15 Household Items That Can Make You Sick

When people think about germs and bed sheets, they frequently jump right to bedbugs. While these are a potent fear that’ll have you cleaning your sheets at least once a month (hopefully), there are other threats lurking in your sheets that you may not be able to see, but nevertheless pose a risk to your health. According to a study done by Amerisleep, there are four types of bacteria possibly setting up shop in your bed, two of which are linked to pneumonia and food poisoning, and two that are not harmful to humans.

These, along with other fungi and disease-causing organisms, end up on our bedsheets due to eating food in bed, expulsion of bodily fluids, animal dander, pollen carried in from our own bodies, and other sources. Unfortunately, some of these germs and allergens can survive a washing, so be sure to use an antibacterial detergent, especially if someone with a cold or food poisoning recently used the sheets.