TikTok is full of sleep hacks, whether it’s falling asleep in two minutes flat with the military sleep method or sleep-inducing breathing exercises like the 4-7-8 trick. Most recently, a new sleep and cleaning hack has been going viral on the app which involves hanging your duvet outside.
Dubbed the ‘new’ Scandinavian sleep hack, airing the best duvet outside is said to have many benefits aside from being a quick and easy way to refresh your bedding. Hanging duvets outside to air is a common practice in Scandinavian countries, and if we’re learnt anything so far from these hacks, we could all learn something from the Scandi’s healthy approach to sleep and wellbeing.
The original Scandinavian sleep hack involves sleeping with two separate duvets – one for you and one for your partner. Many people who tried this trick credited it with ‘saving their relationship’ as they were able to choose their own duvet for their sleep style while not disturbing their partner or having fights over cover hogging.
The latest Scandinavian duvet trend comes from TikTok user, Cecilia Blomdahl who lives in Svalbard, Norway. In her video, she showed how she starts her day by hanging her duvet over her balcony into the Arctic air. To understand the benefits of airing your duvet in fresh air, I spoke to a bed expert at Bensons for Beds who gave her verdict on this new TikTok hack.
Why should you air your duvet?
As you can see in Blomdahl’s TikTok, she takes her duvet and bed sheets outside and leaves them there. She recommends doing it as often as you can or at least once a week. In her video, Blomdahl says that the “main goal is to refresh your bedding and it really makes it fresh and airy.” She also suggests that if you don’t have anywhere to hang your duvet, you should refrain from making your bed immediately and instead, open your window for an hour to let the fresh air into your bedding.
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To find out if this is true or not, I spoke to Rachel Marshall, brand manager and sleep expert at Bensons for Beds who told me that there are multiple health and hygiene benefits to airing your duvet outside at all times of year. At time of writing, we’re enjoying a hot summer in the UK, whereas Blomdahl’s video shows her hanging her duvet out in cold Arctic temperatures.
But, according to Marshall, a sunny day is a great time to air your duvet. “The sunlight is a fantastic natural deodoriser that can help remove unpleasant smells caused by sweat and oils released from the body. Sunlight also revitalises your duvet and its warmth can help restore the loft of your duvet, giving it that fluffy, bouncy feeling that gradually fades over time,” she said.
Marshall went on further to say that “letting your duvet sit out in the fresh air for a few hours every now and then can help with moisture removal, as the fresh air evaporates any excess moisture trapped within the duvet fibres.” But what about sleep?
Blomdahl says in her video that airing your duvet can improve your sleep quality. Having moisture in your bedding can make you sick and trigger allergies, but by airing your duvet, you remove this moisture and prevent disrupted sleep. Having fresh crisp sheets can help with temperature regulation and cooling down hot sleepers, and your bedding will feel and smell fresher, so you’re more comfortable and likely to fall asleep quicker. So, as a quick cleaning hack and sleep trick, the Scandinavian duvet airing hack gets a big thumbs up for me.
