Is This The Reason You Can't Fall Asleep In Summer?
woman & home South Africa|January 2018

If you find it hard to drift away on summer nights, don’t despair. We’ve found some cool solutions to hot-weather insomnia

Patsy Westcott & Jade Crocket
Is This The Reason You Can't Fall Asleep In Summer?

We tend to spend more time outdoors and be extra active in summer, both of which should encourage sound sleep, yet for so many of us that’s not the case. Why? According to experts, it’s all about our body’s internal temperature gauge and the vital role it plays in triggering sleep, which can be sent awry by even a modest amount of sun, never mind sweltering nights. Sleep expert Dr Neil Stanley explains: “The underlying reason why hot weather disturbs our sleep is the narrower ‘temperature gradient’ – the difference between our body’s core temperature and our surroundings.

“The temperature of our internal organs – or core body temperature – needs to fall, by around 0,5°C, for sleep to happen. This drop begins as we go to sleep, reaching its lowest point in the early hours of around 2 to 4am. It doesn’t sound like a very big drop, but the warmer your bedroom, the narrower the temperature gradient, and the more difficulty your body has in losing enough heat to usher in sleep.”

Women aged 45+ can be particularly affected because of the dodgy internal thermostat that invariably accompanies loss of oestrogen at perimeno pause and menopause. Research has also shown that, irrespective of dwindling oestrogen, from around the age of 55, ‘slow-wave’ restorative sleep becomes harder to come by, and you have a perfect recipe for a night spent tossing and turning.

6 DREAM TICKETS

1 THINK NATURAL

Opt for light natural fabrics that ‘breathe’, like cotton, linen, hemp and bamboo, for nightwear and bedclothes, rather than polyester or other synthetic fabrics that trap heat and warm you up.

2 FLING OUT A FOOT

This story is from the January 2018 edition of woman & home South Africa.

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This story is from the January 2018 edition of woman & home South Africa.

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