6 Steps to a Healthier Bedroom
Follow these easy tips to create a clean, soothing sleep space
Want to make your bedroom healthier? If you’re struggling to drift off at night, try these six bedroom changes to help improve your sleep.
Give it a coat of natural paint
If you want to breathe easy, consider the paint you use in the bedroom. To minimise the chemicals you’ll be breathing in overnight, choose a VOC-free paint for bedroom walls and woodwork.
Soothing colours also work better than invigorating shades, so try to choose hues based on how they make you feel, rather than following trends too closely when it comes to decorating your bedroom.
Ask your designer if they use Houzz Pro software: tools such as 3D Floor Plans and Mood Boards can help you easily visualise designs for your space.
If you want to breathe easy, consider the paint you use in the bedroom. To minimise the chemicals you’ll be breathing in overnight, choose a VOC-free paint for bedroom walls and woodwork.
Soothing colours also work better than invigorating shades, so try to choose hues based on how they make you feel, rather than following trends too closely when it comes to decorating your bedroom.
Ask your designer if they use Houzz Pro software: tools such as 3D Floor Plans and Mood Boards can help you easily visualise designs for your space.
Choose plants wisely
Plants in the bedroom divide opinion: some people love them, others worry they could remove oxygen from the room at night.
However, there’s a small group of plants that are perfect for sleep spaces, as they release oxygen at night, so can help to keep air clean and healthy. Among these are Aloe vera and Sansevieria trifasciata (snake plant), both of which scored highly in NASA’s Clean Air Study of 1989, which is still regarded by many as the leading piece of research in this field.
To find out more, ask for advice at your plant nursery, or research online to find the right variety for your home.
Plants in the bedroom divide opinion: some people love them, others worry they could remove oxygen from the room at night.
However, there’s a small group of plants that are perfect for sleep spaces, as they release oxygen at night, so can help to keep air clean and healthy. Among these are Aloe vera and Sansevieria trifasciata (snake plant), both of which scored highly in NASA’s Clean Air Study of 1989, which is still regarded by many as the leading piece of research in this field.
To find out more, ask for advice at your plant nursery, or research online to find the right variety for your home.
Beef up your curtains and blinds
Many factors contribute to a good night’s sleep, but a crucial element is making sure the light levels are right in your bedroom. If you need a dark space to really switch off, make sure you invest in blackout curtains that reach the floor. You could also double up with a blind to make sure no light pollution from street lamps or passing cars creeps through.
Look out for other sneaky sources of light in the bedroom, too. LED clock displays or gadget chargers with tiny lights that flash throughout the night, for example, can both be irritants.
Read reviews of painters and decorators in your area.
Many factors contribute to a good night’s sleep, but a crucial element is making sure the light levels are right in your bedroom. If you need a dark space to really switch off, make sure you invest in blackout curtains that reach the floor. You could also double up with a blind to make sure no light pollution from street lamps or passing cars creeps through.
Look out for other sneaky sources of light in the bedroom, too. LED clock displays or gadget chargers with tiny lights that flash throughout the night, for example, can both be irritants.
Read reviews of painters and decorators in your area.
Say goodbye to tech
Fed up with feeling tired but wired at night? If you want to properly unwind before bed, it’s worth keeping tech screens away from the bedroom. Too much exposure to the blue light that many screens emit can interfere with the production of melatonin, which can lead to that feeling of your mind being awake when your body needs to rest.
Try leaving your phone outside the bedroom at night to limit exposure to blue light or, if that’s too big a step, switch it to night mode, which dials down the blue in favour of warmer tones.
Fed up with feeling tired but wired at night? If you want to properly unwind before bed, it’s worth keeping tech screens away from the bedroom. Too much exposure to the blue light that many screens emit can interfere with the production of melatonin, which can lead to that feeling of your mind being awake when your body needs to rest.
Try leaving your phone outside the bedroom at night to limit exposure to blue light or, if that’s too big a step, switch it to night mode, which dials down the blue in favour of warmer tones.
Consider anti-allergy flooring
If you suffer from allergies, installing hard flooring in a bedroom could be a better option than a carpet, which can hold onto dust and allergens.
This beautiful bedroom has a wooden floor that can be swept and mopped easily, as well as a raised bed and simple-framed furniture that will be easy to clean underneath.
If you already have carpet and can’t stretch to new flooring, try to keep clutter to a minimum in the bedroom to limit the opportunities for dust to gather.
Tell us…
Have you created a heathy bedroom? Let us know how in the Comments.
If you suffer from allergies, installing hard flooring in a bedroom could be a better option than a carpet, which can hold onto dust and allergens.
This beautiful bedroom has a wooden floor that can be swept and mopped easily, as well as a raised bed and simple-framed furniture that will be easy to clean underneath.
If you already have carpet and can’t stretch to new flooring, try to keep clutter to a minimum in the bedroom to limit the opportunities for dust to gather.
Tell us…
Have you created a heathy bedroom? Let us know how in the Comments.
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Overheating at night-time or being too cold could both impact the amount of sleep you get, so think about the type of bedding you’re snoozing beneath.
Choosing a duvet cover in a natural fibre, such as cotton or linen, will help to regulate your body temperature throughout the night and should keep you more comfortable than a synthetic material. The same goes for sleepwear, pillows, sheets and throws.