Good Sleeping Weather and Death by Fan

"Good sleeping weather."

Back home in Minnesota, this phrase could often be heard when the weather started to turn a little cooler night.  Even in the North Country, the nights can be stifling with the high humidity and it often be too warm and sticky for sleep until late, late into the night.  Mid to late August means nights growing a little longer, daytime highs lowering, and an all around cooler night, making it much easier to fall asleep.

Where I live now definitely has had some good sleeping weather these last few nights.  It’s getting down into the 50s at night and with the windows open, the cool breeze throughout the house really makes for a nice environment.  I have awoken the past few mornings feeling very refreshed and well-rested.

The human body naturally prefers a cooler temperature in order to fall asleep.  The process of cooling down the core temperature lulls one into a comfortable state, making it easier to start catching Zs.  This is not folklore; it is medically proven that a body sleeps better cold than hot:

http://www.webmd.com/sleep-disorders/features/cant-sleep-adjust-the-temperature

Now cool may be a relative term, with some people getting cold when it is 70 (like my wife) and others not needing a sweater until it is nearly freezing (like me; no, seriously, I would leave the windows open until it was single digits if I could get away with it!).  Either way, turning on the fan, lowering the air conditioning, or having the windows open can go a long ways to making it perfect to drift off into slumber land.

This is where my wife and I get into disagreements.  The believes that having the fan or air conditioning on at night can lead to death, a cultural phenomenon labeled as “Fan Death.”  The first time my wife mentioned this, I laughed, but then I realized that she was not fooling around.  I tried to reason with her, but no, Fan Death is real, she claimed, and we have to sleep warm.

Check out the website dedicated to Fan Death: http://www.fandeath.net/
The View From Over Here: http://smileyjkl.blogspot.com/2008/07/fan-death-watch-out.html
And Snopes.com’s article debunking Fan Death: http://www.snopes.com/medical/freakish/fandeath.asp

I can’t find much research that has been done on the origins of Fan Death, as most of the articles out there seem to be more concerned with attacking the logic than finding the root of the idea.  From what I have been able to find, it looks like it was originally exposed in the 1970s with the ulterior motive of conserving energy.  That just makes me wonder how much energy was truly conserved versus how many Koreans had to suffer though unbearable heat at night, terrified of Fan Death.

But don’t argue that with a Korean; Fan Death is real.  Now, I don’t mean to poke fun at the Korean culture.  I know that there is far more to make fun of in American culture no doubt!  But Fan Death is the one little thing that I can’t get on board with, mostly because I can’t sleep when it’s hot.

Anyways, the weather is good for sleeping now.  Sweet dreams.