By Natalie Corner
A woman came under fire from ITV's This Morning show viewers after she confessed she only changes her bed sheets once every three weeks, and sometimes four "when things are hectic".
Karen Aldridge, from Birmingham, bravely welcomed the show's consumer expert Alice Beer into her home to air her dirty laundry and inspect her mattress for dirt and bed bugs, according to the Daily Mail.
But when she informed Beer about her habits, those watching at home were quick to brand her "lazy" and a "dirty cow".
A Rentokil expert cleaned her mattresses and told her they would be full of dust mites, sweat and skin cells.
He revealed a bucket of murky water to Aldridge, which had her screaming in shock.
"Can you believe how much dirt you were sleeping on?" asked Beer.
"That is just shocking, absolutely shocking. I can't believe how much dirt was in there," Aldridge responded, horrified.
Those watching at home were equally as shocked.
Ergh who changes there bed sheets every 3-4 weeks😷mate I change mine every week!! @thismorning #ThisMorning #DustMites
— Georgia (@GeorgiaEarley_) July 21, 2017
Who doesn't change their bed for 4 weeks??? Urgh!! And why the hell would you admit to it on national TV??? #ThisMorning
— Rebecca (@rebbedy1802) July 21, 2017
3 to 4 weeks without changing the sheets? Dirty cow #thismorning
— Claire Willows (@squidsleg) July 21, 2017
Who doesn't change their bed for 4 weeks??? Urgh!! And why the hell would you admit to it on national TV??? #ThisMorning
— Rebecca (@rebbedy1802) July 21, 2017
How can this woman change her bed once every 4 weeks 😷 i change mine once a week without fail! #thismorning
— jen wiltshire (@Xjenwiltshire) July 21, 2017
Aldridge explained she had lived in her home for 27 years, and although she and her husband sleep on a mattress that is roughly 3 years old, her son Joey had been sleeping on the same one for the past 12 years.
Asked by Beer how long she would leave putting fresh sheets on, she gingerly admitted: "I would leave it three weeks, maybe four when things are hectic."
Beer brought in Rentokil hygiene expert Luke Rutterford to vacuum her mattress using a special machine with an extremely high suction to get to the bottom of what was lurking.
"Obviously in a bed you're going to find sweat, you're going to find dead skin cells, there is going to be bacteria," he explained.
"One of the issues we have are dust mites. They are only tiny, 1 to 1.5mm, and they can move down beneath the bedding and get into the mattress itself."
"This is not something to be ashamed of this is just the reality of what lives inside a mattress," Beer reassured.
It was a similar story for her son's mattress, Aldridge adding "that is pretty gross".
Rutterford advised people to vacuum their beds regularly, air out the mattress by opening windows and washing sheets on a hot temperature to get rid of the dreaded bed bugs and keep on top of cleanliness.