It’s a routine gesture that millions of people do at home every morning. But, on closer inspection, it turns out to be counterproductive and the former host of “It’s not rocket science”, now Epicurious, simply explains why.
We all have in mind this image of the perfectly stretched bed, worthy of a five-star hotel, drawn straight as soon as we wake up. It’s the morning reflex par excellence, instilled by our parents as the first good action of the day to keep an impeccable bedroom. Well, put away your duvets and forget your old reflexes: according to the famous science popularizer Jamy Gourmaud, this much-praised gesture is actually a very bad habit.
For many, an unmade bed is synonymous with sloppiness or disorder. We get up, we drink our coffee, and presto, we quickly fold down the duvet to find a visually orderly room. It’s clean, it’s crisp, and it brings undeniable visual satisfaction before heading to work. But behind this quest for perfection at home lies an unsuspected trap for our health. Jamy, with his eternal attention to detail and his legendary frankness, came to shatter this tenacious myth that has governed our bedrooms for generations.
The reason is purely biological and microscopic. During the night, our body naturally releases heat and water (up to half a liter per night!). By immediately turning down your sheets and duvet as soon as you get out of bed, you trap this residual heat.
This is where Jamy’s verdict is clear: by making your bed straight away, you don’t give the humidity time to ventilate and this environment is ideal for the proliferation and development of dust mites. These little creatures love hot and humid environments, and feast on our dead skin there.
So, what should we do to reconcile order and hygiene? It’s very simple: adopt the happily unmade bed trend. When you wake up, open your windows wide for around ten minutes and do not turn down your duvet immediately to air the mattress. Fresh air and daylight will dry out moisture and eliminate unwanted things naturally. You now have the perfect scientific excuse to laze around a little more in the morning, thanks Jamy!
