There are some things that can help cool you down on a hot day. A cold drink of water or parking yourself in front of an air conditioning unit are just some of the coping mechanisms that spring to mind.
But what about in the evenings? There’s nothing worse than the summer sweats in bed, when overheating can feel amplified either by the warmth of another body or the heavy night air - and that’s why you should be sleeping on hemp this season. Here are six reasons why linen bedding is the perfect choice to keep you cool in summer.
6 reasons why hemp sheets keep you cool in summer
1. Hemp is a natural fibre
Unlike synthetics, which trap heat inside them, hemp is made out of the crushed hemp plant, making it 100% natural. What this means is that hemp breathes, circulating cool air through its loosely woven fibres to make sure that the warm air is never trapped around your body.
Because hemp is natural, it’s also a great choice for sensitive skin as it won’t cause irritation. So you can say goodbye to heat rashes, forever.
2. Hemp is soft
Wash after wash, your hemp bed linen sheets will soften and smooth into some of the most comfortable, most soothing bed linen you will ever sleep in.
Sure, this makes for a great night’s sleep, but the softness of hemp helps keep you cool, too. Soft sheets means less friction, which means your skin isn’t generating heat through touching the sheets and causing your body temperature to rise.
3. Hemp doesn’t cling to you
The particular weave of hemp might be soft, but it never clings to your body. The structure of the fibre makes for a non-restrictive fabric that will billow around your body rather than tightly adhere to it.
Hemp can absorb up to 20% of its own weight before feeling damp, so you sweaty sleepers need never worry about excess moisture. Plus, with every little bit of breeze that blows through your open window, hemp absorbs the air to dry out and cool down even further.
4. Hemp is light
Hemp fabric is just about one of the lightest fabrics on the market, which makes it the perfect choice for anyone who hates a sweaty night’s sleep. Think about it: the lighter the sheets, the less weight there is billowing around you and trapping hot air beneath its folds.
Light, breathable hemp bed linen helps to keep the air moving, which means you won’t feel stifled while you’re sleeping. In fact, it will feel like you’re practically sleeping with barely anything around you at all.
5. Hemp actually feels cooler
Have you heard of a thing called thermal conductivity? It’s a way of measuring how much different items, and in this particular case different fabrics, conduct and retain heat.
Scientists have measured the most popular fabrics, and which do you think came out on top? Hemp.
Again, it’s all thanks to the moisture wicking in hemp and the way the fibres have been woven together to promote air flow around the body. By comparison, the fabric with the lowest thermal conductivity was found to be silk. On a hot day, hemp is the thing that’s going to keep you cool.
6. Hemp is easy to take care of
Nobody wants to struggle with washing sheets in the middle of a heatwave and hemp is a godsend in this situation. Thanks to its low gram per square metre (GSM) rating, hemp has a light wick which allows for swift ventilation.
That’s what keeps the air moving around you when you sleep, and it’s what helps hemp sheets dry so fast in hot weather, making it a cinch to wash, dry and store. This leaves you with more time to spend on more important things.
Stay cool, everybody.