bdmetronews Desk ॥ As the UK steels itself for this week’s forecast heatwave, many of us are already worried about how our sleep will be affected.
The predicted highs of 33C will bring hot nights and, considering very few UK homes have air conditioning, an uncomfortable environment for sleeping.
There are numerous hacks that do the rounds each heatwave (frozen pillows, frozen hot water bottles, not opening the curtains or windows during the day… we’ve tried them all) but there’s one thing experts reckon we absolutely shouldn’t be doing: sleeping naked.
Sleeping sans clothes might seem like a good idea, but experts suggest it actually makes you hotter.
“Sleeping naked always seems to be the answer for most people when it comes to uninterrupted sleep in the heat, but this is a myth,” Christabel Majendie, resident sleep expert at Naturalmat reveals.
As it turns out, wearing pyjama fabrics draws sweat away from your body and makes you feel a lot cooler and more comfortable.
Who knew?
“When you sleep naked sweat actually collects on the body and then remains there. The fabric in pyjamas will wipe the moisture away from the body so sleeping naked doesn’t help you to cool down at all,” Majendie explains.
This rule doesn’t apply to babies. The Lullaby Trust advises parents that babies will be fine to sleep in just a nappy during hot weather.
The National Sleep Foundation advises that keeping windows, blinds and curtains closed during the day will help keep the hot temperature out.
It’s also worth considering that sleeping with a fan on all night might be bad for your health.
According to Sleep Advisor, sleeping with a fan can spread allergies, cause dry skin and contribute to sore muscles.
It seems there’s a big list of things we shouldn’t do in order to keep cool during a heatwave, but is there any sage pieces of advice we should try out to stop us from tossing and turning into the evening?
If you live in a multi-storey building, you will already know that heat rises (yes, that’s why your room is sweltering) so it might be worth considering moving downstairs if you can, the National Sleep Foundation recommends.
Creating a temporary bedroom in your lounge might not be the most practical living arrange in the long term, but if you’ve got a too-hot-to-handle bedroom on your hands, it’s time to get inventive.
uk.style.yahoo.com
