The gross truth lurking on your bed sheets when you don't wash them

While most people claim to wash their bed sheets either weekly or fortnightly, some admit to doing it monthly or every few months.

It might seem perfectly harmless to leave them longer than the recommended one to two weeks, but according to experts there is an awful lot that you can't see being deposited on your sheets.

"Your skin cells are constantly rejuvenating themselves and this means that when you sleep your body sheds skin. These dead skin cells collect in your bedding alongside the sweat, dirt and debris that your body has accumulated during the day," Nina Prisk, a skin and aesthetics expert at London cosmetic clinic Update Aesthetics, told the Independent.

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"Failure to wash bedsheets regularly can leave skin exposed to dirt, sebum, cosmetic products, and debris which will not only cause dust mites to accumulate, but can result in outbreaks of conditions such as acne, rashes, as well as cause irritation and itching, and flare-ups or eczema."

Sleeping is also the time when our skin revives itself, so if it's exposed to a build up of grime from not washing your sheets the body just isn't going to be able to do this as well.

Skin isn't the only thing impacted by unwashed sheets, allergies and breathing can be too by the build up of dust mites.

Then there's sleep itself which can get disrupted by the problems caused by dirty sheets.

"When experiencing reactions or irritation caused by unhygienic bedding, it's not uncommon for a person's sleep to be impacted due to the discomfort," Dr Hana Patel, resident sleep expert at Time4Sleep, told the Independent.

Swapping your bed sheets over to a clean set weekly is ideal but if you shower in the evening or don't sleep in your bed every night fortnightly is fine, according to experts.

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Washing with a gentle detergent and without fabric softener is also helpful to prevent irritating the skin.

Line drying is best if possible to keep the sheets in good condition for longer.

Linen or cotton sheets are recommended as they are breathable and have moisture-wicking properties that prevent sweat from remaining in the fabric.

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