How many people do you know that sleep with a fan on? Maybe you’re one of those people. Finding the perfect temperature to sleep in isn’t just about getting comfortable. According to science there is a perfect temperature to sleep in and it has more to do with your health than just being comfortable.

Ideally, your bedroom should be between 60 and 67 degrees Fahrenheit for optimal sleep. Temperatures above 75 degrees or below 54 degrees can disrupt your sleep. This is because our body temperature naturally peaks and declines. When we sleep, our bodies naturally cool off helping us sleep better.

Researchers say that about one and a half hours before we fall asleep, our body starts to lose heat and bring on feelings of tiredness. These changes start happening well before going to bed, and likely occur without us even knowing. Here are more reasons that sleeping in a cool room can benefit your health.

1. Fall Asleep More Quickly – If you provide an environment that your body feels more comfortable in, it will be more comfortable and allow you to fall asleep more quickly. If your body is trying to get to the optimal temperature, it will be wasting energy trying to regulate and leave you tossing and turning all night.

2. Get a Better Night’s Sleep – If your body isn’t tossing and turning in an attempt to regulate its temperature, you’ll fall into a deeper and more restorative sleep. Research has also shown that sleeping in a cooler environment can help decrease some types of insomnia.

3. Look More Youthful – Studies have shown that sleeping in temperatures between 60 and 68 degrees Fahrenheit allows your body to release more melatonin. Melatonin is one of our best anti-aging hormones.

4. Decrease Your Risk for Certain Metabolic Diseases – A recent study showed that sleeping in a room that was 66 degrees burned more calories, but it also made the amount of brown fat, or good fat, in the body increase. Brown fat allows our bodies to burn calories instead of storing them.

While running the air conditioner year round may not be the best option, there are ways to keep your home cooler without spending a fortune. One of the most economical and efficient ways is to buy a programmable thermostat. This will allow the temperature of your home to fluctuate throughout the day keeping it at a comfortable temperature at night.

Other ways to keep cool include freezing your top sheet and then putting it on your bed right before bedtime, sleep naked, freeze a stuffed animal and sleep with it between your knees, use a fan to circulate air around the room, try using a cooling pillow to naturally draw heat away, and stick one or both feet out from underneath the covers.

If this article was helpful and you plan on trying some of these tips, be sure to share it with your friends and family. We all could use a good night’s sleep.