Claudia Winkleman is one of the most fabulously candid presenters on TV, never shying away from sharing intimate details about her life.
However, this weekend the Strictly host revealed a surprising fact about her home life that left Radio 2 listeners reeling.
During a chat with traffic news reporter, Sally Boazman, Claudia and Sally got onto the topic of washing their bedding, with the traffic expert saying she washes her bedsheets every three days.
Comically laidback, Claudia responded that every three days is "quite a lot of work," adding: "Once a week is absolutely fine," before joking that there are "little animals and bugs" nestling in her pillows quipping that she "welcomes all" as "they've got to live somewhere," adding bugs had crawled into her eyes from her pillows before.
Horrified, Sally questioned Claudia on whether she washes her pillows, to which Claudia replied: "What do you mean, the actual pillows? No, how do you do that?"
While Claudia was clearly being light-hearted about her confession, by not washing her pillows, the TV host is genuinely risking her health, with Rex Isap, the CEO at Happy Beds confirming we should wash our pillows every three months to eliminate bacteria, remove stains, and neutralise odours.
"The consequences of neglecting the three-month cleaning mark are significant," he says. "First of all, the practice is unclean, as evidenced by a 2022 study where volunteers swabbed their pillowcases, revealing a shocking accumulation of 39 times more bacteria than a pet bowl." Yikes!
Rex continued: "Not many people are aware that unwashed pillows can spread infections too. A 2017 study found that infections can be transmitted through dirty bedding, including pillows. Therefore, if you’ve been bed-bound for a while due to a cold or flu, I’d recommend washing your bedding and pillow to prevent the spread of infections to those who share your bed."
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Unwashed pillows can wreak havoc on our complexion, too. Rex explains: "Dirty pillow can make your skin more likely to break out and get easily irritated. This is because pillows are in direct contact with your skin for hours every night.
"As you sleep, your body releases oils, sheds dead skin cells, and sweats up to a staggering 700ml per night. That’s 63 litres of sweat over a three-month period! These substances can accumulate on your pillowcases over time. When you continue sleeping on dirty pillows, you expose your skin to these collected particles, which can lead to clogged pores, acne breakouts, and skin irritation."
We know what we'll be doing this weekend…