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   Nov 26

Why sleeping with the heating on is a bad way to combat the cold | UK News | Sky News

Winter is coming – although it feels like it’s here already – prompting many of us to reach for the thermostat to keep us toasty as temperatures plunge into single digits.

But while the idea of cranking up the central heating before settling down with a film and a cuppa might sound like the perfect way to combat the cold, keeping it on through the night is not such a good idea.

Experts say getting tucked under the duvet with the thermostat on full blast may be a recipe for a bedtime disaster, making our bodies far too warm to doze off.

Sleep consultant Maryanne Taylor, from The Sleep Works, told Sky News: “If the room is too hot, our body needs to work extra hard to regulate our body temperature during the night.

“This can increase wakefulness and reduce our time in deep, slow wave sleep, which is the all-important restorative sleep, enabling us to feel rested and energetic the next day.”

She added: “Scientists have discovered that people who suffer from insomnia have raised body temperature levels when they first go to bed, making it more difficult for them to fall asleep.

“The result of this is an increased state of arousal as their bodies need longer to lose that excess heat, which is causing them to stay awake.”

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For the best possible night’s sleep, it is recommended that you drop your core body temperature by having a hot bath or shower between 40 minutes and an hour before you go to bed.

The subsequent drop in body temperature aids production of the sleep hormone melatonin, which can be stifled if the room you sleep in is too hot.

Resist the urge to pump up the thermostat at night

Other tips for a good night’s sleep include:

  • Regulate the temperature of your bedroom to around 18C, keeping the room as dark as possible and free of clutter, which can exacerbate a cluttered mind which can have a detrimental effect on sleep
  • Keep electronics out of bedroom and try to avoid using screens too close to bedtime
  • Try to eat breakfast within around 30 minutes of waking up to boost blood sugar levels; get light exposure as soon as possible in the morning to help you feel more alert
  • Incorporate exercise into your day, ideally getting out of breath for up to 20 minutes each day; have regular meals and healthy snacks in between to avoid blood sugar level dips during the day
  • Try to incorporate a ‘buffer zone’ leading up to bedtime to allow switching down time before getting into bed – hot shower or bath, followed by relaxing activities, which allows your body and mind to wind down which enables more relaxed and restful sleep

Source: Sky News

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