Should you make your bed every morning?

There are two types of people in this world: the bed makers and the non-bed makers. Which side are you on?

For many of us, mornings are a blur of showering, breakfast and getting ourselves (and perhaps children) ready before bolting out the door. Tidying the bed can fall to the bottom of the priority list. But is it OK to kick off the covers and leave them – or should we make our beds like our mums told us to? Today we’re look at the case for and against a neat and tidy bed.

The pros

There’s a small sense of accomplishment that comes with folding down your sheets and smoothing your pillows in the morning. It can make you feel like you have your life under control, and it kick-starts a day of ticking tasks off.

You might sleep better, too: research by America’s National Sleep Foundation shows individuals or couples that make their bed every day or almost every day report better sleep than those who rarely or never tidy their bed. Moreover, according to a study by Hunch, 71% of bed makers consider themselves happy, while 62% of non-bed makers admit to being unhappy. Bed makers are also more likely to enjoy their jobs, own a home and exercise regularly.

Bed making has even been endorsed by former Navy SEAL and head of the US Special Operations Command, Admiral William McRaven, who says: “If by chance you have a miserable day, you will come home to a bed that is made – that you made – and a made bed gives you encouragement that tomorrow will be better. If you want to change the world, start off by making your bed.”

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The cons

It’s not all bad news for the rumpled-sheet leavers among us. The most obvious argument against making your bed is that it wastes precious minutes you could be spending doing something important, such as eating toast. Also, it’s difficult to see why you should be neatly lining up your throw pillows when all you’re going to do is toss them off again hours later.

And while you might think making your bed is a healthy habit, research shows dust mites prefer a made bed. The average bed can be home to up to 1.5 million dust mites, and a Kingston University study found that while they can’t survive in the warm, dry conditions found in an unmade bed, they thrive in the humid, warm conditions of a neatly made one.

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The verdict

While there are more pros for the bed makers, at the end of the day, it’s your bedroom; your sanctuary. It’s important that when you slide between the sheets, your bed feels good. But don’t lose sleep over whether it should be made or not.