Contrary to popular urban legend, people do not typically eat spiders in their sleep. Spiders have no interest in crawling into the mouths of sleeping humans. They generally prefer to avoid large creatures such as humans as they are perceived as a threat.

This myth may have been perpetuated due to misunderstandings about spider behavior or simply as a scary story. Realistically, it’s highly unlikely for a spider to end up in a human mouth, even for those who might sleep with their mouths open. Spiders are more likely to hide in dark, quiet, and undisturbed places.

There is no scientific evidence I am aware of to support the idea that we regularly swallow spiders in our sleep.