Lucy Devine
If you've been having restless nights recently, you might want to think about the temperature of your bedroom.
It can be tricky to get the temperature right in winter - one minute you're shivering, and the next moment someone has cranked up the central heating...
According to experts, there's an optimum temperature to help you nod off - so take note.
Speaking to The Sun, Georgia Metcalfe, co-founder and creative director of The French Bedroom Company explained the ideal temperature to nod off is 18°C - and increasing your duvet tog can help with this.
“Choose a higher tog duvet of at least 13 which will retain as much heat as possible,” she said.
“It will allow you to stay snuggly throughout the colder months, and you will never want to leave your boudoir as it keeps you wonderfully cosy.
“If you want an added layer, place a velvet bedspread on top of your bed linen, or for something more luxurious, try cashmere.”
As well as the perfect temperature, apparently, there's an optimum time to go to sleep, too - and it might not be what you would expect.
The team behind the UK Biobank believe the best time to head off to the land of nod is between 10pm and 11pm, after studying a sample of 88,000 volunteers.
According to the researchers, falling asleep at this time helps to ‘synchronise’ sleep with our internal body clock – and could potentially explain the link between the reduced risk of heart attacks and strokes.
It could even have a knock-on effect with reducing our blood pressure too.
Speaking about the study, Dr David Plans, from the University of Exeter said: “While we cannot conclude causation from our study, the results suggest that early or late bedtimes may be more likely to disrupt the body clock, with adverse consequences for cardiovascular health,” he said.
"The riskiest time was after midnight, potentially because it may reduce the likelihood of seeing morning light, which resets the body clock."