TheJakartaPost
Please Update your browser
Your browser is out of date, and may not be compatible with our website. A list of the most popular web browsers can be found below.
Just click on the icons to get to the download page.
Wearing socks in bed may help you sleep better, study suggests
Whether you bare your toes at night or snuggle them up, you probably became set in your sleeping habits at a young age.
Change Size
Wearing socks to bed is scientifically proven to help people sleep better at night. (Shutterstock/HP Productions)
It may not be what’s keeping you up at night, but the age-old debate lives on: To sleep with socks or no socks?
Some people find sleeping in socks uncomfortable and restrictive, flinging them off before a night’s rest. For some, attempts of sock-sleeping lead to waking up bare-footed, with the socks you nodded off wearing now hidden somewhere among the bed sheets.
And some people couldn’t imagine going to sleep without their feet snuggled up in a pair of socks. Cotton, wool, fuzzy fleece, you name it, some will argue there’s the perfect pair of bed socks for every day of the year.
Whether you bare your toes or snuggle them up, you probably became set in your sleeping habits at a young age.
According to Yahoo, sleep experts have concluded that there’s only one correct answer.
Wearing socks to bed is scientifically proven to be conductive to a better night sleep.
That’s right, a scientific study links warm feet with falling asleep faster and being less restless during the night.
In an interview with Yahoo Style UK, Neil Robinson, Sealy UK’s sleep expert, explained how it all works.
“Having warmer feet causes vasodilation (dilation of the blood vessels) throughout the body, which actually causes your body temperature to drop slightly.
Read also: Sleeping with lights on or off: Which is healthier?
“This decrease in temperature then mimics the body’s natural pattern, as it prepares itself for sleep, helping to induce tiredness.”
However, professionals say that not all socks reap the benefits of sock-sleeping. If you’re prone to sleeping in the socks you’ve had on your feet all day, it might be time to change your ways.
“The best socks to wear at night would be a pair of woollen socks, as wool is a great insulator and will keep your feet toasty and warm throughout the night. Not only this, wool fibres also have natural antibacterial properties.
“Cotton socks are best avoided at night, as these can actually lead to you having colder feet,” Robinson said.
It is also recommended that you put socks on an hour before bedtime to ensure your body reaps the maximum benefit. This will begin the vasodilation process and lower your overall body temperature.
For some of us, it’s impossible to sleep with socks on. And that’s okay – there’s no need to change your habits if you’re already sleeping with ease.
“Socks in bed isn’t for everyone – some people don’t find it comfortable to sleep with a pair of socks on,” said Robinson.
The reason behind this is likely to do with your natural body temperature, making it completely comfortable to sleep bare-footed.
“People’s ability to sleep in socks largely depends on whether they’re prone to warm or cold feet. Some people have better circulation than others, a faster metabolism or thicker skin, meaning they have a biological predisposition to generate heat,” he added.
Humans spend a third of their days sleeping, so it’s worth maximizing your night’s sleep in the best way you can – with or without socks. (geo/kes)
