1 00:00:01,920 --> 00:00:06,400 Speaker 1: Welcome to Brainstuff, a production of I Heart Radio. Hey 2 00:00:06,480 --> 00:00:10,880 Speaker 1: brain Stuff Lauren Bogle bam here. Although most pillows have 3 00:00:10,960 --> 00:00:15,800 Speaker 1: a tag giving laundering instructions, not everybody bothers to wash them. 4 00:00:16,400 --> 00:00:19,080 Speaker 1: We may think they're shielded from the day to day 5 00:00:19,160 --> 00:00:21,560 Speaker 1: grit and grime of life thanks to the pillow case 6 00:00:22,040 --> 00:00:26,000 Speaker 1: or else that washing them may ruin them. But the 7 00:00:26,079 --> 00:00:29,159 Speaker 1: standard pillow case is typically only made of cotton or 8 00:00:29,200 --> 00:00:33,320 Speaker 1: of some other easily permeated fabric, rendering the pillows susceptible 9 00:00:33,400 --> 00:00:37,000 Speaker 1: to the grit and grime of life. But we spoke 10 00:00:37,040 --> 00:00:41,000 Speaker 1: by email with Mary Marlowe Laverette, a housekeeping and laundry 11 00:00:41,040 --> 00:00:44,839 Speaker 1: expert with the Spruce. She said, even with a protective 12 00:00:44,880 --> 00:00:47,880 Speaker 1: pillow case, your pillow can be filled with dust mites, 13 00:00:47,960 --> 00:00:51,280 Speaker 1: body oils, and bacteria from your saliva. All of that 14 00:00:51,400 --> 00:00:53,680 Speaker 1: is next to your face and no one wants any 15 00:00:53,720 --> 00:00:57,520 Speaker 1: of that. And it's no small amount of junk either. 16 00:00:58,200 --> 00:01:00,840 Speaker 1: After a couple of years, some ted percent of the 17 00:01:00,920 --> 00:01:03,600 Speaker 1: total weight of your pillow could be due to dead 18 00:01:03,760 --> 00:01:07,679 Speaker 1: dust mites and their waste. And yeah, that's kind of 19 00:01:07,720 --> 00:01:11,560 Speaker 1: gross to think about, but more scientifically speaking, a regular 20 00:01:11,680 --> 00:01:15,680 Speaker 1: close proximity exposure to Any of these contaminants or others 21 00:01:15,720 --> 00:01:19,520 Speaker 1: like pet dander can cause conditions like allergies and asthma 22 00:01:19,640 --> 00:01:23,640 Speaker 1: to flare up. The good news is that laundering pillows 23 00:01:23,720 --> 00:01:26,360 Speaker 1: is a surprisingly easy task and you don't need to 24 00:01:26,400 --> 00:01:29,480 Speaker 1: do it all that often. If you use a zippered 25 00:01:29,480 --> 00:01:32,320 Speaker 1: pillow protector, you'll only need to wash the pillows twice 26 00:01:32,319 --> 00:01:36,280 Speaker 1: a year, although the protectors themselves will require monthly laundering. 27 00:01:36,880 --> 00:01:39,960 Speaker 1: If you don't use a protector every other month ish 28 00:01:40,080 --> 00:01:42,640 Speaker 1: or whenever the pillow looks or smells like it needs it, 29 00:01:42,680 --> 00:01:46,360 Speaker 1: is advisable. There could be times when you need to 30 00:01:46,440 --> 00:01:49,600 Speaker 1: launder your pillows more frequently, but we also spoke by 31 00:01:49,720 --> 00:01:54,120 Speaker 1: email with Mary Zeitler, consumer scientist with Whirlpool Corporations Institute 32 00:01:54,120 --> 00:01:58,160 Speaker 1: of Home Science. She explained if the user applies face 33 00:01:58,240 --> 00:02:00,760 Speaker 1: lotions before going to bed, or if the user has 34 00:02:00,800 --> 00:02:04,120 Speaker 1: oily skin or scalp, washing more often may be needed 35 00:02:04,160 --> 00:02:08,280 Speaker 1: to keep it fresh. We'll add ditto that if you 36 00:02:08,320 --> 00:02:10,720 Speaker 1: sleep with a pet, or have recently had a cold 37 00:02:10,800 --> 00:02:14,040 Speaker 1: or other contagious illness, or if the pillow looks or 38 00:02:14,080 --> 00:02:19,079 Speaker 1: smells musty, So how do you clean your pillow? It's 39 00:02:19,200 --> 00:02:22,000 Speaker 1: vital to check the care directions on the tag. Many 40 00:02:22,080 --> 00:02:25,360 Speaker 1: are machine washable, but some, like those made of memory foam, 41 00:02:25,440 --> 00:02:29,720 Speaker 1: are not. In general, Zeler recommends washing down feather and 42 00:02:29,840 --> 00:02:33,600 Speaker 1: synthetic material pillows in the warmest water considered safe for 43 00:02:33,680 --> 00:02:37,639 Speaker 1: the material, and it can help, especially with top litted washers, 44 00:02:37,680 --> 00:02:40,240 Speaker 1: to do too per load. To help keep the machine 45 00:02:40,280 --> 00:02:44,520 Speaker 1: balanced while it's spinning, use a mild liquid detergent, or 46 00:02:44,600 --> 00:02:47,840 Speaker 1: make sure you dissolve your powder detergent well before adding 47 00:02:47,880 --> 00:02:50,920 Speaker 1: the load, and set your machine on the gentle cycle. 48 00:02:51,480 --> 00:02:53,440 Speaker 1: An extra reincycle can help make sure that all the 49 00:02:53,480 --> 00:02:56,920 Speaker 1: soap is gone when it's time to dry. Use a 50 00:02:56,960 --> 00:02:59,720 Speaker 1: low heat or air cycle setting for as long as 51 00:02:59,800 --> 00:03:01,920 Speaker 1: is an necessary to get all the moisture out of 52 00:03:01,919 --> 00:03:05,760 Speaker 1: your pillows. Any dampness left behind will encourage mold growth, 53 00:03:06,680 --> 00:03:10,720 Speaker 1: but foam pillows are sometimes a completely different animal. They 54 00:03:10,760 --> 00:03:14,280 Speaker 1: can't get excessively wet unless otherwise stated on the care tag, 55 00:03:14,720 --> 00:03:17,120 Speaker 1: so rather than using a washing machine, you can use 56 00:03:17,160 --> 00:03:19,880 Speaker 1: a vacuum cleaner to do most of the work, then 57 00:03:20,080 --> 00:03:22,240 Speaker 1: toss them in the dryer on a no heat cycle 58 00:03:22,360 --> 00:03:25,800 Speaker 1: to shake any additional dirt and grime loose. If any 59 00:03:25,840 --> 00:03:29,040 Speaker 1: spots or other grime are visible, sparingly spot clean with 60 00:03:29,080 --> 00:03:37,160 Speaker 1: water and a mild soap. Today's episode was written by 61 00:03:37,160 --> 00:03:39,760 Speaker 1: Aliya Hoyt and produced by Tyler Clay. For more on 62 00:03:39,800 --> 00:03:42,400 Speaker 1: this and lots of other everyday topics, visit how stuffworks 63 00:03:42,400 --> 00:03:45,440 Speaker 1: dot com. Brain Stuff is production of iHeart Radio. For 64 00:03:45,520 --> 00:03:48,200 Speaker 1: more podcasts to my heart Radio, visit the iHeart Radio app, 65 00:03:48,280 --> 00:03:51,000 Speaker 1: Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.