When it’s time to slip between the sheets, do you change into some jammies or are you, instead, a fan of catching your Zzzzs in the most natural way possible – completely naked.
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If you’re a fan of sleeping in the nude, you’re in the minority. A 2015 National Sleep Foundation poll found that only 12 percent of Americans slept naked on a regular basis. You could, however, be making a much wiser choice than the 88 percent of Americans who climb into bed in their sweats. Believe it or not, there are some definite health benefits to sleeping in your birthday suit.
1. Get To Sleep Faster
Are you a toss-and-turner? If so, maybe your PJs are your problem. A sleep study out of Australia found that some participants experienced insomnia because they weren’t keeping their bodies cool enough while in bed. If you’re wearing flannel PJs, snuggled under the covers and finding it impossible to get to sleep, it could simply be that you’re too hot. Ditch those PJs and try again.
2. Stay Asleep Longer
Not only will sleeping in the nude make it easier to get to sleep, but it may help you stay asleep. The National Sleep Foundation argues that those things you think make you so cozy – your trusty PJs – might actually be disrupting your sleep. Not only do PJs make it more likely that you’ll overheat – and wake up in a sweat – they also can hinder your during-sleep movement.
If you’re constantly getting tangled up in your drawstring or waking to find that your sleep-shirt has somehow transformed into a straight-jacket, you almost certainly are not getting the quality of sleep you deserve. Even if you can get back to sleep after these disruptions, disjointed sleep is never as good as consistent, lasting sleep.
3. Boost Your Mood
Although it may be hard to believe, spending your nights naked might actually make your days happier. Studies suggest that sleeping naked results in release of more oxytocin. When levels of this love hormone are elevated, you’re more likely to feel happy and less likely to feel the negative effects of stress.
4. Retain Your Youthful Appearance
You’ve likely heard that getting enough sleep is vital if you want to continue looking fresh and young. You might not know, however, that what you wear – or don’t wear – while you sleep could also make a difference.
If you sleep in an environment that is below 70 degrees each night, your body can better regulate both melatonin and growth hormone levels. When kept at the proper level, these elements help you look and feel young.
5. Help Stay Slim
If you’re forever in a fight with the scale, sleeping in the nude could make a surprising difference. Cortisol is a hormone that, when elevated, can lead to anxiety, food cravings and, ultimately, weight gain. Cortisol is always present in your body, but when your body temperature becomes elevated, levels spike. A rise in your cortisol levels isn’t a temporary problem, either.
After a spike, your levels will remain elevated for an extended period of time, meaning that if your body temperature is too high when you sleep, your cortisol levels could be out of whack for the whole of the next day.
When your body remains in the ideal temperature range, on the other hand, your cortisol levels remain in check. Because sleeping naked makes it less likely you’ll overheat, it often has a lasting benefit on cortisol.
6. Increase Your Metabolism
Nearly everyone dreams of having one of those miracle metabolisms that allows you to down donuts and cakes and continue to slip into your skinny jeans. Unfortunately, sleeping in the nude probably won’t make this happen. It can, however, lead to a slight, although noticeable, improvement in your body’s ability to effectively burn food.
Research suggests that staying cooler while sleeping results in increases in healthy fat deposits in the body. Because healthy fat deposits bolster your metabolism, this increase can prove beneficial to your waistline.
7. Improve Your Skin
You keep your skin all cooped up all day. For optimal health, your skin needs some time to breathe, literally. When you sleep in the nude, you allow your skin access to the fresh air it needs to stay healthy.
Sleeping sans clothes also reduces the likelihood of moisture build-up. Because excessive moisture can result in skin diseases, keeping just the right level of moisture on your skin is critical.
8. Prevent Feminine Infections
If you’re prone to feminine infections, the root of your issue could be as simple as the attire you select while sleeping. Most of the bacteria that can cause problems in your lady parts thrive in warmer environments.
This means that, if you’re snuggling up in your PJs all night, you could be setting the scene for the growth and development of potentially problematic bacteria.
Sleeping naked substantially improves your chances of maintaining a healthy body temperature, which reduces the likelihood that bacteria will multiply down below.
9. Improve Sperm Count
Women aren’t the only ones who experience a sex-related benefit to sleeping naked. It has long been known that getting too hot can result in decreased sperm count. It’s important to remember, it’s not just the body temperature you maintain during the day that impacts your sperm; it’s also your body temperature overnight.
Snuggling up tight might seem cozy to you, but it could be having a damaging effect on your sperm count. Keeping this fact in mind is particularly important for men who have a history of low sperm count. If you’re eager to get as many swimmers into the game as possible, sleeping naked is your best bet.
10. Improve Your Sex Life
If sleeping is not a solo endeavor for you, sleeping naked could have an added sexual benefit for both you and your partner. Studies suggest that experiencing regular skin-to-skin contact is vital to maintaining an optimally healthy and loving relationship.
Snuggling up with your special someone is always great, but snuggling up while you’re both in the buff leads to release of even more
oxytocin – that hormone that makes you feel so great. Along with making you happy, this jolt of oxytocin enhances your bond with your partner, likely improving the overall strength of your relationship.
11. Increase Your Confidence
There are two people in the world: The people who love being naked and the ones who pull on clothes just as quickly as they can. If you’re in the latter
group, you could be suffering from some confidence issues.
It’s normal to not always feel super confident when you’re in the nude. However, if you never spend any time naked, your levels of confidence about your naked body will never increase.
By sleeping in the nude, you can take strides in regaining the confidence you once had and finally learning to love your body, with every bump, dimple and flaw.
