Everything You Want to Know About Pillows

It’s often the pillows that really define your sleeping experience. If your pillows are too hard or too flat, you may find yourself tossing and turning to try to get into a comfortable position.

Pillows play a huge role in how you sleep every night, but they also require some upkeep if you’re going to have a healthy sleeping experience. Read on to learn more about the best types of pillow for your sleeping habits as well as some important pillow care advice.

There’s no such thing as the best type of pillow. It all depends entirely on your sleeping habits. Are you a side sleeper or a stomach sleeper? Do you have allergies or suffer from back pain? All these little quirks will have an impact on your sleeping experience and will affect the type of pillow you’ll need.

It seems to be the golden standard to have two pillows on your bed per sleeper. And yet this isn’t actually the healthiest option for your sleep. The best sleeping position is one that keeps your neck, head and spine in a neutral position - and the only way you’re going to achieve this is with one pillow.

Considering you spend about a third of your day with your head resting on your pillow, it’s naturally going to accumulate a fair amount of dirt, even with a pillowcase over it.

You should wash your pillows every 6 months to ensure they stay pristine white and free from dust mites and other nasty germs.

Most pillows can be washed in the washing machine, although it’s always best to check the care instructions on the pillow itself - some pillow fabrics or fillers can be damaged in the washing machine.

Even better, your pillows can also be dried in the dryer - in fact, it’s a great way to restore the fluffy, cloud-like feeling of your pillows (but more on that below!).

Even with a pillowcase on your pillow, your sweat can seep through to the pillow itself. Yellowing pillows might also be the result of moisture or chemicals from beauty products.

Thankfully, it is possible to whiten your pillows again by washing and treating them. The steps for machine washable pillows are as follows:

We love the fluffiness of brand new pillows, yet all too soon, they seem to lose that cloud-like feeling. So how do you get them back into shape? Actually, there are few tricks you can try to see which one works best for you.

For a start, simply try grabbing either end of your pillow and pumping it up and down. This can often be enough to bring a bit of volume back into it.

If that fails, tie up a tennis ball or two in a clean pillowcase and throw them along with your pillow into a dryer to spin together on a low heat for 10 to 15 minutes. Make sure your pillows can go in the dryer first though!

Air dry your pillows regularly. Just lay them on a table or drape them over your clothesline, and every so often, fluff them up and flip them. This helps get rid of the moisture that accumulates in your pillow. It will also do wonders bringing about a fresh smell in your bedding.

Your old pillows accumulate dead skin, body oils and dust mites over time. The inner filling will also eventually break down. So you’re going to want to replace it at some point, though few people do so as regularly as they should!

If your pillow is showing visible signs of lumps or bumps - or perhaps even a dent where you lay your head - it’s a good indication it’s time to replace it. Yellow sweat stains are also a good indication that it’s time to change your pillow.

You can also test your non-foam pillows with a folding test. Simply fold your pillow in half; if it doesn’t spring back to its original, flat shape, it’s time to upgrade.

In general, cheaper polyester pillows should be replaced every 6 months, while memory foam pillows or other styles with more structural integrity can last anywhere from 18 to 36 months.