Key Takeaways...
Question: What Is The Best AC Temperature For Sleeping In Celsius?
Short Answer: 65°-68° Fahrenheit or 18°-20° Celsius
Did you know that by regulating body temperature and room temperature you can get more deep sleep and REM sleep?
So in this article I’m going to share some sleep tips for those of you that have air conditioners. We’re going to tackle exactly what the best AC temperature for sleeping is. I’ll share in both Celsius and Fahrenheit to cover all the bases.
By making a few simple changes to your bedroom you can lower the temp and get more deep sleep and REM sleep. Deep sleep happens earlier on in the night and runs through 90 minute cycles. This is when you repair tissue, detoxify and rebuild cells.
REM sleep on the other hand is where you process thoughts and emotions and it’s where we tend to dream more. If you don’t get enough REM sleep you’ll notice that you react with more emotion and have a shorter fuse with regular life stressors. You’ll notice more depression and anxiety when you don’t get enough REM sleep.
If you don’t get enough deep sleep, you’ll notice more rapid aging, bags under your eyes (due to adrenal fatigue), more wrinkles and feeling more stiff and achy. If you work out in the gym and are not seeing any muscle gains or weight loss, it’s probably because you’re not getting enough deep sleep.
We need both for our physical health and emotional well being.
I for one am extremely affected by temperature. I sleep hot and I love having my air conditioner set to as low as it can go, which is about 60 degrees Fahrenheit or 15.5 degrees Celsius.
The Science Behind Sleep and Temperature
The circadian rhythm of the body runs off diurnal 24 hour sleep wake cycles or light dark cycles. This internal clock rhythm is run by your master clock in the hypothalamus of your brain called the suprachiasmatic nucleus. Turns out the #1 influence on the suprachiasmatic nucleus is light coming into the eye. This is why I recommend avoiding sunglasses and wearing blue blocking glasses for sleep after the sun sets.
Now how does the suprachiasmatic nucleus respond to temperature in relation to sleep?
There’s a study I would highly recommend you read called Circadian timing of REM sleep is coupled to an oscillator within the dorsomedial suprachiasmatic nucleus
It basically discusses the coupling of circadian rhythms and REM sleep with the SCN. It also discusses the desynchronization effects on body temperature and sleep stages. Phase shifts in core body temperature can alter the SCN which then affect how long we stay in each sleep cycle.
If you are in REM sleep for example and that cycle lasts 90 minutes, and your core body temperature raises by a couple degrees then your SCN will shift you out of REM sleep which most times will wake you up in the middle of the night. This perceived internally as a stressor which because cortisol gets raised at the wrong time.
The hormone cortisol should start rising in the early morning in response to your circadian rhythm and light exposure. But if you are too warm, the SCN will cause cortisol to rise which will wake you up.
To me this is fascinating. If you’d like to dig in more about this you can go here, here and here.
Optimal Room Temperature for Sleep
The optimal room temperature for sleep is 65°-68° Fahrenheit or 18°-20° Celsius. I personally like it cooler. We have an AC unit that I put to 60 degrees which is about 15° Celsius. If you sleep with a partner that has different settings, you’ll have to talk with them about that.
There are different devices you can get that will allow your bed to be cool on one side and yet warm on the other.
I’ll discuss those later.
If you have to open a window or put a fan on you to get better sleep than by all means do that. Do whatever you have to do to avoid a hot bedroom.
4 Tips On How to Keep Your Bedroom Cool
There are many things you can do to upgrade your bedroom so that you get better sleep. I’m going to focus here specifically on things that alter the temperature of air and why that’s important so that you can improve your sleep. Doesn’t matter what sleep condition you’re dealing with these sleep tips will help.
I don’t care if you have insomnia, sleep apnea, anxiety around sleeping or any other sleep condition. Everybody needs to set the ideal temperature for sleep. I’ll write another article that goes into further detail on this. I wrote Part 1 a while back and in Part 2 I’ll make sure to give you a detailed list.
- Get a high quality air purifier for your bedroom
- Invest in a high quality dehumidifier.
- Get a Frigidaire air conditioner
- For your bed itself I recommend the ChiliPad
Conclusion
Your body temperature naturally drops as the night goes on so you want to make sure and work with that natural process by creating a cold sleep environment. Thermoregulation impacts the SCN (which is controlled mainly by light but also temperature) which then impacts your circadian rhythms which alters the adrenal glands to trigger the release of coritsol which can wake you at the wrong time.
For me, the best temperature for sleeping has always been around 60 degrees Fahrenheit or 15 degrees Celsius. The research says the best temperature for sleep is between 65°-68° Fahrenheit or 18°-20° Celsius. I just really like to be as cold as possible when I sleep.
I figure I can always warm up, but I can’t cool down as easily. Plus I like blankets, feeling cozy and snuggling up when I get into bed.
Questions
- What prevents you from making your bedroom colder?
- What bedroom temperature do you prefer when you sleep?
- Do you sleep with a partner? And are they opposite of you?
Comment below.