Washing instructions - sheets

[Iceni]

Sorry if this is in the wrong area, but I was not sure where to put this.

I recently bought some sheets for single beds. I was amazed to find the washing instructions stated 'for hygiene reasons, these sheets have been treated to withstand washing at 90 C', and instructions for only washing at 90 C were on the label. Now I am a 'hot' wash fanatic for sheets etc but had not seen this for years. I then bought a stock of allergy tablets and inside on the instructions it stated that all bedlinen should be washed at a minimum of 60C as anything below that was unhygienic and would not kill off dust mites and so agravate allergies. Both of these were in France.

Now, I know that in the good old days when we had a 'copper' and boiled all linen (or sent it to the 'bag wash' when we were flush) whites were white and allergies were far less. I sleep very badly in anything but pure cotton but when you are running a B&B or Gite I would imagine that polycotton washed at 40 C is the norm.

What is hyenic and what is not? I remember being told that at current normal wash temperatures with modern powders/liquids, headlice 'come out clean and raring to go'.  Arial now claims to get your whites sparkling clean at 40 C yet we are told to spray every surface with chemicals/bleach to prevent germs - perhaps we have things the wrong way round.

I will continue to wash whites (including underwear that has a lower temperature on it) at 90 C and coloureds at 60 C with the addition of oxygen bleach. I don't use wash powders much as I get a better result with washing balls and oxy bleach and know that the washing is clean and hygienic. I also add chlorine bleach if anyone has been unwell and for handkerchiefs and washing up cloths. I use cotton hankies as I am allergic to paper hankies and I will not bore you with the amount of time it took for that penny to drop .

Have we been brainwashed or are the wheels just turning again?