Avoid night sweats and overheating with simple changes to your bedding, sleep environment, and routine.
Good sleep isn’t just important for waking up refreshed, it’s vital for physical and mental health. You’ll spend nearly one-third of your life sleeping, but it’s not just downtime.
As you sleep, your brain is at work consolidating memories and clearing toxins, while your body is busy digesting food and releasing important metabolic and growth hormones.
Sleep is vital for good health, but if you’re a hot sleeper, getting a good night’s rest can be a challenge. Overheating and night sweats can cause tossing and turning that interrupts your natural sleep cycles. And not getting enough REM sleep can leave you feeling groggy.
If you’re a hot sleeper who struggles to get enough uninterrupted sleep, keep reading for tips, advice, and hot sleeper solutions. With a few simple changes—like using fans and switching to cooling bed sheets—it may be possible to dramatically improve the quality of your sleep.
Why Do I Get Hot When I Sleep?
There are many reasons you might be a hot sleeper, from the wrong bedding to hormonal changes. Here are some of the most common reasons for sleeping hot:
- The wrong bedding: If your bedding is too heavy or doesn’t promote good airflow, it can trap heat and cause overheating. Even if you feel comfortable as you fall asleep, heat build-up during the night can wake you up and interrupt your sleep cycles. SHEEX offers the right bedding—lightweight, breathable, and designed to keep you cool all night long. Keep reading to learn more about how choosing the right bedding can transform your sleep.
- Hormonal changes: Many people experience night sweats due to hormonal changes around their menstrual cycle, hormonal changes during perimenopause or menopause, or hormonal changes during pregnancy.
- Health conditions: Medical problems like obstructive sleep apnea, viral infections, digestive diseases, and hormonal diseases like hyperthyroidism and diabetes can also cause night sweats.
- Hot sleep environment: If you run hot while you sleep, room temperature is especially important. Experts recommend keeping the temperature of your sleeping space between 60-67°F.
- Medications: There’s a long list of medications that can alter body temperature or cause nighttime sweating. They include diabetes medications, antidepressants, and even pain relievers like aspirin and acetaminophen.
Being a Hot Sleeper Is Common
If you run hot at night, you’re not alone. In fact, it’s a very common problem.
According to Gallup, 14% of US adults surveyed said they felt too hot “always” or “most of the time” when sleeping or trying to sleep. Another 43% reported occasionally feeling too hot when sleeping or trying to sleep.
Sleeping hot is more common among women. In the same Gallup report, 18% of the women surveyed said they felt too hot always or most of the time when sleeping or trying to sleep, versus 10% of the men surveyed.
Being too hot was the third most common reason survey respondents reported having trouble sleeping, after illness or physical discomfort, and waking to use the bathroom.
Tips for Hot Sleepers
Being too hot at night can be a major sleep disruptor. The good news is there are hot sleeper solutions. Here’s how to stay cool when sleeping.
Change your bedding.
Good sleep starts with good bedding. While traditional cotton sheets trap heat and moisture, the best cooling sheets for hot sleepers are engineered to wick away moisture and dissipate heat through capillary action. For the greatest benefits, pair performance sheets with a cooling mattress pad and comforter designed to transfer heat away from your body. You should start to notice the difference immediately.
Upgrade your mattress.
Your mattress may be contributing to nighttime overheating. Materials like memory foam and polyester tend to retain heat and trap it under your body. Consider investing in a mattress specifically designed for hot sleepers. Quality cooling mattresses promote better airflow to keep you more comfortable through the night. This is especially helpful if you share a bed with someone who prefers a warmer sleeping environment.
Use fans.
Oscillating and overhead fans are an affordable way to stay cooler at night. By circulating air over your body as you sleep, fans help disperse heat away from your body. If possible, consider using window fans to bring in cooler night air from outside. This is an effective option if you don’t have an air conditioning system.
Lower the thermostat.
For optimal sleep, experts recommend maintaining a bedroom temperature between 60-67°F. If you tend to sleep hot, setting the thermostat toward the lower end of this range can help you sleep more comfortably. Think of your room as a “cave.” A cool, dark environment promotes deeper, more restful sleep.
Get in a light workout at night.
While it may run contrary to what you’ve heard in the past, newer research has found that working out at night may actually help you sleep better. One study found that low- to moderate-intensity exercise helped people fall asleep faster and spend more time in deep sleep. However, high-intensity exercise (like interval training) close to bedtime can disrupt sleep, so take it easy with nighttime workouts.
Check your medications.
A long list of medications can cause overheating and excessive sweating. Here are just a few examples:
- Antidepressants
- Hormone therapy
- Corticosteroids
- Over-the-counter pain relievers (such as aspirin)
- ADHD stimulant medications
If you suspect a medication you’re taking may be contributing to night sweats or overheating at night, talk to your doctor.
Avoid caffeine and sugar at night.
It may seem harmless to have an after-dinner espresso or sugary treat, but doing so could disrupt your sleep. Caffeine increases alertness and raises your core body temperature, which can make it harder to fall and stay asleep. Eating sugar can raise your body temperature by stimulating the release of insulin, which in turn is known to stimulate the production of body heat.
Get the Best Cooling Sheets for Hot Sleepers
If you or your partner is a hot sleeper, you need SHEEX® performance sheets and bedding. Engineered to wick away moisture as you sleep, SHEEX® fabrics transfer heat up to 10x more effectively than traditional cotton. No more tossing and turning. No more waking up damp.
Get the sleep you deserve and experience the difference of bedding designed just for hot sleepers—shop SHEEX® cooling sheets, pillows, mattress pads, comforters, and performance sleepwear.
Original Performance Mattress Pad
$179.00
Description Details Care Technology and performance were top of mind when designing our Original Performance Mattress Pad. Starting from the surface, we combined our breathable, moisture-wicking Original Performance fabric with hypoallergenic CoolX™ fiber fill technology to keep you cool and… read more
