Sleep experts agree: this is the best trick for sleeping in summer heat

Sleeping during the summer is one of the biggest challenges of the hottest months. If you don’t want to spend a fortune running the air conditioner, there are a few simple tricks that can make your night’s rest easier, more restorative and more comfortable. And, surprisingly, one of them involves putting on an extra layer of clothing before going to bed.

According to sleep specialist Dr. Deborah Lee, a former senior physician with the UK’s National Health Service (NHS), and Spanish physician Dr. José Manuel Felices, socks could be the secret to coping with hot nights. However, the way they’re used changes their usual purpose. Rather than keeping your body warmer, the goal is actually to help cool it down.

Your feet hold the secret

Dampening a pair of socks and wringing them out thoroughly before wearing them can help lower your body temperature by a few degrees, making it easier to fall asleep. As Dr. Lee explains, the feet play a vital role in the body’s temperature regulation, much like the neck and wrists, so cooling these areas can encourage a better night’s sleep.

Dr. Felices recommends a slight variation that he believes may work even better. Instead of wearing the socks normally, he suggests wrapping them only around your ankles. This helps prevent the opposite effect once the fabric dries, avoiding the extra warmth that fully covering the feet could create.

Other ways to stay cool at night

Wet socks are far from the only strategy that may improve sleep during hot weather. Taking a lukewarm shower before bed, hanging a damp towel over the bedroom door, or lightly misting your sheets with cold water are among the other methods that could help. Everyone has their own preferred approach, but there is one goal that everyone can agree on: getting a good night’s sleep.

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