Like your mattress and bed base, the main function of your pillow is to support your neck and head. Logical! Of course, there are characteristics that additionally play an important role for quickly catching sleep, think of: firmness, moisture regulation and heat regulation. Can a pillow have a cooling effect? And which materials are then more or less suitable? We dive in deeper.
How does a cooling pillow work?
Or rather, how does cooling work? After all, cooling is a feeling and it is also quite temporary. Because what you actually aim for is climate regulation around your head. That way you won’t be too hot or too cold. Strong heat-insulating materials will make the temperature around your head rise faster than materials that spread heat optimally.
Wool is a natural material with a powerful effect. This natural hair from sheep, camels or goats quickly takes the temperature of your head and is going to try to maintain it. You might expect to get too hot too quickly because of this. Thanks to powerful moisture-regulating properties that wool has, it also distributes heat well throughout your pillow. Therefore, it is perfectly suited if you get hot quickly.
Synthetic materials such as hollow polyester fibers retain insulation around your head and therefore can feel “sweltering” more quickly.
Why are cold pillows better than normal pillows?
So cold pillows are relative, because a “cold pillow” that is temporary. Your head is going to give heat to the pillow. More important is how the pillow handles this. Spreading heat is top! And a powerful heat diffusing property often has the property of making a pillow feel seemingly colder temporarily.
Your head experiences a brief cooling and because your body, in order to fall asleep lowers its core temperature you often experience smoother falling asleep. That effect makes a cold pillow better than a normal pillow.
Materials such as gel, especially if the gel is sufficiently thick, are non-insulating, which is why you experience that cooling effect. Imagine that the temperature of the room where you have the gel pillow is 18 degrees. Then both the gel and the enveloping material and cushion cover will also be 18 degrees. If you put your hand on the gel part you will get a different impression. This is because the gel will not be insulating and thus will want to spread your body heat directly. By the way, you notice the same effect when you take a wooden block or a metal plate of the same temperature in your hand. Metal feels colder because it is highly conductive to heat.
Fabrics containing viscose or fabrics enriched with so-called PCMs also offer an (apparent) cooling effect. PCM stands for Phase Changing Material. These are microscopic capsules containing paraffin. When a certain temperature is reached, the paraffin will change phase. Read: change from solid to liquid substance. The heat provides the energy, changing the phase from solid to liquid will convert the energy. When the temperature cools again around your head, the reverse will happen and heat will be released again.
Are cooling pillows good for you?
Your central body temperature (CBT, Core Body Temperature) automatically drops when you get tired. This is regulated by your body’s circadian rhythm (biorhythm). That way, your body will use less energy, your heart rate drops and the body comes to rest.
Attention! Body temperature is not the same as your skin temperature. During the night, your skin temperature and body temperature ideally come close to each other; during the day, your skin is significantly cooler.
So a pillow that supports this process is automatically good for your sleep, especially when falling asleep. It is important, however, that the temperature or sleep environment remains well regulated and adjusted to your body temperature. If you get too warm your deep sleep is disturbed and you go to a colder place. Not so ideal because you wake up short.
Different types of cooling pillows in a row
What choices can you make to sleep coolly on your pillow?
- Animal materials like wool, camel hair or cashmere are powerful in moisture management and heat insulation. So they are going to help regulate your body temperature nicely.
- Plant materials such as linen, lyocell or wild silk are powerful in ventilation and moisture management. That’s how you keep your cool.
- Synthetic materials such as Thinsulate fibers are lab-designed fibers that closely approximate the properties of wool. So suitable!
- Foams such as gel are not heat insulating and thus will have a powerful thermoregulatory effect. Your body temperature will be optimally regulated.
- Use an extra cooling protective pad made of material containing viscose or provided with PCM enriched materials.
What is the coolest pillow?
Try for yourself in the store to see what works best for you! In any case, most pillows are not actively cooling; the material reacts to your body temperature. Of course, there are actively cooling pillows. The disadvantage is often that they are connected to a device that actively cools and thus linked to an electrical outlet. There is also the chance that you will find the noise disturbing.
Is there a pillow that is always cold?
When you work with filling materials, you don’t. Even a gel pillow with a thick layer of gel takes on your body temperature over time as you sleep. And that’s fine!
Frequently asked questions:
Should you put a pillowcase on a cooling pillow?
A pillowcase is always recommended for hygiene reasons! It is best to choose a cool material such as cotton, lyocell or one enriched with PCM.
Why does my pillow get so hot at night?
Most materials are insulating, think down, latex or foam. There is nothing wrong with this if there is sufficient ventilation around your head. If this is not the case, the materials around your head can fester.
Is a cooling gel pillow worth it?
When the gel layer is sufficiently thick, the capacity is highest and the effect lasts longest. This also makes the big price difference between gel pillows. Thin layers work, but much too briefly to make you fall asleep faster. So cheap is not always the solution.
What are cool pillows – Conclusion
Focus on climate regulation around your head. That way you won’t be too hot or too cold. Strong heat-insulating materials will make the temperature around your head rise faster than materials that disperse heat optimally.
