How to Sleep Well in Hot Weather

Cool Sleep Secrets: How to Sleep Well in Hot Weather

December means one thing for South Africans, summer. Summer nights often bring warm, sticky conditions that can make sleep elusive. The combination of high temperatures and humidity can make it nearly impossible to sleep comfortably. Let’s explore how heat affects sleep and some practical summer sleep tips to try and beat the heat.

Impact of Heat on Sleep

If all goes well, we should fall asleep relatively easily (within 5-20min), get 7-9h of unbroken sleep and wake up feeling refreshed and ready to take on the day. But environmental heat can disrupt this essential process, impacting both the quality and duration of our sleep. Heat does this in part by disrupting the circadian pattern of our core body temperature. Let’s unpack this: like many other processes in the body, core temperature has a circadian rhythm. Circadian rhythms are roughly 24h patterns that occur naturally within the body, controlled by a “master clock” in the suprachiasmatic nuclei of our brain. To make sure that our body’s rhythms are aligned to the light-dark cycle of our environment, however, cues like light, meal timing and temperature are critical to tell our body whether it is time to be awake or asleep.

Typically, body temperature should decrease in the evening, aligning with melatonin release, to signal bedtime and facilitate sleep. When the environment is too warm, however, this cooling process is impaired, which may make it harder to fall asleep or stay asleep, resulting in shorter or fragmented sleep, and decreasing time spent in rapid eye movement (REM) and deep sleep. The end result is the sleep feels more broken and less restorative than usual.

Tips for Staying Cool and Sleeping Better

  1. Keep your sleep space cool: Use a fan, air conditioner, or breathable bedding like cotton to promote airflow and reduce heat retention.
  2. Cool your body: Take a lukewarm shower before bed or use a damp cloth on pulse points like your wrists and neck to assist with evaporative cooling.
  3. Choose light sleepwear: Opt for breathable, loose-fitting fabrics to minimize overheating during the night.
  4. Limit heavy meals and caffeine close to bedtime as these can increase body temperature.

By implementing these summer sleep tips and creating a cool sleeping environment, you can help your body cope with warmer nights and continue reaping the restorative benefits of quality sleep—even when the temperatures rise. If you feel your sleep problems go beyond the occasional sweltering night, then contact Sleep Science and let one of our consultants help you optimise your sleep. Find us at www.sleepscience.co.za or email us at [email protected].