12 Dreamy Health Benefits Of Sleeping Naked, According To Research
Here's why you should shed your clothes before going to bed.
Prostock-Studio, Stuart Jackson | Canva Had a hot date and fell asleep naked? Dragged yourself out of the shower and don't have the energy to put pajamas on?
It's happened to all of us.
Is sleeping naked good for you?
As it turns out, it's not just a fine thing to do. Sleeping fully in the nude actually comes with some major health benefits!
Whatever your reasons for asking this question may be, there are plenty of reasons to consider making it a habit to sleep in the buff.
Here are 12 dreamy health benefits of sleeping naked:
1. Sleeping naked helps you sleep better
Going to bed without pajamas on can prevent you from getting either too hot or too cold, as your body temperature lowers as you drift off in order to aid your sleep.
Additionally, not getting tangled up in clothing makes for a more comfortable night’s rest, leading to a better day ahead.
2. Sleeping naked helps clear up your skin more quickly
In turn, getting better quality sleep has been shown to help skin wounds heal faster.
So sleeping naked means better sleep, which means healthier, clearer skin.
3. Sleeping naked makes you feel less stressed
Sleeping naked helps regulate cortisol, the hormone responsible for stress because your body remains cooler than when it's clothed.
Cortisol can creep up when the body gets too warm, so keeping it cool and in the nude means lower blood pressure, lower cholesterol, and less stress and anxiety overall.
4. Sleeping naked can prevent insomnia
Stress and anxiety are known contributors to insomnia.
So back to that impish hormone cortisol, keeping your body cool and less stressed means you'll be less likely to suffer from either acute or chronic insomnia.
5. Sleeping naked can prevent weight gain and obesity
Cortisol really is a tricky hormone. While it does lots of wonderful things — like reducing inflammation, regulating blood pressure, and boosting energy so you can handle stress — it can lead to unhealthy food cravings and weight gain when levels get too high.
Researchers have found that regularly getting less than five hours of sleep each night "is significantly associated with weight gain and obesity in both male and female adults."
Getting better quality sleep and keeping cortisol levels down by sleeping naked can therefore be helpful in preventing weight gain and obesity.
6. Sleeping naked can lessen PMS symptoms
Let's hear about managing cortisol levels one more time!
"Cortisol impairs progesterone activity, setting the stage for estrogen dominance," writes John R. Lee, MD, in his book What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About Premenopause.
"Chronically elevated cortisol levels can be a direct cause of estrogen dominance," Dr. Lee continues, "with all the familiar PMS symptoms.
7. Sleeping naked can keep you looking younger
And not just because you're wearing your birthday suit!
Again, by keeping you cooler, sleeping in the nude helps manage human growth hormone (hGH) levels, This is important because naturally occurring hGH (as opposed to the controversial and risky synthetic version) is important for growth, cell regeneration, and cell reproduction.
Among other crucial benefits like maintaining, building, and repairing healthy tissue in the brain and other organs, hGH is thought to improve skin quality and appearance, as well as to keep you looking younger longer.
8. Sleeping naked reduces your risk of vaginal infections
The vagina and its surrounding areas of the female anatomy exist in a climate much like that of a tropical rainforest.
Keeping it constantly covered up is a perfect breeding ground for bacterial and yeast infections, says Dr. Laura Bennett-Cook.
9. Sleeping naked can improve male fertility
A study of 656 men seeking infertility treatment between the years 200-2017 found that those who most frequently wore boxers as opposed to brief-cut underwear "had higher sperm concentration and total count, and lower FSH levels, compared to men who did not."
It's thought that wearing tight-fitting underwear elevates scrotal temperature, negatively impacting male fertility.
So sleeping naked with no underwear at all is a great way to keep a man's testicles cool and his sperm count high.
10. Sleeping naked can lower your risk of developing heart disease and diabetes
A team of researchers out of the Department of Family Medicine, School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, State University of New York, Buffalo, found that sleeping fewer hours increases the risk of incident-impaired fasting glucose.
This means not getting enough sleep can increase your risk of diabetes, which Healthline explains, "in turn can raise your risk for heart disease."
11. Sleeping naked can boost your self-esteem
The more time you spend naked, the more comfortable you’ll feel in your skin overall.
Walk around naked more often, and it may make being naked so comfortable that you won't feel shy the next time you're with a partner.
12. Sleeping naked can make you feel happier overall
For those who don’t sleep solo, enjoying skin-on-skin contact with your partner on a consistent basis increases the release of oxytocin.
“Oxytocin is the feel-good hormone which boosts our mood and makes us happier overall,” explains Bennett-Cook.
So, is sleeping naked good for you? We'd say so, considering all of these benefits it has for your health.
So the next time you're thinking of putting on your nightgown or sweats, hop into bed in your birthday suit instead.
Aly Walansky is a NY-based lifestyle writer. Her work appears in dozens of digital and print publications regularly.