A third of British people ‘only wash their bed sheets once a year’

The sheets thing is disgusting. The pants? Underwear, suit trousers, office clothes, yes, after every wear. Work jeans, etc., no.

I’ve never washed our sleep rags. Mama said it’s the devil’s work to clean up.

OMG that’s fucking disgusting!!! But not surprising. Brits are gross.

The British are renowned for being the ugliest people in Europe, evidently because the because the matted grime has mutated their DNA.

I usually wash my office pants after 2-3 wearings - I drive to work, stay in my office all day (food bought to me) and then drive back home. How dirty can they be?

think of the smeared smegma!

That sounds pretty average for straight men, and I doubt it's limited to the UK.

Sheets once a week; towels at least once a week; underwear, socks, shirts after every use; pants as needed (could go for a few days).

I change my sheets two or three times a month. Pillow cases actually get changed more often in my home. A couple times a week if I have time to wash them. Once a year seems like the sheets would just disintegrate once pulled from the matress.

I always laugh at American girls who think the UK is like Downton Abbey and when it's more like Shameless.

[quote] A quarter of men admitted to washing their underwear after every five washes, compared to just 13% of women. Worryingly, one in ten men (10%) of men claimed to wash their underwear after every 10 washes, compared to just 3% of women.

What the hell does that mean? Poorly-written article and I don’t believe the purported facts.

Pants = underwear in the UK.

what about “washing” “after every five washes”? WTH does that mean?

Doesn't surprise me.

I’m in the 20% that doesn’t wash underwear after every wear. I get 3-4 wears out of them. I don’t wear underwear everyday, for the record.

Another Brit-basing thread. I’m from the U.K. but I have family in America, and to me, white Americans look no different from white Brits.

This is the Metro, people. We don't take this "news" outlet seriously.

Scottish and particular about cleanliness. If I found sheets that had been used for a year without being washed I would burn them. Dirty slovenly pigs.

B.S. I find this hard to believe.

Disgusting.

Sheets+pillow cases every week, blanket cover every two weeks. — I always shower before bed and live one.

You say that like it's a good thing, R16.

[quote]The British are renowned for being the ugliest people in Europe,

People forget about eastern Europe and Italian fishmongers.

Conversely, a third of Germans wash their sheets "at least three times a week."

Scat is a messy fetish.

They meant "washing after five wears," r13.

I can’t understand half of these posts. Drunk posters, go sleep it off.

This cannot be true. Such BS.

I don’t believe it either.

[quote]‘only wash their bed sheets once a year’

Shouldn't that have been worded, "wash their bed sheets only once a year"?

It may also depend if lots of people in Britain have to pay for and travel to a laundromat.

Here in America, I've had to carry laundry for a 7-minute walk over my 11 years in a room I rented in a house. No laundry available in the house.

Where I live now in a simple efficiency, at least we have access to a coin-operated washer and dryer on the ground level.

People who have laundry in the residence can sometimes take it for granted?

Yikes, I wash after every "pairing" and forbid silicone-based lube in BR

I wash my sheets and pillow cases twice EVERY week.

That's because I'm

CLEAN AS A WHISTLE.

I change bedding every two weeks, with the exception of the pillow case - I have it folded in half and change it every four days, so I always sleep on the fresh side of the pillow. I don't have pajamas but I sleep in a fresh T-shirt every night as well.

Jeans - approximately once every ten days. T-shirts, undies and socks - after each use. Pullovers and cardigans - after two uses (or sometimes three, if I can still smell the softener from previous washing on them).

When it comes to towels I use the same technique as with pillows - I have them folded in half which allows me to use one towel four times (and I have the towel edges marked, so I always know which side of the towel has already been used).

Even if you don't have easy access to a laundry surely you can buy a few cheap sets of sheets and switch them out regularly?

R15 is a pig.

Who has time for cleanliness when there’s all that shitposting about the mixed American to be done?

I only wash my sock friend when it gets too crusty and sharp, and cuts my dick when I’m wiping the jizz off.

[quote] Another Brit-basing thread.

It’s wrong to take a breather from the torrent of America-bashing threads then? Got it.

After the 20th cum stain mine go straight into the wash.

To be honest, I only change and wash my sheets once every 6-8 weeks. I wash the pillow cases every two weeks. I haven't been out of the house much, and I'm working from home, I take a shower three or four times a week, but not every day. Every day I wash my face, my ass and my armpits.

Those sheets must be crusty and stiff....only washed a year. Ewww....

only washed *once a year^^

When I did a study abroad at Cambridge, during the summer, my Milton professor changed his clothes only every three to four days. It was really conspicuous. He would look clean and well groomed on day one, and then look more dissheveled with each passing day. His clothes would get increasingly wrinkled and sometimes soiled. We saw him riding his bike around the university area. It was really strange for we American students and I wondered if it was normal to the European and Asian students but I didn't want to ask for fear of being rude or potentially overheard and embarrassing the professor.

My other prof was a woman who taught Tennyson. She was very pretty and seemed 'posh' as far as I could tell. She changed her clothes every day and brushed her hair.

I guess the tradeoff is that the Milton class was riveting and I have loved Paradise Lost all the years since, and I lost interest in Tennyson's flowery language and relatively trite content. I tend to think of the profs as manifestations of the poets' substance vs. style.

Oh god I just remembered BEDBUGS, do they not have them in the UK?

Even the bedbugs find the conditions revolting.

[quote]It was really strange for we American students

Oh dear.

[quote]My other prof was a woman who taught Tennyson.

She must have been quite elderly!

[quote]Even the bedbugs find the conditions revolting.

In the end, however, it's the food that drives them away.

44 percent of Americans wash their sheets once or twice a month.

11 percent wash their sheets once a quarter.

5 percent wash them only once or twice a year.

This scene now makes me even queasier.

Bedding separated by a common language and big pond.

Duvets are used more in the UK than the US and most don't use top sheets like on the US.

More people sleep in the nude, so there’s no barrier between farts and those rarely washed sheets.

Tumble dryers in the UK are seen by many as incredibly wasteful compared to the US. Sheets will need to go on a line outside or hung around your home on a drying rack, radiator or door.

Hanging duvet covers outside in the English damp to dry, how delightful!

Only when I shit the bed.

Maybe this was the inspiration for Stephen King's dirty pillows.

Sweet dreams are made of this.

Ugh. This doesn't mention that the human body secretes xxx amount of fluids every night (can't remember how much) so this fluid is going into the dirty sheets and dirty mattress. Ugh. Disgusting combination.

[bold]Tests conducted in the Sonoran Desert found that subjects sitting naked in the shade in 95-degree heat produced 220 milliliters of sweat per hour. Assuming comparable conditions were to prevail at night, you'd lose close to two liters over an eight-hour stretch.Jan. 14, 2011

When I lived in NYC, we had to schlep our sheets down the street to the cleaners, but did so every week, R29.

R42 I like your post.

I don’t care for sheets. I sleep on a light weight cotton quilt on the mattress with a light blanket to cover. Anyone else hate sheets?

When I lived in San Francisco, I had to schlepp my laundry to a laundromat as well. Luckily, it was a nice neighborhood, and only a couple blocks away.

[quote] I forbid silicone-based lube in BR

What's wrong with silicone-based lube? It costs twice as much as normal lube.

What is BR?

[quote] When I lived in San Francisco, I had to schlepp my laundry to a laundromat as well. Luckily, it was a nice neighborhood, and only a couple blocks away.

I was just going to write this. Same! In SF, fluff and fold really is worth the money for basics like gym clothes, underwear, sheets, towels, etc.

For those who wear expensive jeans or just jeans in general, put them in the freezer instead of washing for 24-48 hours. It kills all the bacteria and doesn't ruin the rinse or fit.

What about the other 2 thirds? Once every 2 years?

There are few sensual non-sexual pleasures more satisfying then getting between fresh sheets after a luxurious bath.

So cool...so soft...so relaxing...yum.

Each time I go to the UK, I always bring my own washcloths because many of the hotels don’t supply them. I remember asking for a washcloth and they said “What’s that?”😳 So this survey doesn’t surprise me. They don’t seem big on cleanliness or hygiene.

They call 'washcloths' face washers.

[quote]They call 'washcloths' face washers.

I described it to the hotel staff as a small piece of cloth to wash you face with and they still didn’t understand. And the fact that they weren’t supplied already in the bathroom with the towels means they must not use them.

I'm surprised the build up of nocturnal emissions on the sheets after a year doesn't clog up the plumbing when they finally decide to wash them. I'm also surprised the sheets don't just fall apart in the washing machine from all that body filth eating away at the fabric.

I believe it was on Datalounge that I learned washcloths were an African-American thing (mostly)?

[quote]I believe it was on Datalounge that I learned washcloths were an African-American thing (mostly)?

Horseshit. Almost all Americans use them.

This is probably TMI & anecdotal, but I went on a road trip with a friend, stopping at motels / hotels. I was showering daily but I noticed that my friend wasn't turning on the shower while in the bathroom. What I did notice was a used (wet) wash cloth or face towel on the edge of the tub (not mine).

I assumed my friend was wetting that cloth and doing a whore's bath type of thing.

Anyway, since then, I have never, ever ... ever used hotel wash cloths.

I've seen posts where AA regularly mock white people for not using washcloths and also not washing their lower legs (that seems to be a source of amusement to them). I'm white and I admit that I don't use a washcloth but I think I'll start. I use a long handled brush for hard to reach spots though.

ANECDOTE ALERT! My sister got pregnant by a Brit and moved over there to get married and have the baby. Father turned out to be a closeted lunatic but she said beyond that the hygiene was appalling. Her OBGYN office was filthy and when she asked about vitamins for pregnancy the doctor literally hollered at her "you Americans and your VITAMINS!!!"

That doctor was right about the vitamins. If you eat the right foods you don't need vitamins. And besides 95% of any vitamin you take is pissed out in your urine.

I thought the folic acid was very important for the baby's development so why not take a prenatal vitamin?

R70, try the Salux (or Salux-type) nylon wash cloths. They're lightweight, easy to clean, fast-drying, good for travel. Also, cheap.

That's what I use, although I'm taking a break now from wash cloths due to skin issues (nothing gross).

I’m with R57. I hate sleeping under sheets and comforters- always have. I have them on the bed, but I usually just sleep under a light afghan.

R72 t was more the anger and yelling that was absurd from a guy who didn't give a shit about his dirty office. The point is, Brits are dirty and they hate Americans. And pregnant women need to take folic acid even if they suspect they are pregnant. Other vitamins probs not so important.

[quote]That doctor was right about the vitamins. If you eat the right foods you don't need vitamins. And besides 95% of any vitamin you take is pissed out in your urine.

Have you seen what the average Brit looks like? Im pretty sure most of them are not eating “the right foods.” So the doctors should be giving vitamins.

Pregnant women should eat the following regularly and they'll get all the folic acid they need. And they wouldn't piss most of it out .

broccoli, brussels sprouts, cabbage, kale, spinach, peas, & kidney beans.

The smell of smegma and body odor tend to cancel each other out, so it's all good.

I find some mild smell of smegma and BO to be aphrodisiac. Maybe it's pheromonal?

[quote]For those who wear expensive jeans or just jeans in general, put them in the freezer instead of washing for 24-48 hours. It kills all the bacteria and doesn't ruin the rinse or fit.

Jesus Christ. No. Putting your jeans in the freezer doesn't kill bacteria. Neither does it remove dead skin cells and oils; food, dirt and substances picked up from public spaces.

Laundering is the only way to clean them and remove the substances that bacteria feed on.

After one year, washing is insufficient. The sheets should be replaced, I don't care how long they have in the family.

I don’t like the idea of putting unwashed clothes in my freezer, alongside my foods.

[quote] After one year, washing is insufficient. The sheets should be replaced, I don't care how long they have in the family.

I keep sheets for way longer than one year. Won’t be throwing them out unless ripped, worn-out, etc.

I don't believe it. The poll after the article has completely different results.

[quote]ANECDOTE ALERT! My sister got pregnant by a Brit and moved over there to get married and have the baby. Father turned out to be a closeted lunatic but she said beyond that the hygiene was appalling. Her OBGYN office was filthy and when she asked about vitamins for pregnancy the doctor literally hollered at her "you Americans and your VITAMINS!!!"

NHS! NHS!

Putting dirty jeans in the freezer only kills the smell as long as the jeans are frozen. Just like smelling tennis shoes in the freezer, as soon as they thaw out the stink will return.

After one year, washing is insufficient. The sheets should be replaced, I don't care how long they have in the family.

Not hardly. i bought 4 sets of 1000 thread count cotton bed linens over 6 years ago. They are still just as nice as the day I bought them. Now these 200 thread count sheets you see in some discount store probably wouldn't last very long.

R22 - you are not right. When we were looking for a place, the Romanians were happy we were Americans. The owner told me the Femch executives who stayed here before would spend money on a cleaning lady who always found dirty underwear, dusty surfaces and towels and bed sheets that, by the end of the month smelled like "a horse". He said it was unreal. They have had washing machines here for less than 2 decades but everyone would wash them in heated water with bleach (only white cotton was available) each week. My roommate said she felt grossed out that her Spanish ex came straight from a hot say on the construction site with no shower and slept next to her with smelly feet and pits.

Cancelling my English Airbnb reservation as I speak.

Ah, getting in between clean, warm sheets is one of the best pleasures in the world; I wash my sheets every week, though I could probably skip a week, but I'd think they'd get pretty rancid rather quickly since most sheets are made of cheap material

R59 BR = bedroom. If you have expensive sheets, it's better to use water-based lube since silicon-based will stain, comparable to a grease stain. It can be removed but requires special handling. I guess you could always throw a few towels over bedding, but think that somewhat hinders the moment.

A third of British people only brush their TEETH once a year.

Does this include QE II and other members of the Royal Family?

[quote]For those who wear expensive jeans or just jeans in general, put them in the freezer instead of washing for 24-48 hours. It kills all the bacteria and doesn't ruin the rinse or fit.

Who are these idiots that think washing your jeans will ruin the look or fit? I wash my jeans all the time and they look exactly the same.

I turn my jeans inside out before putting in the wash. I helps with less fading.

It is true that not many people used face cloths, my dad did, in my head it's an old person thing, seems pointless when there's a shower to just not use hands to soap up with? Here's a link to (favourite old person store) Wilko, and their collection of face cloths for all you migrant Yanks over here in the UK that are desperate for a rag to wipe your faces with and who have run out of commemorative Trump 2021 towels.

Horseshit R89, a cleaning lady that found dusty surfaces and dirty towels is a surprise? If your job title has the word "cleaning" in it then get yourself where you like it, on all fours, and get fucking polishing love.

R97 - yeah you are right about that. But it was worse. She would find used underwear and smelly socks thrown on the floor and dirty, damp towels that smelled like mildew also on the bathroom floor. Ashtrays were full of cigarette butts by the sofa and in the kitchen. How does someone like to live in that smell for 14 days? l would be ashamed in front of the cleaning lady and definitely wouldn't tolerate such stench in my own space.

R65 They don't call them "face washers". They call them "flannels".

For me part of the shower process is to exfoliate. You always have a lot of tiny loose skin particles all over your body as the body sheds all the time, more so at different times of the year, especially if you have eczema as I do. Soaping up and washing yourself with nothing but your hand does not do the job adequately in my opinion. I like a nice rough wash cloth to get all those flakes. I also use one of those plastic mesh balls for the tougher parts of the body such as my lower legs

[quote] 44 percent of Americans wash their sheets once or twice a month.11 percent wash their sheets once a quarter. 5 percent wash them only once or twice a year.

That’s a disgusting 60%. not much better.

Well, if your Prime Minister looked like this....

I change my bed linens every Sunday (laundry day). But I sleep in a nightshirt. If i slept naked I'd change them twice a week, especially in the hot summer months. The idea of sleeping on sheets that haven't been washed in a year is nauseating.

I wash my sheets every three days. Comforter every 2 weeks. I have a cat. He’s clean but he sometimes goes from the litterbox to my bed and, well, eek!

You guys are grossing me out. I just washed my sheets after 2 years cuz of you.

I wash my sheets every three weeks, change pillowcases every week. NO ONE touches my bed, even me, before taking a shower. I hate, I mean absolutely loathe when people allow dogs or put their shoes on their beds.

R106 - agreed. I have 3 sets. I wash them every 2 weeks and change every week. I would rather sleep with no sheets than on sheets I know are dirty. I also neve allow pets pe shoes or even clothes I wear outside the house on the sheets. Shower and THEN hit the sheets. Some people are nasty.

Karl Lagerfeld had his maid change the sheets every day. He said he enjoyed that hotel feeling of fresh, clean sheets. Sigh. I wish I could afford someone to change my sheets every day.

r84 r88

Sorry! I worded this incorrectly.

[quote]After one year, washing is insufficient. The sheets should be replaced, I don't care how long they have in the family.

If you only wash your sheets once a year, they need to be replaced. I don't care how long they have been the family or if nana embroidered the edges of the pillowcases.

R108 - too bad the old queen went celibate and then dead. I would've loved to mess up a younger Karl's sheets.

Brits don’t even wash their dishes properly and London was found to test positive for feces on almost every item in public. It’s the dirtiest place on earth. They literally have fatbergs in their sewers (wadded up mountains of shit).

Gosh! Makes you wonder how they are all still alive R111, but could it possibly be that you have something in common with the sewers?

I would've given you two WWs if I could, R112, one for the wit and another for the Dolomite Sprint you have as your name. ❤

[quote] I've seen posts where AA regularly mock white people for not using washcloths and also not washing their lower legs (that seems to be a source of amusement to them). I'm white and I admit that I don't use a washcloth but I think I'll start. I use a long handled brush for hard to reach spots though.

Black people use wash cloths because the wiping motions exfoliates off dead cells and eliminates the potential of dreaded ashy elbows and knees. They also use emollient moisturising products for this purpose, hence why more careful washing is required than a soap-neck-pits-crack-then-drip type shower.

That is so gross. Why would people wait a year to wash their linens? I’m still disappointed that the hotels don’t wanna change the beds every day

I was a clean American teen and young man but there was a certain sensuality in letting myself get funky or being with another funky hottie. It doesn't work past the thirties. Certainly over 50, body effluvium has zero olfactive charm, outside the act of sex itself, and even then there is no guarantee.

Gross. I feel sorry for whoever steps foot in a British teenager's room without a gas mask.

Gross !!!

[quote]Worryingly, one in ten men (10%) of men claimed to wash their underwear after every 10 washes, compared to just 3% of women.

Well that would make me..... quite an extreme outlier, I imagine.

And some people still blame Meghan for leaving.

Funny guy r120

I don't use bedsheets, just a blanket. I sleep on top of my down comforter with the blanket over me.

Well don't you put a duvet cover on that down comforter?

[quote]I believe it was on Datalounge that I learned washcloths were an African-American thing (mostly)?

Lots of white guys use bar soap and their hands. Cue the screaming queens about how that's not "clean." Whatever. It is.

Yes I do r123! Forgot to mention that.

[quote]NO ONE touches my bed, even me, before taking a shower.

I shower every night, I can't get into bed without a shower. It's such a lovely clean feeling. I also shower in the morning.

Former DL Fave William Dead Eyes O'Connor doesn't use soap on his pure pale perfectly hirsute Irish Americanness.

[quote]. Soaping up and washing yourself with nothing but your hand does not do the job adequately in my opinion. I like a nice rough wash cloth to get all those flakes.

If I used a rough wash cloth my skin would be dry and flaky AF.

[quote]Former DL Fave William Dead Eyes O'Connor doesn't use soap on his pure pale perfectly hirsute Irish Americanness.

Well at least that's one thing his father-in-law doesn't have to pay for!

Much obliged to you R113, and may I say that I equally approve of your name too!

That's what disposable paper sheets are for.

sluts and whores