Why you should never, ever, under any circumstance go to bed with wet hair

A hygiene expert has weighed in, and fungus and mould are just a couple of disgusting possibilities on the long, gross list of things that can grow while you sleep. 

Fungal infections, dandruff, mould growing in your pillow.

It sounds like a nightmare, but actually those are just some of the revolting afflictions that can plague you if you’re in the habit of sleeping with wet hair.

According to hygiene expert Madame Sweat, if you’re too tired to dry your wet hair before bedtime, you should save the hair washing for morning.

“If you go to bed at night with your hair wet or damp, I’m going to give you three things that you should probably worry about,” she said in a TikTok video that we kind of wish we’d never seen.

“One, you could get a fungal infection in your scalp.”

Sounds awful, but it gets worse.

“If you have dandruff, it’s going to make it even worse because fungus will grow from moisture.”

So far, we’ve got more fungus and more dandruff. That morning hair wash is sounding better and better.

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From split ends to fungal infections, going to bed with wet hair can cause all kinds of issues. Photo: TikTok

Hygiene expert warns against going to bed with wet hair

We already know that pillows can get pretty gross, what with all the sweat and sloughed-off skin that can accumulate in the filling.

If you think about it, getting a pillow damp, say with wet hair, probably doesn’t help the situation.

“If you haven’t cleaned your pillow, you better get working on it,” Madame Sweat said.

“It’s already a hot bed for fungus. You’re going to cause even more by putting that moisture in and letting it sit there and fester.”

And it turns out going to bed with wet hair isn’t just gross, it’s bad for your locks.

“When your hair is wet, it’s in a weakened state and has to be treated very gently,” she said.

“When you’re tossing and turning on your pillow, you can also cause breakage at the shaft, which means you’re going to end up with a lot more split ends.”

In short, Madame Sweat said, “don’t go to bed with wet hair”.

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TikTok on sleeping with wet hair goes viral

People had a lot of opinions on the topic, with almost 1,000 users rushing to the comments to weigh in.

Many protected the practice of sleeping with wet hair.

“I’m 45 years old and I went to bed with wet hair most of my life… never got a fungal infection,” said one person.

“I’ve been going to bed every night for 30+ years and never had an issue,” said another.

“Here I am with my wet hair in bed watching this,” laughed a third person.

Some people claimed they got headaches.

“When I sleep with wet hair, I wake up with severe headaches, so bad I want to throw up,” said one woman.

“I wake up with a bad headache if I go to sleep with wet hair,” agreed another woman.

But some people said they were living proof that Madame Sweat was right.

“I 100 percent have a fungal scalp issue and regularly go to bed with wet hair,” said one woman.

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How does fungus cause dandruff?

Why does dandruff become an issue if you leave your hair wet?

While it’s not known exactly what causes dandruff, there’s a strong correlation between seborrhoeic dermatitis and a very common fungus.

“Seborrhoeic dermatitis is a form of skin inflammation that usually occurs on the scalp, face and torse… it’s also called seborrhoeic eczema, which can lead to dandruff,” according to Health Direct.

“Seborrhoeic dermatitis may be caused by an immune reaction to a microscopic fungus called Malassezia.

“Malassezia is normally present on healthy skin, around the areas where oil is produced, but some people develop an immune reaction to Malassezia for reasons that remain unknown. It is not contagious, nor a sign of poor hygiene.”

So it’s not caused by poor hygiene, but possibly by fungus. And like Madame Sweat says, fungus loves damp, for example damp hair on a damp pillow. 

The upshot? Dry your wet hair before bed, or stop washing it before bedtime.

Originally published as Why you should never, ever, under any circumstance go to bed with wet hair