We spend more than a third of our lives in bed — but that place can quickly blossom into a "botanical park" of bacteria and fungus, according to New York University microbiologist Philip Tierno.

　　纽约大学微生物学家菲利普.蒂尔诺说，一生中，我们花费在床上的时间超过三分之一，但那个地方可以很快发展成细菌和真菌的“植物园”。

　　If left for too long, the microscopic life within the wrinkles and folds of our bed sheets can even make us sick, Tierno told Business Insider.

　　蒂尔诺告知《商业内幕》记者，如果我们在床上停留太长时间，滋生在床单褶皱中的微生物甚至会使我们生病。

　　To stem the invisible tide, he said sheets should be washed once a week.

　　为了防止隐形细菌继续滋生，他认为应该每周洗一次床单。

　　Humans naturally produce roughly 26 gallons of sweat in bed every year. When it’s hot and humid outside, this moisture becomes what scientists call an "ideal fungal culture medium."

　　人类每年在床上会自然产生约26加仑的汗水。 当外界炎热潮湿时，这种湿气将成为科学家所称的“理想的真菌培养基”。

　　In a recent study that assessed the level of fungal contamination in bedding, researchers found that feather and synthetic pillows between 1.5 and 20 years old can contain between four and 17 different species of fungus.

　　在最近一项评估床上真菌污染水平的研究中，研究人员发现，已使用1.5至20年的羽毛和合成枕头中含有4至17种不同种类的真菌。

　　And it’s not just your own microbial life you’re sleeping with. In addition to the fungi and bacteria that come from your sweat, sputum, skin cells, and vaginal and anal excretions, you also share your bed with foreign microbes. These include animal dander, pollen, soil, lint, dust mite debris and feces, and finishing agents from whatever your sheets are made from, to name a few.

　　这不仅仅是你自己睡觉带来的微生物。 除了来自汗水，唾液，皮肤细胞，阴道和肛门排泄物的真菌和细菌外，外来微生物也会占领你的床。 这些包括动物皮屑，花粉，土壤，棉绒，尘螨碎屑和粪便，以及来自床单原材料中的整理剂，仅举几例。

　　Tierno says all that gunk becomes "significant" in as little as a week. And unclean bedding still exposes you to materials that can trigger the sniffing and sneezing, since the microbes are so close to your mouth and nose that you’re almost forced to breathe them in.

　　蒂尔诺说，所有的这些垃圾在短短一周内变得“值得注意”。 不洁净的被褥仍会使你接触到可以触发抽鼻子和打喷嚏的物质。因为这些微生物离你的嘴和鼻子太近了，所以你几乎只能被迫吸入这些物质。

　　"Even if you don’t have allergies per se, you can have an allergic response," Tierno said.

　　“即使你本身没有过敏症，你也可能有过敏反应，”蒂尔诺说。

　　Another reason your sheets get dirty quickly has little to do with your behavior or sweat patterns — the issue is simply gravity.

　　你的床单很快变脏的另一个原因与你的行为或出汗方式并无关系—该问题仅仅与重力有关。

　　"Just like Rome overtime was buried with the debris that falls from gravity, gravity is what brings all that material into your mattress," Tierno said.

　　“就像罗马长期被由于重力下落的碎片所埋葬一样，重力是指将所有物质带入床垫的现象，”蒂尔诺说。

　　One to two weeks of this build-up is enough to leave anyone with a scratchy throat — especially those with significant allergies or asthma.(One in six Americans have allergies.)

　　一到两周的积累就足以让任何人喉咙发痒— 特别是那些有明显过敏或哮喘的人(六分之一的美国人有过敏症。)

　　"If you touched dog poo in the street, you’d want to wash your hands," said Tierno. "Consider that analogous to your bedding. If you saw what was there — but of course you don’t see it — after a while you have to say to yourself, ’Do I want to sleep in that?’"

　　“如果你在街上碰到了狗狗，你要洗手，”蒂尔诺说。 “试想一下，那就好像是你的被褥。如果你看到那里有什么—当然你是看不到它的— 过一会儿你必须对自己说，‘我想在那儿睡觉吗?’”