Scientists say wearing socks to bed is like ‘sleeping in a toilet’

If you wear the same socks to bed that you wore during the day, you might want to look away now.

New research has revealed just how dirty our socks can get on a daily basis, and it’ll make people think twice about leaving socks on overnight.

Not everyone wears them to sleep in, of course, but a US study estimated that up to a third of people regularly or occasionally do choose to keep them on in bed.

However, new research conducted by MattressNextDay shows just how important swapping out used socks for fresh ones can be.

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It turns out they’re dirtier than you might imagine. The study saw researchers swab pairs of socks that had been worn throughout the day from 7am to 11pm.

They found that in half of the socks samples, Pseudomonas aeruginosa could be detected.

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The bacteria can cause a large number of infections, and it’s also commonly found on cockroaches and in their droppings - not exactly the kind of thing you want to have close to your skin.

“It typically infects the airway and urinary tract, and causes infection of the lungs. It can easily spread on tools that get contaminated and are not properly cleaned,” the test found.

The research also found that the socks had more bacteria than a typical TV remote, which previous research found has more bacteria than a toilet.

According to the research, only 30 per cent of people who wear socks to bed change them for fresh ones – they might be changing their ways after seeing these results though.

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