Potential Benefits of Showering at Night
Showering at night also brings clear benefits for both your sleep and your skin.
May Help You Fall Asleep Faster
Incorporating a warm shower into your bedtime routine may help you fall asleep faster.
When you take a warm shower, your body releases heat, allowing your core body temperature to drop after the shower. “Showering one to two hours before bedtime can help you fall asleep through this thermoregulatory response,” Dr. Brauer says. This signals it’s time for bed, since your body naturally cools down to prepare for sleep.
This timing may help you fall asleep faster and increase the amount of time you’re actually asleep when you’re in bed, Brauer adds.
Research on pre-bedtime showers is limited, but one study of more than 1,000 older adults found that those who bathed in hot water one to three hours before bed fell asleep faster. Researchers attributed this benefit to the body’s natural cooling process after the bath.
Removes the Day’s Dirt, Allergens, and Pollution
Throughout the day, your skin collects environmental pollutants, allergens, dirt, and sweat. “If you go to bed without washing all that off, you’re essentially pressing those irritants into your pillow and sheets and sleeping in them for eight hours,” Dr. Obayomi says. “That can contribute to breakouts, irritation, and for patients with allergies, it can make symptoms worse.”
Most people also accumulate significantly more dirt and debris during the day than overnight. “The daytime requires us to go to work, cook, do chores, commute, and other activities of daily life that could accumulate allergens, irritants, dirt, and debris on our skin,” Guo says. This makes an evening cleanse the more effective choice for most people.
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