Do Cooling Sheets Really Put the Chill on Menopause Night Sweats?

When you’re in menopause, it can suddenly feel like someone’s turned up the thermostat. As many as 80 percent of women in this transitional period have hot flashes—bursts of intense warmth that can last anywhere from 30 seconds to a few minutes (1, 2). Hot flashes that strike during sleep are called night sweats. The heat, plus the sensation of being soaked in sweat, can rouse you from even the deepest slumber.  

“Night sweats, even if they’re not perceived to be happening, contribute to frequent waking,” says Genevieve Hofmann, DNP, WHNP, a Certified Menopause Practitioner and assistant professor at the UCHealth School of Medicine in Aurora, CO. “Having nonrestorative sleep is really impactful for people during this time.”

Between 40 to 60 percent of women who are in menopause say they don’t sleep well (3). Night sweats and hot flashes, which doctors refer to collectively as “vasomotor symptoms,” can play a big role in these unpleasant awakenings.  

Fortunately, the bedding industry has jumped in to help, offering a variety of sheets to prevent hot sleepers from overheating and wick moisture away from those who sweat. But before you plunk down money for a set of cooling sheets, you’ll want to know whether they work and which fabrics are best.

About the Experts

Genevieve Hofmann, DNP, WHNP, is a Certified Menopause Practitioner and assistant professor at the UCHealth School of Medicine in Aurora, CO. Her expertise in women’s health spans from prenatal care to midlife and beyond.

Michael Breus, Ph.D., is a sleep medicine expert practicing in Los Angeles, CA, and founder of SleepDoctor.com. He holds a BA in Psychology from Skidmore College and a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from The University of Georgia. Dr. Breus has been in private practice as a sleep doctor for nearly 25 years.

Deborah Young has more than 25 years of experience as an instructor of textiles at some of the world’s most respected colleges and institutions for fashion, textiles, and art. She is the author of two successful textile science textbooks.

Do Cooling Sheets Work for Menopause?

Confirming whether cooling sheets are effective at curbing menopausal night sweats isn’t easy, given that research on them is virtually nonexistent. No matter how cool a sheet feels to the touch, it can’t prevent night sweats, which are triggered by hormonal changes.  

The drop in hormones like estrogen and progesterone during menopause causes your internal temperature to rise. “The way you get rid of that heat is through sweating,” explains Michael Breus, Ph.D., a sleep medicine expert and founder of SleepDoctor.com. “I don’t see how moisture-wicking sheets are going to have a dramatic effect.”

A cooling device that goes underneath you is more likely to help with middle-of-the-night temperature flare-ups than a sheet that dissipates moisture, Breus says. In one preliminary study (4), researchers tested a cooling mattress pad system in 15 women who were in perimenopause or menopause. The women reported significant reductions in night sweats and sleep disturbances over eight weeks. 

You could buy a similar bed cooling system, like Chilipad, which runs cold water through a mattress topper. “I use it for my menopausal patients all the time,” says Breus. But while it might cool you off, the price—at $1,000 or more for the system—could make you sweat for a different reason.

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Which Sheet Fabrics Are Best for Night Sweats?

Cooling sheets, though not well-studied, are a cheaper option, given that you can buy a set for as little as $30. They come in fabrics like polyester, bamboo, eucalyptus, cotton, linen, and percale. Some feel cool to the touch. Others pull sweat from your skin so you don’t feel clammy (5).

With so many fabrics available, which one should you choose? Cotton and microfiber are two popular materials. Microfiber sheets are made from thin synthetic fibers, often polyester, that are woven together. Cotton is made naturally from cotton plants (6).

Both fabrics are very absorbent, says Deborah Young, a textile expert and clinical assistant professor at Arizona State University FIDM in Los Angeles, CA. “Absorbency is important to get the sweat off your body, which has a cooling effect.”  Polyester wicks moisture away faster than cotton, she says.

Other fabrics that Young recommends are modal (made from beech wood), eucalyptus, and bamboo. “They’re very absorbent, they wick instantly, and they’re incredibly soft,” she says. 

While sheets with a high thread count might feel luxurious, they could make you sweat even more. The higher the thread count, the less air permeable—or breathable—the sheet is and the warmer it will keep you. That’s why Young recommends keeping the thread count to 600 or under.

Silk is another fabric to avoid. Though it feels cool, “it’s a trick,” says Young. “Silk is a protein fiber, which means it comes from an animal. And all protein fibers, like wool, retain your body heat.”

How Else to Keep Your Cool at Night

Sheets wick some sweat away, but there are more effective ways to treat the heat at its source. You can try a medication like fezolinetant (Veozah), paroxetine (Brisdelle), or hormone therapy. All three are FDA-approved to relieve hot flashes (7).

You might also make a few changes to your bedtime routine. Hofmann suggests turning up the A/C, wearing lightweight pajamas, taking a cool shower before bed, and putting a cold glass of water on your nightstand to drink if you wake up hot. And if you still can’t turn down the heat inside, have a conversation about possible treatments with your gynecologist or primary care doctor.