If
you make your bed every morning which is an actually good living habit, you’re
in a minority. According to a survey of 68,000 people by Hunch.com, only 27
percent reported making their bed, while 59 percent said they do not (another
lucky 12 percent paid someone to make their bed for them).
You
may assume that it’s generally a good living habit to make
your bed, even if you don’t actually do it. Your mother probably told you to
make yours, after all, and it certainly looks tidier, especially if unexpected
company shows up.
But
if you refuse to make your bed, here is a good reason to support your habit
(keep this one up your sleeve for all of those messy bed naysayers in your
life).
A Made Bed Makes a
Perfect Home for Dust Mites
The
average bed may be home to 1.5 million dust mites. These tiny creatures (each
is less than 1 millimeter long) don’t bite or burrow into your skin, but
they do feed on your dead skin and hair. This is gross, though
not particularly dangerous.
However,
dust mites also poop in your bed, and their fecal pellets, as
well as their body fragments, create an allergen that can be harmful to people
with allergies and asthma. It’s estimated that 10 percent of Americans are
sensitive to dust mite allergen.
Now
here’s the thing about dust mites. In order to survive they use small glands on
their bodies to soak up water from their environment. During a night of sleep,
the dampness of your nice warm sheets (however slight it may seem to you)
provides just the type of environment that dust mites love.
In
the morning, if you jump out of bed and quickly make it again, you’re
preserving that damp, warm environment that makes dust mites thrive. On the
other hand, research by Dr. Stephen Pretlove of Kingston University London
found that leaving your bed unmade allows the moisture to dry
out, which means the dust mites become dehydrated and eventually die.
If
you simply can’t stand an untidy bed, at least leave your bed unmade while
you shower and have
breakfast. This should give it sufficient time to air out before you put the
covers back into place.
Watch this Video HERE - Your mom was wrong; here's why you should never make your
bed
The Case For Making Your Bed
Dust
mites aside, there are many good reasons to consider making your bed each
morning if you don’t already. Among them are happiness and well-being.
Remember
that Hunch.com survey? It also found that bed makers are more likely to be
happy than non-bed-makers (71 percent versus 62 percent, respectively).
And
according to Psychology Today:
“Bed makers are
also more likely to like their jobs, own a home, exercise regularly, and feel
well rested, whereas non-bed-makers hate their jobs, rent apartments, avoid the
gym, and wake up tired. All in all, bed makers are happier and more successful
than their rumple-sheeted peers.”
Making
your bed also gives you a sense of accomplishment first thing in the morning.
Your morning routine sets the tone
for the rest of your day, so you might as well start out on a productive
note.
Elite
Daily reported
a nice little quote from Naval Admiral William McRaven at a University of
Texas, Austin commencement speech:
“If you make your
bed every morning, you will have accomplished the first task of the day. It
will give you a small sense of pride and it will encourage you to do another
task and another and another.
By the end of the
day, that one task completed will have turned into many tasks completed. Making
your bed will also reinforce the fact that little things in life matter.”
A
National Sleep Foundation poll even found that people who make their bed every
day or almost every day are 19 percent more likely to say they get a good
night’s sleep (and in this poll 88 percent made their beds at least a few days
a week).
New
York Times best-selling author on happiness Gretchen Rubin also told Elite
Daily that bed making is the good living habit people mention most
often when asked what led to their happiness. She said:
“It’s a pretty
trivial thing, but over and over people say that getting control of this little
action makes them feel more in control of their life, generally.”
Considering
it only takes a minute, why not try it out and see if this is true for you?
(But only after letting it air out first! Dust mites … eww.)
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