If you deal with night sweats, you understand how much it affects your quality of sleep. These episodes of heavy sweating occur while you sleep, and they often cause people to awaken in the middle of the night. While some instances of night sweats are caused by an underlying medical condition, the type of bedding you use can also play a role. This guide will explore which fabric is the best bedding if you are experiencing night sweating, and what types of bedding you should avoid helping you stay cool and comfortable for a good night’s rest.
Certain types of bedding may exacerbate night sweats and make them worse. Various materials can have a profound effect on your body temperature, particularly materials that are not breathable. If you use heavy bedding that doesn’t allow for good airflow, it will trap your body heat while you slumber. Thick bedding might help you stay nice and cozy on cold winter nights, but it’s not typically breathable or lightweight. For those who suffer from night sweats, selecting the correct type of bedding for night sweats is vital to promote a healthy night of sleep and to boost your general well-being. Without good airflow, it’s very possible that the sheets you use are the cause of occasional (or regular) night sweats.
When it comes to your body temperature at night, it’s all about breathability. Heavy sheets like flannel don’t promote good airflow, leaving your body heat to remain trapped under the bed sheets. When your body heat can’t escape, it can easily lead to overheating. If you are a hot sleeper, it’s important to avoid certain types of bedding so you have a better chance of staying cool all night long.
As for finding cool bedding for sweaty sleepers, you need to know which options to avoid first. Stay away from sheets made of synthetic materials like polyester or flannel. These materials can not only restrict airflow, but they’ll also increase your body temperature. Flannel sheets are popular during the winter because they do a great job of keeping you nice and warm. However, if you sleep hot, then heavyweight fabric like flannel should be avoided regardless of the season. Stay away from any sheets that are labelled as being “heavy weight” if you want to avoid waking up lying in a pool of sweat.
Here are some helpful tips that will make it easier for you to find the best bed sheets for night sweats so you can enjoy a cool night's sleep.
If you want cool bedding for night sweats, you’ll need to know which types of fabric are best. Let’s look closer at a few of the most common bedding fabrics, and compare various fabric properties to help you find the sheets for hot sleepers. First, the most common fabrics used to make bedding include materials like bamboo, cotton, linen, microfiber, silk, polyester, and flannel, which is typically a thicker and heavier form of cotton. Read on to do some comparison of the properties for a few of these popular bedding fabrics.
Here are some popular bedding fabrics and their different pros and cons.
This natural material is exceptionally soft and it’s also eco-friendly and sustainable. Bamboo sheets make a high quality cooling sheets thanks to their breathability and looser weave. These sheets are excellent for people with allergies and sensitive skin, and the thermoregulating properties help to keep you comfortable and cool. This natural material also has moisture-wicking properties to help draw moisture away from the body while you sleep, keeping you nice and cool throughout the night. The disadvantages of bamboo sheets are that they may shrink, and certain bamboo products are prone to wrinkles.
When we look at bamboo vs cotton sheets, both are breathable sheets and designed to draw heat away from the body to help you stay cool. Choosing 100 percent organic cotton sheets is the best option since they’re naturally hypoallergenic, too. While cotton can keep you cool, it does tend to hold moisture against the skin, which may increase the risk of overheating. These sheets are soft, durable, and easy to clean but they may shrink in the wash, wrinkle, and wear down faster than bamboo. Percale weave and sateen weave are two different cotton sheets patterns. Egyptian cotton, Pima cotton (long staple cotton) and Supima cotton are superior types of cotton known for their longer fibers and desirable qualities in bedding, including cooling properties.
This natural fiber is made from flax plants and is a bit rougher than cotton, although it tends to soften up after each wash. Linen natural fibers are bacteria- and moisture-resistant, lightweight, and comfortable. Linen sheets are excellent for both hot summer nights and cool winter evenings. It’s also very durable, sustainable, and easy to care for. Linen sheets are widely regarded as one of the best cooling bed sheets because of theirs temperature regulation properties. While linen sheets are certainly luxurious, they also tend to cost more and can wrinkle quite easily.
These sheets are very popular thanks to their easy maintenance and low-wrinkle properties. Microfiber is a man-made fiber that’s soft to the touch and rarely shrinks, but it’s made from tightly woven polyester so it’s not very breathable. Since microfiber is synthetic, it’s not eco-friendly but is allergy-safe and durable. These sheets are usually affordable and easy to clean, but they’re not very breathable, which means they could make night sweats worse.
Tencel, also known as lyocell, is a naturally derived fiber made from wood pulp, often sourced from eucalyptus trees. It has several properties that make it suitable for individuals who tend to sleep hot. Tencel Sheets feel soft, their cooling properties are attributed to its natural moisture-wicking characteristic.
When it comes to dealing with night sweats, you need to make sure that you’re choosing the most cooling material possible. Look for fabrics that are extremely lightweight and breathable, and for materials that will “wick” the moisture away from your skin to help you remain cool and comfortable throughout the night. The best bedding for night sweats should always be lightweight and breathable including materials like 100 percent organic cotton or natural linen. Most natural fabrics are already lighter in weight, and they tend to promote better airflow than synthetic materials.
Waking up with night sweats can leave you feeling fatigued and irritable. Fortunately, there are some things that you can do to help reduce the frequency of night sweats or even eliminate them altogether. Here are some tips regarding lifestyle changes you can make to prevent night sweats, tips to help improve your sleep quality, and suggestions for the best bedding for night sweats.
Consider making a few lifestyle changes to prevent night sweats so you wake up feeling rested and ready to take on your day. Here are just some ways that you can adjust your lifestyle to keep night sweats at bay.
These tips will not only help to improve your sleep quality, but they may also help to prevent night sweats.
These bedding recommendations may help to prevent or reduce the occurrence of night sweats:
Waking up to night sweats every night means that you aren’t getting a quality night of restorative sleep. Not only can this make the next day more difficult, but waking up during the night too often can also have a variety of negative impacts on both your physical and mental health and well-being. Humans need proper sleep to feel alert, regulate moods, and support a healthy heart and blood pressure. Some research shows that getting a good night’s sleep can also help to prevent certain types of cancer.
While some people may just be hot-natured, some cases of night sweats are caused by specific underlying conditions, including:
The occasional episode of night sweats isn’t likely something to worry about. However, if your night sweats are becoming more frequent or intense, there are some times when seeking the help of a trained medical professional is advisable, such as:
It’s perfectly normal to sweat at night, but it shouldn’t happen every single night unless you have an underlying medical condition. As we sleep, our body temperatures raise naturally, causing us to sweat. Some of the most common causes of night sweats include drinking alcohol before bedtime, sleeping without a fan on or with closed windows, wearing thick or heavy clothing to bed, and using the wrong type of bedding like synthetic or heavyweight sheets and blankets.
Once you understand what causes night sweats and what you can do about it, you’ll know the right steps to take for a cooler and more comfortable night. Remember to choose blankets that are lightweight and breathable to help you remain cool while you slumber. Choose products made of organic materials like cotton or linen for the coolest, most comfortable night of sleep possible. The best bedding for night sweats should be moisture-wicking and promote good airflow so you’re able to stay asleep even as your body temperature fluctuates.
At Or & Zon, we offer a wide range of comfortable, oeko tex certified cooling bedding for night sweats. Try our organic cotton percale bedding for a crisp, cool feeling every time you head to bed, or explore our range of luxurious stonewashed linen bedding that helps you feel comfortable all night long. The right type of bedding will make all the difference when it comes to night sweats, so explore our high quality sheets to find the perfect options for your sleeping needs.
