Who’s Been Sleeping in Your Bed?

Good sleep is essential for good health. Ideally, you will spend a third of your life in bed, but not in the same bed all your life!

 A recent study by bed maker Sleepyhead revealed the amount of nasties that are also sharing your bed, and could be affecting your health. Dust mites, fungus, skin cells and other parasites build up over time, so if your mattress is more than a decade old, for your own good, it may be time to change it!

In the study, it was found that 70% of bed had high levels of dust mites and a staggering 90% had fungal spores. New Zealand homes have a prevalence of damp, which doesn’t help.

Only 17% of Kiwis sleep through the night consistently, according to the figures. Some disturbances are hard to avoid (needing to get up to go to the bathroom), but others (partner disturbance, temperature fluctuations and joint pain) can be alleviated in a good bed.

Fun sleep facts from the survey

– People in Northland use more hot water bottles to stay warm than anywhere else in the country

– Aucklanders are least likely to know where their mattress came from

– Hawkes Bay locals are mostly likely to get up in the night to use the toilet

– Wellington sleepers do so on the newest mattresses in the country

– The lowest rate of partner disturbance is reported in the Bay of Plenty

– Those in the Waikato are least likely to get up in the night to go to the toilet

– Cantabrians are most likely to allow pets into bed for warmth

– Marlborough/Nelson and Tasman are least likely to allow pets into bed

– Sleepers in Manawatu are the most susceptible to being too hold or too cold in bed