Here’s Why You Always Stick One Foot Out Of Your Blankets At Night!
If you’ve ever wondered why your subconscious mind chose this particular sleeping position, well, science now has an answer for you. It’s not whims or habit that cause you to put one foot out during sleep – oh no – it’s thermoregulation.
Yes! Apparently, the reason our body puts a single foot out while we sleep is because it is trying to regulate overall body temperature.
Thermoregulation is our body’s ability to maintain its temperature within a certain range, even when the temperature of our surrounding environment is different.
Even before we fall asleep, our body temperature starts to drop.
When your head hits the pillow and you are about to fall asleep, your body temperature will naturally drop until it reaches 1 to 2 degrees lower than your normal temperature after wakefulness (which, FYI, is 98.6 degrees Fahrenheit).
The reason our body temperature drops is that we can conserve the energy spent on producing and/or maintaining heat, and spend it instead on other physiological functions.
Cooler temperatures can be a prerequisite for ‘sleepiness’.
Sleep has different sages, and it is during the deepest phase of sleep that the body reaches its lowest temperature – 96.6 to 97.6 F.
While the drop in body temperature before sleep is a natural reflex, there are a few things you could do to speed up the process, such as taking a nice, warm bath just before going to bed. Once you leave the steamy tub, your body will cool down quickly, thus causing that drowsy feeling. A warm drink such as hot tea or milk can work to the same effect.
When our external environment is too cold or hot, our body will have difficulty reaching the ideal body temperature needed for sleep, which subsequently leads to that infamous restlessness!
This also leads us to another fun little fact
– have you ever noticed how when you are outdoors and under the glare of the incandescent, merciless sun, after a while you start to feel sluggish and a little sleepy? This is because your body is fighting the external heat, and in an attempt to stop it from overheating, it dilates the blood vessels so that more blood is carried to the skin where heat can be lost. This dilation leads to a drop in your blood pressure and oxygen levels, which produces fatigue.
Cold! However, what specifically does the temperature business have to do with my ORDER?
The surface of the skin that makes up our peripheries, i.e. our feet and hands, is unique due to two reasons: first, because the surface is hairless, and second, because the skin in this region has specialized vascular (read: blood vessel-related) structures that can specifically aid in heat loss.
The technical and anatomical name for the specialized blood vessels in our hands and feet is “arteriovenous anastomoses,” which is a cross connection between an artery and a vein. These, especially when combined with the lack of the hair factor, are designed quite perfectly to help your body lose extra heat. When it gets hot, the arteriovenous anastomoses dilate, allowing more blood to reach the skin, thus cooling the body more quickly.
That it is entirely possible that our body adopts the “feet out” or “foot out” position from the “under the covers” position as a way to reach the optimal body temperature needed for sleep, which subsequently causes a more restful sleep.
Isn’t that cold sleep? Next time you have trouble sleeping, just take one foot out from under the covers and let your body do the rest.
Source:style-care.blogspot.com
