send their bedding to the wash once every two weeks. How true is this and how often do you need to change the sheets on your bed for it to be medically justifiable? Here is the opinion of hygienists.

Allergists are convinced that we expose our health to an illusory danger when we sleep on dirty sheets. This behavior leads to chronic rhinitis, acute allergic reactions, neurodermatitis and eczema. For those who suffer from asthma, their condition and well-being may worsen.

The main danger of stale laundry is dust mites and their waste products. Spores of highly allergenic mold, which always arise in a humid, warm environment with infrequent washing of bed linen, complete and complement the frightening picture.

Change bedding at least once a week

The generally accepted belief that changing sheets every two weeks is acceptable is wrong. Already a week after using the bed for its intended purpose, the population of dust mites reaches limits that are hazardous to health. If two people of average build sleep in a bed every day, up to 16 types of mold grow on the surface of the bed from sweat within two weeks, each of which can provoke powerful allergic reactions even in a relatively healthy person.

For these reasons, routine changes of sleep accessories should occur at least once a week. In cases of high temperature due to illness, hot weather or sleeping with small children, bedding should be changed even more often - once every two to three days. The same applies to allergy sufferers and asthmatics, people with eczema and psoriasis.

Wash clothes at a temperature of 55 degrees

This temperature is the lower limit for the death of dust mites. Additional protection against fungus and mold will be achieved by using hot drying of laundry.

Some delicate materials cannot be washed at high temperatures. The solution in this case may be to use a disinfectant rinse conditioner or, if you or your children are at risk for allergies, it is better to switch to more practical options for bedding made of calico, satin, poplin or cotton.

Don't judge the cleanliness of your laundry by its appearance.

Of course, if you accidentally spill coffee on your pillow or spill crumbs on the blanket, chocolate chip cookies, it will be clear that the laundry needs washing. But the absence of visible stains and dirt does not mean that your bed is truly clean and safe.

Even if your sheets look crisp white after two weeks of use, they need to be washed—and done regularly. By the time they actually look stale, they are guaranteed to have already become home to dozens and hundreds of dust mites, mold and mildew. They cannot be seen with the naked eye, since their sizes are microscopic, but they always live in an environment associated with the natural secretions of human skin, since they provide food for these microorganisms.

Important: up to a third of all inhabitants of our planet suffer from allergies to dust mites. At least a quarter of them cannot correctly diagnose the source of the disease and spend years being treated for colds and persistent runny nose and eczema.

Clean your mattress and pillows regularly

Frequently changing your bedding will reduce the size of your dust mite problem, but will not completely eliminate it. Even weekly washing of bed linen will not provide optimal cleanliness if you forget about the expiration date of the mattress, pillows and blankets.

Dust mites have the annoying property of accumulating inside bedding, in the upholstery of mattresses and sofas. If you put clean sheets on them, they will instantly become saturated with mite secretions and microparticles of mold. The same statistics claim that almost all of us use pillows and blankets much longer than the permitted period - pillows are changed on average once every 3 years, blankets last about 7 years, and mattresses do not change at all for a decade. During this time, their weight increases threefold due to the weight of the ticks living in them.

Choose quality mattresses

In addition to the obvious benefits of comfort, the quality of the mattress also determines the cleanliness of the sleeping area. Internally hollow spring mattresses with padding polyester or foam rubber accumulate a lot of mold, epithelial particles, dust and huge populations of dust mites. The top layer of a poor quality mattress and the use of airtight covers only worsen the situation - this leads to overheating of the sleeping area and the sweating of the person sleeping there is constantly increased, which further contributes to the proliferation of microorganisms hazardous to health.

Bed linen, like clothes, needs to be periodically replaced and washed. People spend time in bed large number time. They usually spend 6–8 hours a day sleeping. Naturally, the material gradually becomes contaminated; secretions of the human sweat and sebaceous glands, dead epithelial cells and other microparticles from the surface of the skin remain on it.

Dirty sheets and pillowcases become a habitat for dangerous germs that can cause various diseases and allergic reactions. How often should you change bed linen to avoid negative consequences and maintain your health? How many times a week are newborns' underwear changed? What can you do to keep your bed clean longer?

Why do you need to replace bed linen?

Every person knows that bedding sets need to be changed as they become dirty. If a set of linen is not changed in a timely manner, a large number of pathogenic microorganisms, dust particles, dander, and pet hair accumulate in the bed. There are also sometimes food crumbs in the bed, and the linen becomes soaked with sweat and other secretions.

All this creates a favorable environment for dust mites to live. Their waste products can cause allergies. In addition, mold fungi and bacteria are formed in the structure of contaminated tissue, which lead to a decrease in immunity and worsen the general condition of a person. Spending 5–9 hours in bed every day exposes people to these pathogens.

If you do not follow the rules of hygiene and change your underwear often enough, you can seriously harm your health. The result of sleeping in a dirty bed can be allergies, dermatitis, fungal skin infections, viral and other diseases, so it is very important to change your linen on time.

How often should you change your underwear?

There are different opinions on how often a set of linen should be changed. Some say that pillowcases, sheets and duvet covers should be changed weekly, while others believe that the same sets can be used for up to 14 days. There are also people who do not sleep on the same underwear for more than two days.

Taking into account sanitary standards, it is necessary to change the linen at least twice a month, and the pillowcases on the pillows are changed more often. However, many factors influence the degree of contamination, so in some cases bedding sets require more frequent replacement. Rapid contamination is caused by the following factors:

• high temperature environment in summer period;
• profuse sweating;
• neglect of personal hygiene;
• sleeping without pajamas or a nightgown;
• eating in bed.

In addition, the frequency of changing sets depends on the age of the person. It is recommended that children, especially newborns, change their kits more often, as babies are more susceptible to diseases and must be kept clean.

For adults

A healthy adult should change their laundry at home twice a month. However, it should also be taken into account individual characteristics body and lifestyle. A weekly change of linen is required in the following cases:

• with increased secretion of sweat and sebaceous gland secretions;
• when refusing pajamas;
• in the summer, when the amount of skin secretions increases due to the heat.

In the cold season, it is permissible to remake bedding sets once every 14 days. However, if visible dirt appears, the set must be replaced, regardless of when it was laid.

Children and teenagers

Pediatricians advise newborn babies to change their underwear every three days. Some parents are very afraid that their child may get sick, so they change the bed sets every day. In any case, children spend the first few months of life in a crib, so bedding should be replaced as soon as it gets dirty. A clean and fresh bed will prevent the proliferation of pathogenic flora and save the child from such common diseases as allergies and dermatitis.

Diapers require special attention. They are changed several times a day, especially if the baby sleeps without a diaper. Children are very delicate skin, therefore, untimely replacement of a wet diaper can cause severe irritation. It is better to wash children's clothes with soap; using powder detergents is not recommended.

For preschoolers and children of primary school age, it is enough to make a new bedding set once every 10 days, as their sheets and pillowcases remain clean for a long time. Children sweat less than adults and also swim in the evenings. However, some babies like to eat in bed or allow pets in the bed. In this case, linen should be changed every 4-7 days.

IN adolescence The child’s body undergoes many changes, all internal processes are rebuilt under the influence of hormones. In adolescents aged 11–13 years, sweating increases and the work of the sebaceous glands increases. The bed at this age gets dirty very quickly, so the sets are washed and replaced 2 times a week. When acne appears on the face, the teenager's pillowcase is changed daily, as inflamed skin needs special cleanliness.

Sick people

Separately, we should talk about replacing bedding for sick people. During illness, a person spends more time in bed, so it becomes dirty faster. In addition, at high body temperatures, sweat production increases, which requires frequent changes of underwear.

Basic rules for caring for bedding during illness:

• For bedridden patients, as well as elderly people who are bedridden, the kits must be changed every day. Sheets and pillowcases become dirty very quickly and create a favorable environment for the growth of germs. It is not possible to remake the entire set at the same time; if the pillowcase or sheet is soiled before the scheduled replacement, they should be replaced immediately.

• If bed rest is necessary, the kits are also changed daily, especially if the patient has a high fever. At the same time, a lot of sweat is released, which provokes an increase in the colony of pathogenic microorganisms and leads to complications in the form of dermatitis, allergies and disorders of the intestinal microflora.
• During the treatment of minor colds, you can remake your bedding every three days. It must be taken into account that although a person does not spend 24 hours a day in bed, his body is susceptible to bacteria, and his immunity is weakened, so it is necessary to maintain cleanliness.

• Skin diseases such as dermatitis, psoriasis, acne require a daily change of bedding. If the pathology is concentrated in the face area, then you need to change your pillowcase and face towel every day.
• For people prone to asthmatic and other allergic reactions, bedding sets should be remade after 2-3 days, since even the accumulation of dust can cause allergies.

To keep your laundry clean longer, you need to know the basic rules for caring for them. If you wash, dry and iron bedding sets taking into account the appropriate recommendations, then pillowcases, sheets and duvet covers will remain durable for a long time and will last for many years:

• Once purchased, the kit should be washed before it is used for the first time. This is necessary to eliminate particles of chemical compounds remaining on the material after manufacturing. Washing will also make the material softer and more pleasant to the body.
• Bed sets should not be washed with clothing. Hypoallergenic powders and gels are considered the optimal laundry products.
• When washing duvet covers, pillowcases and sheets, the heating of the water in the machine should not exceed 40–60 degrees. When washing a sick person's underwear, a higher water temperature is used. For viral pathologies, the washing water is heated to 90 degrees.

• The presence of stains on the canvas requires the use of special stain removers. These products are applied to the material before the main wash. Bleach will help destroy harmful bacteria.
• The frequency of washing depends on the material from which the set is made. Linen and cotton accessories are characterized by high strength, so they are resistant to wear and tear and can withstand a large number of washes. It is better to wash silk less often to extend their service life.

• Bedding sets should be dried at a temperature not exceeding 50 degrees. It is better if the material is ventilated when drying. To do this, the products are placed on a balcony or in a room with open windows. When dried under the influence of high temperatures, the threads are destroyed and the fabric loses its strength.
• After drying the laundry you need heat treatment using an iron. This helps destroy pathogenic bacteria.

• During ironing, it is better to slightly moisten the fabric with a spray bottle. If it is not there, then the mode with active steam production is selected on the iron.
• Sheets, duvet covers, and pillowcases are ironed from the inside out, using the optimal temperature setting for each type of fabric.

In general, a person spends a third of his entire life time sleeping. Its quality, which depends on many criteria, is the key to health and energy. One of the above criteria is cleanliness. For a good sleep, the bedroom should be clean, dry, comfortable temperature, and ventilated. Textiles play a significant role: their quality and purity. Here a logical question arises: how often should you change your bed linen at home for a good night's sleep? Today we will resolve it.

As for how often bed linen should be changed, each housewife has her own personal opinion.

Cleanliness is the key to health. This applies to all areas of human life. A clean bed primarily prevents the occurrence of certain diseases and unpleasant reactions.

Going to bed after a hard day in a clean and fresh bed is a real pleasure.

If you don't remake your bed regularly, unpleasant consequences await you.

• Dust. Any fabric tends to accumulate dust. It contains many pathogenic microbes. The less often you put on new sheets, the more often you or your child will develop respiratory diseases.
• Bedbugs. There is such a thing as “bed bugs”. Of course, they appear under completely unsanitary conditions, but they are still worth remembering.
• Allergic reactions. They can manifest themselves as an impact on respiratory system(runny nose, sneezing, cough), and skin irritation.

To avoid these unpleasant consequences, you need to regularly change your sheets, pillowcases and duvet covers.

Particular attention should be paid to pillowcases, which need to be changed more often.

What factors influence replacement frequency?

The issue was resolved with regularity. Now about the intensity. Some housewives do not know how often to change bed linens. This is normal, since the intensity is individual and depends on many factors. For example, a child's bed requires multiple changes.

Washing gives things freshness and eliminates bad smell and spots

The physical condition of a person also affects. Personal physical indicators are important here: some people sweat more, some less. This category also includes the presence of various diseases.

The choice of fabric type is an influential factor. Different types accumulate dust and collect dirt particles differently. When choosing textiles, be sure to read the properties of the material from which it is made.

To ensure that your laundry is clean and safe, you should wash it at 60 degrees.

It is better to dry bed linen outside, weather permitting.

And now more about each criterion

To eliminate the possibility of unwanted residents appearing in your bed and to protect your loved ones from health problems, you should listen to the recommendations

Age

In each age category, physical indicators are different. As the body grows, the secretions of various secretions undergo changes accordingly. This, in turn, affects the intensity of bed contamination. Age is one of the important indicators, let’s start analyzing it.

• kids

For a baby, you need to have several sets of diapers and sheets, because sometimes they have to be changed even several times a night.

Babies require frequent bedding changes due to possible contamination and increased requirements for cleanliness

Note!

It is not advisable to put children over 8 months to sleep in a diaper.

It is worth noting that sleeping in diapers can negatively affect the baby’s health. It is better to take him to the toilet immediately before going to bed and wake up for the same purpose several times a night. There is a lot of hassle, but in this case your baby will not suffer from irritation or allergic reactions, expressed as a rash.

Children from 1 to 3 years old also sometimes wet their bed. This happens less often, but it does happen. In this case, proceed according to the above scheme, but teach the little family member to use the potty, explaining to him that before going to bed he must go to the toilet, and when he wakes up at night, call his mother or sit on the potty on his own.

Baby bedding for a baby who sleeps in a separate crib

So, babies often have to change their crib, sometimes even several times a night.

Preschoolers and primary schoolchildren

For schoolchildren, it is enough to buy two beautiful and suitable-sized sets so that the process of changing bedding is not so boring

Preschoolers are considered to be children from 3 to 6 years old. With this age group things are simpler than with the previous one. Your work with the child, that is, the quality of upbringing, has an impact here. If you managed to wean younger preschooler up to 4-5 years of age, peeing in the bed means you will have to change the sheets less often.

Sometimes younger schoolchildren may dirty the bed by playing on it or bringing food onto it. Here, too, the educational factor plays an important role. However, incidents happen when a child can paint the duvet cover, stain it with paints or plasticine.

For older children, it is enough to change the bedding once a week or in case of accidental soiling as needed.

During this period, not only the frequency of changing textiles plays a role, but also washing. The latter becomes particularly difficult here. Be sure to stock up on tips on how to remove paint, ink, grass, and other difficult-to-clean materials. However, do not use aggressive detergents. They can cause an allergic reaction in the baby.

Brighteners and stain removers for various spots on different types fabrics

Thus, the replacement of sleeping textiles for preschoolers and primary schoolchildren is carried out less frequently, depending on the rate of its contamination.

Children of preschool and school age can be involved in helping to change bedding

Teenagers

A beautiful and bright bedding set for a teenage boy will encourage him to keep his bed clean and tidy.

In senior school age When a child becomes a teenager, significant changes occur in the body. During this period, a person may begin to sweat more or begin to produce more saliva, remaining on the pillowcase.

Puberty begins in adolescence. Boys may experience nocturnal pollution during this period. In girls, menstruation begins. Therefore, for a teenager, you need to have a spare clean set of sleeping textiles in case of surprises.

Parental attention plays a big role here. Your teen may be embarrassed to talk about certain topics. Therefore, the task of parents is to monitor the cleanliness of their teenager’s bed, and, if necessary, to carefully talk about sensitive topics.

A gentle bedding set for a girl will make her feel great and comfortable.

Physical condition

Bed linen for adults can be changed once a week in winter or 2 times in summer

Physical condition is of great importance, regardless of age. A sick person needs to be given significant attention, regardless of whether he is a bedridden patient or a person simply suffering from a cold.

How often should a patient's bed be changed?

Bed linen for a person with a cold should be changed as often as possible and do not forget to ventilate the room.

First, about simple diseases. The most common of these is the common cold. At colds sweating, salivation increases, and a runny nose is observed. All these secretions can remain on the bed, so when you have a cold you have to change it more often. It is advisable to replace it every 2-3 days. This is also due to the fact that pathogens tend to accumulate in the tissue, causing re-infection.

Speaking of bedridden patients, they need to change their sheets every day or once every 2-3 days. This depends on the patient’s condition, on how regularly he is taken for a walk and bathed.

Care for bedridden patients must be carried out in accordance with the requirements for its content

Fabric type

This factor also affects the frequency of replacement. Synthetic fabrics accumulate dust faster, but most of them are less susceptible to contamination. Therefore, synthetic underwear can last longer without washing.

Clothes and bedding from synthetic material microfiber is valued for its softness, pleasantness to the body and beautiful appearance

Natural materials are more demanding in terms of operating conditions. They absorb odors strongly and more dirt remains on them. For natural textiles, it is not enough to go over with a damp cloth to remove a small fresh stain. In this case, only washing is necessary.

Natural fabrics for bedding sets

It is worth paying attention to the density of the fabrics. Some materials are not suitable for intensive washing. For such a case, keep 3 sets so that you can use each of them less often.

Beautiful bedding sets will please you longer with their appearance if there are several of them

But in order for your laundry to last a long time and remain like new, be sure to follow the washing recommendations: use a special mode, powder without aggressive additives, and conditioner.

Let's sum it up

The pillows themselves, blankets, and mattress covers also need periodic treatment.

We looked at how often sleeping textiles change depending on operating conditions. Let's summarize our research.

Terms of Use

The table provides a summary summary. Of course, the frequency of changing bed linen depends on many other factors. We have discussed them in more detail in the relevant sections.

Replacing bedding with an adult bed takes a little time, but gives a feeling of freshness, lightness and cleanliness

Video: How often should you change your bed linen at home? How often should I wash my bed linen?

In this topic we will talk about the signs associated with changing bed linen.

Despite the fact that we live in the progressive 21st century, various signs and superstitions haunt us at every step. They permeate absolutely every area of ​​our lives, even influencing the change of our plans. They can warn against conflicts or promise good luck and fortune. Absolutely every thing in our house has some kind of sign associated with it. This also applies to the topic of when to change bedding, which is what we’ll talk about today.

What day of the week is best to change bed linen: signs

We often consider washing and ironing bed linen as a household chore that we do almost without thinking. Few people think that they need to change bed linen correctly. After all, this shift is an unusual ritual that can protect you from troubles and bring good luck and happiness. Our ancestors saw this action as protection from dark forces, so many signs came to us.

• There are a considerable number of superstitions regarding the correct change of underwear. Observing them will help eliminate everyday adversity, as well as bring family well-being. Similar signs relate to the choice of the day of the week for this household ritual.
• Sunday is considered an extremely unfavorable day for changing bed linen. By performing a similar ritual on this day, you can reward yourself with problems such as insomnia and nightmares.
• It is also not recommended to change your underwear on Friday. This can lead to a wave of small but completely unnecessary problems.

Important: It is strictly forbidden to change and wash bed linen on days church holidays. These days you need to give up any housework, as you can attract big troubles into your life.

• The most favorable day for changing linen is Saturday. Ideally, this ritual should be combined with weekly house cleaning. Carrying out such rituals on Saturday ensures family well-being, health and prosperity.

Important: The effect of changing bed linen on Saturday will be even greater if you do it on the new moon. It provides family harmony and health.

• It is recommended to wash bed linen on different days. It is best to do laundry at the beginning of the week, as our great-grandmothers said. After all, in the absence of washing machines and dryers, washing was done at the beginning of the week so that it would have time to dry by Saturday. By the way, about the right days for washing you can read in our article
• That's why Monday and Tuesday are not the best better days to change bed linen. Although there are no strict superstitions on this topic, the first day of the week is considered a difficult period. And on Tuesday you should start more important things than household chores, or go on a trip.
• Oddly enough, but Wednesday is also considered a difficult day, in which it is necessary to fast, and not engage in household chores. Even more, you can’t move on this day if you want to stay in a new place for a long time.
• But Thursday, and even before sunrise, is a very favorable period for changing linen. Moreover, beliefs about Maundy Thursday take roots from Rus'. Changing your linen on this day promises good luck and health. And the ease of this day will allow you to carry out any routine with joy.

But Saturday and Thursday are the best days to change your bedding set

Other beliefs about changing bed linen

• If it so happens that you made the bed inside out- be prepared to be beaten, but not necessarily in the literal sense. That is, these could be blows or failures from fate. To avoid this, you should remove the bed, place it on the floor or on the bed in an inverted state and walk on it with your feet.
• Also don't neglect ironing bed linen. Crumpled linen contains dark power and attracts adversity. And ironed bed linen, in turn, ensures harmony and balance in the home.

• has an adverse effect on you and your life if you lazy to make your bed in the morning. This can lead to health problems or even life changes for the worse.
• But if, when changing your bedding set or just in the morning, you found some kind of insect in your bed- expect a love adventure. For a married couple, this is a sign of a long life life together. True, if you are our ladybug.
• In case your the pet went to the toilet on the bed, then this promises a very unexpected incident in your life. It can be either pleasant or not very pleasant - it all depends on your reaction to the event that happened.

Important: You should not allow strangers to lie on your bed. But if you have guests in your house, then it is recommended to change the bed after them only after an hour. Because you can bring trouble to them.

• It is strictly not recommended for husband and wife to sleep in bed with orange or red bed linen - the sign promises betrayal.
• Elderly people are not recommended to sew their own underwear. after all, this is a harbinger of imminent death.

Important: If you decide to give underwear to a superstitious person, then you need to be very vigilant. It is necessary to take a coin from him in return to avoid quarrels and conflicts in the future.

• Donate used bed linen- an extremely bad action. Firstly, it is indecent, and secondly, with bed you transfer part of your health and well-being.

Nobody forces you to believe and follow signs, because superstitions are personal beliefs. But still, try to listen to such advice from older generations to harmonize your life.

Video: Signs about bedding

How often should you change your bed linen at home? Statistics and opinion polls say that we are hacking: only third respondents change bedspreads, sheets and pillowcases at least once every two weeks.

Different subtypes of laundry have their own characteristics when cleaning and washing. This section isn't just about bedding - cleaning the bed itself is just as important from a hygiene standpoint. It is advisable to synchronize the “big wash” of all bedding in the house once every few months to ensure that you get rid of possible insects or fungal problems.

Video - Rules for caring for bed linen

Sheets

The biggest problem that arises when changing sheets infrequently is increased humidity. This is especially noticeable in summer and in hot climates, where it is advisable to change the bed every three to four days.

To care for the sheets, you need to remove the blanket from the bed every morning and ventilate the room to get rid of evaporation and unpleasant odor. You need to change your sheets at least once every ten days, and set the temperature when washing at least 60 degrees, to destroy dust mite larvae.

Mattresses

Surprisingly, the mattress is one of the easiest bedding items to clean. To clean the mattress you need to:

1. Vacuum the upholstery.
2. Remove it if possible. Vacuum the inside.
3. Clean the inside of the mattress by hand using a cloth. cold water and a small amount of soap/shampoo.

This procedure must be repeated at least twice a year. In specialized stores you can purchase a special cover that will protect the mattress from dust mites and dirt.

Prices for mattresses

Pillows

Besides the obvious change of pillowcases once a week, you need to wash the pillows themselves. Similar surveys have not been conducted in Russia, but in Australia, for example, more than a quarter of residents have never washed their pillows. Hygiene doctors say that after a couple of years, an unwashed pillow contains a combination of mildew, dandruff, and live and dead mites. This mixture leads to chronic rhinitis and allergies, as well as eye infections.

To maintain cleanliness, pillows should be sent in the wash. once every three months to six months. Feather fill requires dry cleaning, synthetics must be washed at 60 degrees and above. Every two to three years the product needs to be replaced with a new one.

Feather pillow prices

Feather pillows

Blankets

The same risk group: constant contact with skin, sweat, high temperature. A dirty blanket is the most common carrier of mites after feather pillows, and the difficulty of washing due to its large size means that many people do not clean their blankets for literally years.

The hygiene rules are the same as for pillows - wash together once a quarter blankets with down or any other natural filling are sent to the dry cleaner. Except that the service life of blankets is longer, up to five years.

Find out How to get rid of it at home in a special article on our website.

Prices for bed linen

Bed linen

Dependence on seasons

The usual change of linen once a week is not enough to close the issue. The vast majority, nineteen out of twenty respondents, either wash their beds irregularly or do it on one convenient day of the week. It's not really the right approach- V different times Every year, the human body produces different amounts of sweat, and the amount of skin lost also differs.

Winter

Thanks to low temperatures and switching to the heat preservation mode, the sleeper produces much less sweat than under normal conditions. Microbiologists estimate the period for which it is possible reduce linen changes to two weeks. Of course, this does not apply to athletes and other people exposed to high physical activity every day.

Spring

The period of flowering and love, as well as the dark months for all allergy sufferers. If you have allergy problems, then the linen needs to be changed as often as possible, ideally once every five days. This will help calm the receptors at night with the absence of unnecessary odors and irritants. Sexually active couples should not delay changing their bedding - for them, changing once a week will be the necessary minimum.

Summer

Summer is a critical period, especially in the absence of air conditioning and in hot climates. Sweat, dirt, and skin particles accumulate on the bed and create an environment favorable for microorganisms. Here, fabric care is individual: somewhere in Sochi, sheets and pillowcases can be changed at any time every three days whereas in Vorkuta a ten-day period will be quite enough.

Autumn

The only problem when cleaning clothes in the fall is dirt. Frequent rain, dust and slush place special demands on hygiene, so those who do not like to wash every day should wash more often. Autumn is the “hottest” period for the appearance of insects, so if there is any suspicion of the appearance of ticks, you must immediately take the entire bed to the dry cleaner.

For simplicity, you can use the following formula - we count the number of days after which you need to change your underwear in the summer, then multiply it by one and a half for spring/autumn and by two for winter. So, if in summer the bed becomes dirty after five days, then in winter it usually lasts for ten, and in the off-season you can do laundry every week. The calendar is convenient to wash every 4-7-10-14 days, so as not to get confused in complex routines and complete the cycle every two or three weeks.

Replacement features

Linen for sick and elderly people is changed every few days or daily.

Sometimes, the bed needs to be changed much more often than in standard cases. So, in case of colds, the linen needs to be changed to dry constantly, and after recovery, the entire bed goes to the wash. There are a number of important factors in which linen should be changed once every five days:

• In people with oily skin, increased sweating or problems with dandruff;
• For those who watch TV in bed or eat there;
• If the bed is rarely made for the day, remaining in a disassembled state.

Athletes also have their own schedule. Accelerated metabolism and sweating cause the bed to become dirty a couple of days earlier. This is especially noticeable during the period of intensive preparation for the competitive season. Here, the desired “every week” often turns into the obligatory “every three to four days.”

Cleaning is required after the linen has been used by a guest. It also needs to be carried out after any large-scale procedures and rearrangements of the house - after repairs, even fine dust settles on well-closed pillowcases.

How to wash clothes correctly

Options for marks on the bed linen label.

Pay attention! The washing algorithm depends on the material and properties of the laundry itself; care details can be found on the label of the product itself. The following is general information that should not serve as a guide to action. An incorrectly selected mode can ruin a set of laundry, tearing it or destroying the color.

Video - How to wash clothes in a washing machine

Washing particularly dirty laundry begins with soaking. This can be done either manually, leaving the product in a container with soapy water, or using the soaking mode in the washing machine. Before you start washing, the laundry must be turned inside out.

The optimal temperature for washing white laundry will be 60 degrees: this will kill most insects and clean even the toughest stains. There is no need to boil bed linen - this will cause it to lose strength and quickly tear. Colored underwear washable at lower temperature 40 degrees. In the process it is advisable to use special washing powders for colored linen.

Stands apart silk and other luxury fabrics- they get washed out in delicate mode or manually, without squeezing. Silk linen requires special washing conditions and deteriorates quickly, so you should use it as little as possible.

Important! Don't forget to wash your laundry immediately after purchasing. This will not only rid it of the dirt that has accumulated during the journey from the manufacturing factory, but will also wash away the special exhibition composition. This composition is used to give the fabric rigidity and presentation. After the first wash, the laundry will become softer and ready for use.

When washing clothes in a washing machine, it is necessary to take into account its average weight.

Table 1. Average weight of bedding sets

Table 2. Weight of cotton linen individually

Weight depends on the size of the product and its material. Usually washing machine five kilograms is enough to clean the entire set of bed linen, towels and pajamas for two people.

Prices for popular models of washing machines

Washing machines

How to starch laundry - step-by-step instructions

Fabric soaked in starch not only becomes more tensile and looks brighter. Starch also protects the fabric from dirt, and most stains disappear during washing, being applied to a solid film.

Starched linen is besides beautiful appearance It’s also more hygienic.

The procedure itself is divided into three types, soft, medium and hard.

Table 3. Step by step instructions preparing the starch mixture

Steps, description	Photo
Step 1. Take a spoonful of starch and some cold water.	Add a spoon or two, depending on the desired concentration of the solution
Step 2. Pour into one container and stir until smooth.	Stir
Step 3. Add the dissolved mixture to a liter of boiled water.	Combine with boiled water

For average starch, take a tablespoon of the substance, for hard- two tablespoons and add a teaspoon of borax.

Clean bedding is soaked and rinsed in the resulting liquid. Then the item is wrung out and straightened so that there are no wrinkles on it. There is an easier way - the mixture is sprayed onto the fabric with a spray bottle.

Other types of linen

When touching on personal hygiene issues, one cannot ignore towels, pajamas and underwear. They may not directly relate to the issue of bedding, but they are very, very close.

Towels used after an evening shower should be washed regularly.

Underwear

One of the dirtiest items of clothing. Even visually clean panties contain up to 10,000 bacteria and microorganisms. If you don’t change your underwear within one day, a couple of zeros will be added to this number. This applies to all types of clothing, from thongs to boxers.

Doctors recommend changing underwear every day, and completely replacing the item once a year. When washing in a machine, use 30-40 degree temperature using bleach or any similar additive. If one of the family members is sick, then it is better to do the washing with 60 degree temperature- this will destroy most microorganisms.

Pajamas

Many people don't consider pajamas and dressing gowns underwear, washing them much less often than would be necessary. Anonymous surveys say that pajama lovers wear them for more than two weeks before putting them in the wash, and women are even more dirty in this case: 17 days without washing versus fourteen for men.

It should not be forgotten that pajamas require cleaning at least once a week, with washing machine settings identical to underwear. Of course, as with underwear, the washing cycle depends on the manufacturer's recommendations on the label.

Towels

It is towels that remove most of the dead skin cells from our body. They are the ones who collect bacteria and microorganisms from the upper layer. The warm and humid atmosphere of the bathroom ensures that skin viruses and fungi have their chance to become infected.

Microbiologists say towels should go in the wash immediately after three uses. The overall service life depends on the frequency of replacement, but with active use it is advisable to purchase a new towel annually.

Attention! Never allow strangers to use your towel! Even boiling does not always guarantee complete cleaning of the product.

High temperature required for cleaning (from 60 degrees and above), as well as the additional use of antibacterial agents.

The main difficulty in caring for linen and doing weekly laundry is convincing the person that he needs it. In the end, billions people don't wash their pillowcases once a week and humanity still hasn't gone extinct, right?

Bacteria

The US Association of Microbiologists decided to conduct an experiment by randomly collecting 50 pillows students from hostels have 25 colleges. The sample was quite representative: from students of elite institutions to ordinary colleges. The results surprised even the researchers themselves: on average, each pillow contained about 300 thousand bacterial foci and more than 90 thousand fungal accumulations.

This is what professional mattress disinfection looks like

The most popular pathogens in the hit parade were:

• Bacteria from the nasopharynx, which cause bronchitis and lung diseases;
• Fungi that provoke an allergic crisis;
• Dysentery stick.

Despite the fact that women turned out to be a little more careful than men (the number of pathogens on average was one and a half times less), a “gentleman’s set” was also found among them. The record sample was a student's pillow with more than 150 million bacteria and fungi.

Under normal conditions, most of these harmful agents are not dangerous - the immune system successfully fights them. But once he weakens, permanent illnesses will not keep him waiting.

What to do? Heat treatment is well suited for getting rid of bacteria and viruses - simply ironing clothes will destroy almost everything that can be found inside.

Dust mite

Enlarged image of a dust mite.

If lazy people who don’t like washing and ironing have now given up and thought “oh, I have excellent immunity, this will do” - then in the picture above you can see the second scourge of dirty bed linen, the dust mite.

In addition, ticks will become a problem in cases of serious lung diseases, such as pneumonia or asthma.

What to do? Regular wet cleaning, maintaining a dry atmosphere in the apartment and cold will help against ticks - just a few hours on the winter balcony and most of the ticks in your favorite blanket will die, and the rest will hibernate.

Fungus

The fungus, having settled in the bed linen, eats into it tightly.

Fungal diseases are among the most common on the planet - about one and a half billion people suffer from mycosis of the extremities. The easiest way to become infected with fungus is in common areas: swimming pools, saunas, gyms. Then the microorganism spreads through your laundry to the rest of your family.

People with weakened immune systems and diseases are at risk cardiovascular system and vitamin deficiency. It is impossible to completely protect yourself from fungus, but to reduce the likelihood of illness, do not use other people's things and change linens as often as possible if you have to share the bed with a sick person.

What to do? Fungi, like all microorganisms, love warmth. At the same time, it survives well in the cold, so the method of taking things out into the cold will not work here. In order to get rid of fungus on things, you need to use washing in combination with boiling. In extreme cases, wear socks everywhere, including in bed.

Conclusion

Most studies agree that to maintain hygiene in the bedroom, you need to change your linens on average once a week. Doctors from different countries agree on this opinion, setting the period for changing bed linen to seven days in a hospital.

However, this period is not an axiom. Peculiarities of physiology and climate can either reduce this period to five days or reduce it to two weeks. When choosing, focus on personal convenience and common sense. It is better to change your underwear every fourteen days, but regularly, than every week, but with omissions and not at the same time.