Once a week is how often you should be washing your sheets, because there's things lurking in between the covers that can make your skin crawl.
"There are certain people that need to be more concerned than others,” said Baylor College of Medicine, clinical assistant professor of dermatology, Dr. Rajani Katta.
Katta said people with a history of acne, eczema or skin infections need to beware.
“In terms of people with sensitive skin, there's something we call dust mites,” she explained. “They really thrive in warm, humid environments and they love to eat skin flakes.”
That's right, microscopic, parasitic mites are feeding on your skin as you sleep. It's inevitable, but Katta said dust mites can also lead to allergies.
“If somebody comes in to me with eyelid rashes or facial rashes, I will talk about dust mite allergy because I do see that as a trigger,” she said.
If you are not washing your sheets as often as once a week in hot water and you have sensitive skin, she said it could encourage flare-ups of irritations, acne, eczema and fungal infections.
“If you or your partner had a history of staph bacteria on the skin, or even fungal infections, like what we call jock itch or athlete's foot, those are a type of fungal infection and those can live in bedsheets also.”
Bacteria can get in your bed from unclean skin or products that are in unwashed hair.
