How to Get Better Sleep

Worldwide, people spent a collective $87 billion on new bedding in 2021. Bedding creates the physical environment in which people get their sleep. Alongside eating and exercising, sleep is a major pillar of human health. How you choose to purchase and maintain your bedding has a big impact on how well you sleep at night.

What You Sleep on Matters

The first thing to think about when buying new sheets: do you need them? Sheets with tearing, holes, fraying seams, or strange odors (after a wash) are sheets that need to be replaced. Because your sleep is so important, decisions about new sheets shouldn’t be made lightly. There are a lot of things to think about when it comes to picking a new set. Below is a guide on how to buy the best sheets for your bed. 

First, pick a material. Several fabrics are used to make sheets today. Cotton is a timeless favorite for its affordability, durability, and comfort level. Cotton breathes and captures moisture, making it a good fit for all seasons. Other options include polyester, linen, and silk. 

Materials Matter

If you do choose to buy cotton, cotton sheets vary wildly in quality. Thread count is one way to measure quality, but not the only way. Any thread count above 250 should be suitably durable. Other measures include staple length (longer is better), weave (best weave varies by season), and ply. 

Regardless of which fabric you choose, color is another important consideration. For those conscious of cleanliness, white sheets are the easiest to clean. Conversely, dark colors hide stains better. In psychology, neutral tones promote the most restful sleep. Bright colors are more stimulating to the brain. If you want to build a color palette, blues are considered the most soothing nighttime colors. The right choice depends on your personal preference.

Once you buy new sheets, you need to take care of them. Pillowcases and sheets are meant to be washed every week. Most people in the US do not follow this directive. Some don’t believe expert recommendations while others think showering before bed is enough to keep sheets clean. 

Wrapping it up

The study results are in: people who change their sheets more often get better sleep. Those who rate their sleep well wash their sheets an average of every 12.8 days. Meanwhile, respondents who are unhappy with their sleep wait an average of 19.9 days to change sheets. The results don’t lie.