4 ways to stay cool at night and sleep better in hot temperatures
- It's important to stay cool at night, as hot temperatures can make it more difficult to sleep.
- The most effective way to stay cool at night is by controlling the temperature of your sleep environment with air conditioning or fans.
- You should also wear light clothes (or sleep nude), invest in cool bedding, and change your lifestyle behaviors before bed.
- This article was medically reviewed by Raj Dasgupta, MD, an associate professor of clinical medicine in the division of pulmonary, critical care, and sleep medicine at Keck School of Medicine of USC.
Temperature is one of the many factors that can influence our sleep, and it's generally much more difficult to get quality sleep in hot temperatures.
If you're tossing and turning at night during the summer, trying to find a cool and comfortable position, here are a few steps you can take to get better sleep.
1. Control your sleep environment
"Sleep is best when the body is allowed to cool off at night — keeping the bedroom cool helps this happen," says Alex Dimitriu, MD, a sleep expert at Menlo Park Psychiatry & Sleep Medicine.
The ideal sleep environment can differ among people, but it's usually around 60°F to 67°F, according to the National Sleep Foundation.
While central air conditioning can quickly achieve that temperature range in all the rooms of your house, it can drive up your utility bills. The lower your AC temperature, the higher the energy consumption and cost.
The United States Department of Energy recommends setting your thermostat to 78°F in the summer, so the optimal sleep temperature might be too expensive to sustainably air condition your home. According to the Department of Energy, you can use programmable thermostats to cool your home only at certain times, which can be before you fall asleep and wake up.
Additionally, there are a few steps you can take throughout the day to ensure your home is cool at night. These tips can also help you stay cool without AC:
- Close curtains or blinds on windows to block the sun's heat from entering the house
- Turn on the fan in your bathroom to pull up the hot air after a shower
- Use the kitchen fan over the stove after cooking a meal
- Open your windows at night to let in cooler air
- If you're using a window fan, you can put a bowl of ice front of the fan to make the air feel colder
Where you sleep in your house also matters. Main floors and basements feel colder than the second or third story, because heat rises. When sleeping at higher stories, keep the curtains closed throughout the day, use portable fans, or consider installing ceiling fans.
It's also important to keep your bedroom dark. This will not only keep your room cool, but also reduce the amount of light entering your space, which can further improve your quality of sleep.
2. Use cool bedding and wear light clothes
Thick, heavy clothes or bedding can trap heat and make it more difficult to stay cool.
For example, one 2016 study published in the journal Nature and Science of Sleep found that wearing lighter, more breathable materials like cotton at 72°F helped participants fall asleep faster.
Or, you can ditch sleepwear, and sleep in the nude. About 8% of people sleep naked, according to the Southwest College of Naturopathic Medicine, and this can help you achieve a lower temperature that may be more optimal for quality sleep.
To learn more about purchasing the right bedding to stay cool, our colleagues at Insider Reviews have put together a buying guide for the best cooling mattress toppers.
3. Try a warm shower or bath before bed
If it's hot at night, it might seem like a cold shower can help lower your body temperature — but in fact, a warm one could be better.
For example, a 2019 systematic review published in the journal Sleep Medicine Reviews concluded that taking a warm shower or bath 60 to 90 minutes before bed can lead to better sleep quality and reduced sleep onset latency, or the amount of time it takes to fall asleep.
That's because warm showers can increase blood flow to your hands and feet, which helps your body remove heat more effectively. It's one of the many surprising benefits of hot showers when compared to cold showers.
4. Don't exercise right before bed
According to the National Sleep Foundation, exercising before bed raises your body temperature, increases your heart rate, and stimulates your nervous system — all making sleep more difficult. It's best to avoid vigorous exercise at least one hour before bed.
Instead, exercising in the morning or afternoon can lead to better sleep quality. Since exercise raises your body temperature, you'll have plenty of time to cool down, according to the National Sleep Foundation, and that gradual drop in temperature throughout the day can help you sleep better at night.
The bottom line
It's important to keep your sleep environment at a cool, comfortable temperature to get a good night's rest.
On top of the above steps, there are a few more tricks that might help you stay cool at night, such as:
- Maintain space from a bed partner, whose body heat may may warm you up
- Apply ice or cold packs to your body before bed, especially where you feel a pulse, such as on your wrist or neck
- Sleep on a small and firm pillow, as big fluffy ones tend to trap more heat
If you frequently feel hot or sweaty in the night, and it's disrupting your sleep, you may want to talk with your doctor about the common causes of night sweats.