WASHINGTON — In the bedroom some like it hot, some like it cool. While one is kicking off the covers, the other is stealing them. How can a couple sleep comfortably side by side?
The Alexandria-based Better Sleep Council, which represents mattress makers, says temperature is a bigger issue in the bedroom than snoring. A 2012 survey found that just 32 percent of respondents blame snoring for keeping them from getting a good night’s sleep, but room temperature is a sleep-stopper for 43 percent.
Mattress manufacturers are answering the challenge with a new array of products and technology, some of it dual regulated to keep one sleeper cooler than the other.
Tom Taylor of Taylor Associates of Charlotte, N.C., represents the makers of some of the components that are being used to provide cooling assistance for sleep.
Taylor says the growth in sales of urethane foam mattress has contributed to the overheating situation in the bedroom.
“The foam has an inherent characteristic. It is a good insulator,” Taylor says. “The body heat builds up in the bed and you get uncomfortable sleep temperatures.”
So technology is turning to systems to help regulate temperature.
“There are mattresses designed for this – top of the bed items such as mattress pads, mattress protectors,” he says.
Manufacturers are turning to micro-encapsulated materials and dense gels added to the foam to absorb and store heat.
Taylor says fans are also being used in some systems to move air inside the mattress.
If you don’t want to invest in any of the new cooling technology, there are other solutions, according to the Better Sleep Council. Double fold the blankets so there’s more coverage on one side, or invest in a dual control electric blanket.
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