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© 2023. This work is licensed under http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ (the “License”). Notwithstanding the ProQuest Terms and Conditions, you may use this content in accordance with the terms of the License.

Abstract

Background

Passive body heating before sleep is well known to lead to improved sleep. However, the effects of the degree of change in body temperature by bathing on sleep quality are unclear. The present study aimed to clarify the effects on sleep of bathing-induced changes in body temperature.

Methods

Twenty-three healthy males and females in their 20 s to 50 s bathed in their homes 1.5–2 h before bedtime under three bathing conditions: showering only; short bathing in a bathtub; and long bathing in a bathtub. Sublingual and skin temperatures and thermal sensation before and after bathing, sleep indices such as sleep onset latency, time in bed, sleep efficiency, and wake after sleep onset, all of which were evaluated using an actimeter, and subjective evaluations of sleep were compared among conditions.

Results

Sublingual temperature just after bathing was significantly higher with long bathing than with other conditions, and the fall in sublingual temperature from after bathing to before sleep was significantly larger with long bathing than with short bathing. Sleep onset latency by actimeter was significantly reduced with long bathing compared to showering. In addition, subjective evaluations of falling asleep and sleep quality were better with long bathing than with showering or short bathing.

Conclusions

In conclusion, bathing conditions that produce a 0.9 °C increase in sublingual temperature appear effective for falling asleep and sleep quality, because core temperature shows a greater drop to before sleep than those producing an increase of about 0.3 °C increase in sublingual temperature.

Details

Title
Effects of bathing-induced changes in body temperature on sleep
Author
Maeda, Takafumi; Koga, Hiroko; Nonaka, Takashi; Higuchi, Shigekazu
Pages
1-10
Section
Original article
Publication year
2023
Publication date
2023
Publisher
BioMed Central
ISSN
18806791
e-ISSN
18806805
Source type
Scholarly Journal
Language of publication
English
ProQuest document ID
2865419857
Copyright
© 2023. This work is licensed under http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ (the “License”). Notwithstanding the ProQuest Terms and Conditions, you may use this content in accordance with the terms of the License.