Do Blackout Curtains Help You Sleep?

Breathe a sigh of relief as the days get longer and the nights get shorter. With the sun rising earlier each day, the morning light streaming in through your windows at 06:00 isn't the most welcome sight for those lazy Sundays. If you're like us, when you're up, you're up and you'll lie there until it feels like a more reasonable hour to rise on a Sunday. 

If this is sounding all too familiar, blackout curtains may just be the saviour of your slumber.

However, do blackout curtains actually help you sleep?

Your Circadian Rhythm

We're starting off with the science, awfully bold for a purveyor of quality British fabrics but bear with us. Also known as your sleep-wake cycle, your circadian rhythm is a natural internal clock which helps support your natural sleeping pattern, in fact most organisms on the planet have a circadian rhythm. It's an important factor in our health as Dr.Schwartz of  the INTEGRIS Sleep Disorders Center explains:

"Many bodily functions operate based on a circadian clock...Everyday functions – such as sleepiness, wakefulness and hunger – and many hormones function based on a circadian rhythm"

This may seem a million miles away from colourways and blackout linings, but it will all make sense. 

In and amongst other things, your circadian rhythm is maintained by the hormone melatonin. When it's dark our bodies produces melatonin - making us feel sleepy - light causes the production of this hormone to cease - making us feel awake. Thus supporting the natural circadian rhythm. 

Yes, this is a very broadstroke way of approaching complex human biology, but in short - for a good night's sleep - light bad, dark good. 

Blackout Curtains Block Light

It sounds obvious, but the blackout lining in your curtain is there to block the light. This includes streetlights as well as natural light - all of which have a profound effect on your circadian rhythm. So for the elimination of that melatonin producing light, blackout curtains are an effective tool in sending you off to sleep. 

Blackout lining is thick, heavy and luxurious. Created from three distinct layers of fabric - known as a three pass blackout - the linings are designed to block out all intrusive light from outside. If you're interested in how our linings work, we have all our curtain and blind lining information for you in one handy article. 

The introduction of blackout blinds or curtains into your bedrooms is likely to have a great effect on your sleep if the intrusion of light is an issue which you commonly face.

However, there's another, much more effective sleep destroyer a lot of us contend with.

Children.

Blackout Curtains For Children 

Blackout children's curtains are increasingly popular amongst parents who would prefer not to be awoken at the crack of dawn! More than that though, sleep is important during our formative years, in fact research suggests that children need between nine hours of sleep per night up to a huge twelve hours (depending on their age). This is significantly more than an adult's recommended amount of sleep which is around seven hours. 

Luckily, we can fit blackout lining to any curtain or blind fabrics which you choose to spruce up your children's room with.

Drawbacks Of Blackout Lining

Although a useful tool to eradicating any intrusive light and maintaining our all important circadian rhythm, blackout curtains are just that - a tool. There are still a things we can do to support an often elusive restful night's sleep. 

Blue light is generally regarded as a sleep destroyer - the very same light that is produced by our televisions and mobile devices. It's important to try avoid using them prior to going to sleep. The same can be said of caffeine, even drinking a cup of coffee in the late afternoon is likely to still have an impact on your sleep when you turn in for the night. 

Blackout linings on your curtains or blinds are very effective at blocking out all of the light. This can be a little counterproductive if you're one for the lie-ins in the morning, try to keep your sleep schedule constant and open up them curtains when you get up. It will help wake you up in the morning and keep that circadian rhythm in full working order. 

Did you know we're offering FREE blackout lining on all our made-to-measure curtains this spring? Reclaim your lie-in and take advantage of our sleep supporting offer.