Find out how you can sleep through a heat wave or hot temperatures.

Baby, it's hot outside! If you have trouble getting to sleep during a heat wave, you're not alone. When it comes to how couples sleep, one of the largest factors is sleep temperature. 83% of couples report one or both partners sleep too hot or cold.* So, why is it so difficult to sleep when it's sweltering?

Your core body temperature typically lowers as it gets closer and closer to bedtime, but when it's really hot outside, your body temp may not lower as much as it usually does — and that can interfere with sleep.

Since temperature also impacts your circadian rhythm, your body's internal master clock responsible for regulating sleep and other functions, you might find yourself either struggling to fall asleep or unable to stay asleep when the mercury rises.

Worse, waking in the middle of the night when you're sweaty and sticky makes it even harder to fall back asleep.

Luckily, you can adopt some bedtime habits that will help you sleep when it's too warm. Here's our 10-point heatwave cool-down plan for when the thermostat climbs.

Cool The Room As Best You Can

That means windows open and fans blowing if you don't have AC. And if you do, flip that thermostat down to a cool 64-68° F sleep temp.

You may still need fans to reach optimal cooling when it's super-hot out since your air conditioning could have trouble keeping up during heatwaves. A study in Science Advances found that people self-reported insufficient sleep when the ambient temperature in the room was too hot.

Take A Warm Shower Before Bed

It sounds counterintuitive, but warm water dilates blood vessels and leads to a drop in your core body temperature, which can help you get to your core sleep temperature quicker and prepare you to feel sleepy.

Eat Cooling Foods On Very Hot Nights

Salad greens, berries, water-based vegetables like zucchini and asparagus, coconut, watermelon, and citrus fruits like oranges and grapefruit are cooling food choices.

Skip spicy, heavy and hot meals since they excite receptors on the skin that respond to heat. It's the same reason why eating a bowl of steaming chili warms you up on a wintry night, or munching a ghost pepper will make you sweat. 5 tips to improve sleep with healthy eating.

Stay Well Hydrated By Drinking Lots Of Water

It doesn't matter if the water is cold or room temperature, whatever you prefer. But cold water may help you feel a little cooler. Just remember to ease up before bedtime, otherwise your sleep may be interrupted by frequent trips to the bathroom in the middle of the night.

Uncover Your Hands And Feet While Sleeping

You lose body heat through your extremities. Having your hands and feet poke out of the sheets can help keep you cooler.

Use Light, Cooling Sheets And Pillow Linens

If you are often too warm in bed, try Sleep Number^® True Temp™ sheets with technology that helps maintain an ideal microclimate when you sleep. Or, learn more about other temperature balancing options to help you sleep better here.

Cover Yourself — Lightly

Even during a heat wave or particularly warm weather when you'd rather toss top covers to the floor, cover yourself with a light blanket, sheet or duvet. It may seem like sleeping without a cover is best during a heat wave, but once you reach REM (rapid eye movement) sleep, where you dream, you can no longer regulate your body temperature, so using a light covering can keep you from waking up with chills.

Reassess Your Nighttime Apparel

Make sure you wear moisture wicking pajamas — or try sleeping in the buff. Not much research goes into the benefits of nude sleeping, but one older University of Amsterdam study did find that lowering your skin temperature increases the quality of your sleep.

Adopt Some Cool-down Rituals

Help your body cool down in the evening. Try a breathing meditation like this 4-7-8 technique from the free Sleep30^® Challenge by Sleep Number^®, or freeze a gel-filled eye pillow and use it on your face before bedtime to nab some additional feel-good, cooling effects.

Change Up Your Partner Position For Sleeping

When it's too hot to cuddle with your bed partner, leave a little extra space in the middle of the bed (only on the hottest of nights!) and lightly touch hands or feet instead to reduce shared body heat.

Practice a handful of these bedtime heat wave habits, and you'll be snoozing soundly in short order — even on the hottest nights of a heat wave.

Want even better sleep? Sleepers who routinely use their Sleep Number 360^® smart bed technology can get 28 minutes more restful sleep per night — that's up to 170 hours per year!**

Like diet and exercise, quality sleep is essential for optimal wellbeing and performance. Because everyone's sleep needs are different, Sleep Number^® smart beds sense your movements and automatically adjust firmness, comfort and support to keep you both sleeping comfortably. Find your Sleep Number^® setting for your best possible night's sleep.

*Results from a 2020 Sleep Number^® survey of 1,004 respondents who reported they or their partner sometimes sleep too hot or too cold.

**Based on average SleepIQ^® data from 8/1/21 – 2/28/22 of sleepers who engaged with their Sleep Number^® setting, SleepIQ^® data and FlexFit™ smart adjustable base. 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Jennifer Nelson is a Florida-based health writer who writes about all things sleep hygiene. She writes for The National Sleep Foundation, Phillips, Tom's Guide, Southern Living, Health, AARP and others.