GETTING THE TEMPERATURE RIGHT

THE body cools down at night and warms up in the day, a natural ebb and flow that mimics our circadian relationship with the sun.

It’s also a functional process — your body undergoes changes at night to ease you into sleep, including a drop in blood sugar and heart rate, which lower your body and brain temperature. It makes a big difference to sleep quality: A 2012 study confirmed that when we’re too warm at night, it can lead to delayed and disrupted sleep. People who sleep in hot rooms have elevated cortisol levels in the morning, because being too warm fights against the body’s natural cooling-down process and disrupts the sleep cycle. Insomnia has even been linked to a glitch in the body’s heat-regulation cycles, meaning the body can’t cool down when it wants to. People who sleep in cold environments, on the other hand, have been found in studies to be more alert the next day.

The optimal temperature range for your bedroom is 65f to 68f (18c to 20c) — although some people go as far as to say 60f (15.5c) is best for them.

Go for as cold as you can without feeling uncomfortable.

In the winter, give your thermostat a break by letting the temperatures in your house

dip at night. You can add more blankets to your bed, or wear bed socks, which is a more precise way to regulate your temperature.

In summer, however, don’t crank up the air conditioning. Instead, cool your room with a fan and by switching to more breathable sheets.

Cutting down on sugar and alcohol — and by extension eliminating chronic inflammation and/or hormonal imbalances — also helps to bring down your core temperature.