Finally a good night’s sleep
This is the best temperature in the bedroom
Trouble sleeping? This is the best temperature for sleeping
© Pixel-Shot / Shutterstock
Warm and cold sleepers start discussing again in winter: turn up the heating or would you prefer to turn it off? Experts have a clear answer to this.
It’s a tempting thought: from the cozy living room we hop straight into the warm bed in the cozy bedroom. The heating, which is already running at full speed, should lead us warm and dry into the land of dreams. Sleep researchers: inside, however, warn against turning up the heating in the bedroom. Because the higher the temperature is set, the more unhealthy our sleep is.
The optimal bedroom temperature
Some people turn on the heating in the bedroom as early as autumn, while others sleep with the windows open even when the temperature is below zero – both approaches are not optimal. According to sleep psychologist Dr. Michelle Drerup is the optimal temperature in the bedroom between 15 and 19 degrees Celsius. “It should be cool and dark and calm to improve your sleep,” explains the expert in a contribution from the Cleveland Clinic (UNITED STATES).
Warmth is a major disruptive factor in REM sleep
If it is too warm or too cold in the bedroom, we sleep more restlessly and wake up earlier. Studies show that intense heat or cold is directly related to wakefulness and decreased REM sleep (the stage at which we dream). “Thermoregulation is very important in order to remain in restful deep sleep phases,” said the expert. “These are the phases in which we rest the most.”
But not only our deep sleep phases are disturbed. Researchers assume that the body is deprived of massive amounts of water when the temperature is too high. Since we lose around 0.5 – 0.75 liters of fluid at night (even more in rooms above 16 degrees), the body withdraws water from our blood when there is a lack of fluids. This makes our blood thicker and slower to flow. The result is an impaired supply of oxygen to our brain cells, which in turn can cause headaches.
Correctly set the heating in the bedroom
Usually we don’t have to heat at all for the optimal temperature of 15 to 19 degrees Celsius. A thermometer in the bedroom can still help you to be sure. If the temperature goes significantly lower, the heater can can be set to level two. That corresponds to about 16 degrees Celsius.
Sources used: heilpraxisnet.de, wmn.de