The benefits of sleeping naked
We’re asleep for approximately a third of our lives, and we spend that time repairing our bodies and processing the events of the day. It’s a crucial part of being human that deserves all the help it can get, which is why we created the perfect mattress. But the question still remains - what do we wear to help us get to sleep, and do we need to wear anything at all?
Whether you sleep in pants or pyjamas, have you ever considered ditching it all and sleeping in just your birthday suit? The case for sleeping naked is a persuasive one, so put your PJs to the back of the drawer and read on for more insight.
Why you should sleep naked
Many of us wear pyjamas to bed out of habit, and because we’re so used to donning our comfies before bed, it feels weird to get under the duvet without them. If you can get used to it, though, you’ll feel a range of benefits from sleeping nude:
1. It helps regulate your body temperature
Your body temperature will fluctuate while you sleep, rising and dropping as you go through different sleep cycles. Clothes can interfere with your body’s natural regulation, getting in the way of chemical and hormone production.
The big one is cortisol, a hormone that helps the body manage stress. That’s why keeping a cool body temperature can, in a small way, help stave off anxiety problems, weight gain and muscle weakness.
According to The National Sleep Foundation, getting your body temperature lower is an important part of nodding off in the first place. Skipping the pyjamas can help us stay cool and drift off for a good night’s sleep. (Pssst - did you know that our mattresses can help you stay at the right temperature all night, too?)
2. Sleeping nude is good for relationships
If you’re sharing your sleep time with a partner and want to maintain a healthy relationship, sleeping naked can help on both a physical and psychological level. Skin on skin contact releases oxytocin, the lovingly nicknamed ‘cuddle hormone’, which is closely associated with empathy, love and relationship building, and has been a suggested treatment to social phobia and postpartum depression.
There’s another benefit, too - if sleeping naked helps you drop off and get more high quality sleep, you’re going to wake up feeling more relaxed and refreshed, which in itself is great news for our relationships.
So, what are you waiting for? Get your kit off and get cuddling.
3. Sleeping naked is good for our bodies
Allowing your whole body to breathe while you sleep is important, particularly for those areas that don’t often see the light of day. For men, sleeping naked can keep a thriving sperm count. For women, cool temperatures can keep yeast infections at bay.
Keeping your body in check and your partner happy, all while giving you a reason to wake up faster in the morning; who would have thought sleeping in the nude could be the answer to so many of life’s problems? Try it and see for yourself.
4. It can help you maintain a healthy weight
According to a large-scale study, poor quality sleep is strongly linked to weight gain. In fact, people who sleep for less than five hours every night on average are more likely to put on weight. If sleeping naked is good for your sleep quality, it’s good for your weight, too.
As well as that, a cooler body temperature (i.e. when you’re not swaddled by warm pyjamas) can help improve your ability to burn calories. We all have something called ‘brown fat’ - which is the kind of fat we want, compared to ‘white fat’ - as it’s associated with lower body weight. A good way to promote brown fat may be to stay cool by enjoying things like cold showers and - you guessed it - not overheating while we sleep
5. Your skin can benefit from sleeping nude
High quality sleep - the kind that may be promoted by sleeping naked - is great for your skin. Struggling to sleep in a warm room, or in thick pyjamas, can make you feel more dehydrated in the morning, which is bad news for skin elasticity and health.
Getting some high quality shuteye can also improve your skin in loads of other ways. That’s why we call it ‘beauty sleep’ - sleeping well can do everything from increasing collagen production to banishing dark circles under the eyes.
What to wear to bed if you can’t sleep naked
We get it - sometimes old habits die hard, and getting used to sleeping in the nude can be tough. Besides that, you might just have a cold bedroom, or feel more comfortable when you can leap out of bed and not worry about accidentally wandering around the house without your clothes on.
If you do prefer to wear pyjamas, look for the following materials:
- Cotton tends to be light and comfortable. Its breathable nature means it’s good for air circulation, so if it’s warm outside, look for 100% cotton pyjamas. They’re not so useful in colder climes though, as they don’t insulate well, and they’re not particularly suitable for people who sweat at night, as they’ll stay damp.
- Moisture-wicking materials are designed to draw water away from your skin, which is perfect for people who experience night sweats. If something’s designed to be moisture-wicking, the label will say so. Get shopping!
- Bamboo can be a little expensive, but it’s considered to be better for the environment than cotton, and it naturally wicks away moisture. Bamboo is soft and cosy, but it shouldn’t make you too warm either. Sounds like a winning situation to us.
