You might think that this habit of ours is seriously unwarranted when viewed logically, because while we complain about sweat during the daytime, it is surprising that when we go to bed at night, we tend to cling to a blanket/sheet that will make us even more overwhelmed.
Let’s deal with all aspects of why we insist on doing this behavior, which we make a reflex to cover when one of us falls asleep.
Although it is not possible to say that it is universal, the use of blankets is quite common.
When we consider historically, linen bed linen in Egypt in 3500 BC, cotton covers in medieval Europe and wool linen in the Roman Empire were in the position of valuable household items. After the Middle Ages, especially in Europe, due to the increase in production, middle class people began to be able to buy bedding.
Historian Roger Ekirch also states that during the period, the most valuable item in Western European homes was bed sets, and even newly married couples allocated almost one-third of the money they would spend to set up their houses to these sets.
Before this type of cover such as blankets and sheets became widespread, methods such as sharing the same bed with more than one person or sleeping in the same place with some farm animals were used in order to stay warm in the bed.
Until today, the number of studies on beds is very few. The most notable among these was the compilation of sleep studies conducted in different parts of the world, published in 2002 by Carol Worthman and Melissa Melby.
This review basically starts by leaving aside the fact that the time allotted to sleep is one-third of human life, and emphasizing that not examining the subject as a discipline is a great loss.
Thanks to this study, people in the Equatorial region are subjected to scrutiny and it is determined that almost everyone, except the nomadic ones, uses veil in some way. In different parts of the world, everyone actually prefers a cover in some way. Even in tropical climates such as Africa and Papua New Guinea, the sleep ritual does not take place without a veil.
This cover is not just a blanket or pique. Surprisingly, plants are also used to serve this purpose.
So why do we insist so much on using cover in general terms?
Director of the Sleep Disorder Center, Dr. Alice Hoagland states that there are two different components that cause the need for cover, behavioral and psychological.
About 60-90 minutes before the time we are used to going to bed, our body temperature begins to drop and the hormone melatonin begins to be secreted. In addition, a relaxation is felt when the body cools down. Contrary to popular belief, when body temperature increases, people feel more alert.
In a study related to the subject, it is stated that when the body temperature drops a little, the subjects have a healthier sleep process.
Our body’s ability to regulate its temperature becomes quite complex at night.
For example, if an 8-hour sleep period is taken into account, the body temperature drops an average of one degree in the first 4 hours. In the second four-hour period, a series of physical changes occur in the part where rapid eye movements (REM sleep) are active and dreams begin to be seen.
One of these physical changes occurs in the heat regulation system. At this point, Dr. Alice Hoagland likens the behavior of humans to regulate their body temperature by rolling over in bed, just like the reptile’s thermoregulation system.
The reason why this situation is named this way is because reptiles do not have body temperature regulation systems such as sweating and shivering like mammals. Reptiles find the remedy to control their body temperature by escaping to cool shadows or vice versa by lying under the sun.
For this reason, instead of sweating and trembling like mammals during REM sleep, humans; They try to regulate their body temperature by moving around like lizards.
Even in warm climates, the temperature tends to drop at night, and it is the coldest time of night before dawn.
The mammalian heat regulation system of humans who sleep in REM sleep in the morning does not work and they try to maintain their body temperature just like lizards. In fact, even though we know that we are never cold when we go to bed, we think that we will need a blanket in the morning for this reason.
In addition, we almost all agree on the relaxing effect of lying on the bed with a blanket or pike, but the need for cover is not just that. During REM sleep, the serotonin in our body tends to drop rapidly, and as a serotonin neurotransmitter, it helps us feel happy and well, while also helping us stay calm.
Again, many studies on the subject reveal that sleeping with a heavy and thick blanket increases the production of serotonin in the brain. In other words, that blanket or pike on us helps our brain, which does not know what to do during REM.
From another point of view, another element in the emergence of the need for covering is pure conditioning.
The person, who has been covered with a blanket since infancy, involuntarily associates sleep and covering. Just like Pavlov’s dogs’ mouths water when they hear the bell, we actually start our sleep process when we see the blanket.
Many studies in the last decade have also revealed the calming effect of heavy blankets on people. It is known that a kind of blanket called an anxiety blanket is used in the treatment of anxiety and autism with a weight of about 13 kilograms.
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