The quality of your sheets can make all the difference as to whether or not you get a comfortable and well-rested night’s sleep. Our bodies expend heat during the night, so it’s important that you choose bedding which doesn’t trap this heat to avoid those sweaty, sleepless nights, especially if you are a hot sleeper. If you are a cold sleeper, choose a fabric which can retain heat from your body.

Choosing a particular material for your bedding may be the last thing on your mind when shopping for bedding, but when this can affect your overall quality of sleep it needs to be an essential purchasing factor. Choosing only 100% natural and organic materials to sleep in, including cotton, linen, silk, and wool will show you immediate effects. These materials all allow your skin to breathe; you’ll therefore be far more comfortable throughout the night and wake up less sweaty and sticky the following morning.

There are also certain things to avoid when it comes to choosing your next set of bed linen. Firstly, make sure to stay away from synthetic fibres, such as microfiber sheets. Although these may feel nice to the touch, this material is treated with chemicals which prevent your skin from breathing properly. Avoiding mixed and blended fibres is also a good idea. This relates to materials that may look and feel like cotton or silk but are often mixed with synthetic fibres just to improve the texture and ultimately reduce the cost for the manufacturers that make them.

When thinking about buying new bedding, it’s a good idea to do some research into the company that make your preferred choice of bedding and see what their product processes are. Those who offer sustainable and environmentally-friendly processes are a great example of a company that provide quality bedlinens.

It’s also important that, no matter what bedding you choose, you still ensure its cleaned regularly to avoid build-up of bacteria. Not doing this can result in skin breakouts and other problems, such as the worsening of eczema and itching, for example. It’s recommended you wash different parts of the bedding after different periods of time, depending on how often and how long you sleep in your bed. As a reference, bedding should be washed at the following rates:

• Pillowcases – once a week
• Bed sheets/bed linen
• Duvet covers – once a week
• Blankets and Duvets – every two to three months
• Pillows – every four to six months

We all want bed linen that looks nice and fits well into the aesthetic of our bedroom, but that shouldn’t be at the expense of getting a good night’s sleep. A good night’s sleep can do so much for us; not only can it ensure you wake up feeling refreshed the following morning, it can help with mental health, boost your immune system, and allow your body time for adequate recovery.

As with anything in the bedroom, you don’t want to look to cut corners on costs – not when you consider how much time you spend in bed in your lifetime.