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Chimpanzee nests are cleaner because chimps are better housekeepers than humans. A scientific study found that the nests chimps build in the jungle are actually cleaner and safer than human beds.
Researchers swabbed 41 chimp nests in Tanzania and tested the samples for parasites. When the samples were tested, more than half of the chipanzee nests were free of insects and other pests. Only 15 of the nests contained insects. Parasites that prey on chimps were found in just four of the nests.
“Human beds are rife with microbes, mites, fungus, and pests like bed bugs in sharp contrast to chimp nests,” New York University biologist Philip Tierno told The Washington Post. In his recent research, Tierno has discovered that mattresses are covered with dead skin and filled with unbelievable amounts of debris including foods particles which draw insects.
Your Bed is Probably Dirtier than a Chimpanzee Nest
Mattresses contain so much debris that they get measurably heavier over time, Tierno said. Nor are mattresses the only part of beds that are covered with microbes.
“The microbes we found on pillowcases are similar in composition to the microbes found on toilet seats,” Holly Menninger of the Bell Museum of Natural History said. Menninger tested bedding during research published in 2013.
Chimpanzee Nests Cleaner Because Chimps Don’t Foul Their Own Nests
Scientists were also surprised by what they did not find in chimp nests – fecal matter, The Washington Post reported. Chimpanzees are apparently smart enough to use an outside bathroom.
To be fair to humans, chimps move more than humans and so build new “chimpanzee nests” more often. People usually sleep in the same bed every night and are often too lazy to change sheets and too cheap to buy a new “microbe-free” mattress when appropriate.
Humans can learn a valuable lesson from the chimps. They can change their sheets regularly and use the washing machine more often. Buying a new mattress every two or three years is also an excellent idea.
Simply running a hot-water wash in the washing machine will kill almost all the germs found on human bedding. Changing your sheets every other day, and making sure the water temperature is turned up as hot as possible on your washer will help protect you and your family from most germs.
The truth is, chimpanzees have an important lesson to teach people. Cleanliness and sanitary conditions are possible in any environment without high-tech tools – even in the jungle. Merely changing your bedding with regularity can protect you from all kinds of “bad-bug” germs and parasites. There are also some great off-the-grid ways to get rid of bed bugs
