What Causes Night Sweats & Can They Be Stopped?

If you’ve been waking up with damp sheets and no obvious explanation, there’s usually something behind it. Being too hot is one of the most common reasons people have disrupted sleep. According to our 2026 Sleep Survey, nearly 1 in 4 people (24%) say overheating regularly disturbs their night, rising to 27% among women.

Not all night sweats come down to a warm bedroom, though. Sometimes there’s more going on underneath.

Occasional sweating in your sleep is completely normal. A bad dream, a heavy duvet or a room a few degrees too warm can all cause it. Night sweats are the step beyond that, where you sweat enough to wake up, and they happen to people of any age for all sorts of reasons.

They’re also far from unusual. A review in American Family Physician found that between 10% and 41% of patients in primary care report night sweats, with the highest rates among those aged 41 to 55. The same review notes that people rarely raise it with their doctor unless they’re asked.

Night sweats can have a range of causes, from the straightforward (your room is too warm) to the medical (a condition or medication affecting your body’s temperature regulation). Here are the most common:

The most common culprit. The ideal sleep temperature is between 16°C and 18°C, which is cooler than most people keep their bedrooms. If your room is warmer than that, or your mattress traps heat underneath you, your body temperature creeps up through the night, and sweating follows. A breathable mattress, a lighter duvet and some airflow go a long way.

Alcohol can make night sweats more likely and can disrupt sleep, so some people notice they wake up hotter or sweatier after drinking. A couple of drinks in the evening might feel relaxing, but your body is doing a fair amount of work while you sleep it off. If you regularly wake up sweating after a drink, that’s the connection.

Stress triggers the same physical response as danger does. A faster heart rate, a rise in body temperature and sweating. Go to bed anxious, and that can carry into your sleep. Our guides to reducing anxiety for better sleep and relaxation techniques are a good starting point. If the anxiety is persistent, speak to your GP.

Reflux is one of the conditions most commonly associated with night sweats, according to the American Family Physician review, and it’s one that people rarely connect. Lying flat can worsen reflux, and a late or heavy meal makes it more likely to occur again. If you also get heartburn, a sour taste or a cough at night, it’s worth mentioning to your GP.

Some medications can make it harder for your body to regulate its temperature, among them are:

• Some antidepressants
• Steroids
• Some painkillers
• Some hormone-related treatments

If you’ve started a new medication and noticed night sweats shortly after, it’s worth mentioning to your GP. There may be an alternative that suits you better.

Hot flushes and night sweats are among the most common symptoms of perimenopause and menopause, according to the NHS. The exact mechanism isn’t settled, and the leading explanation is that falling oestrogen makes the part of the brain that regulates temperature more sensitive to small changes in heat, as set out in StatPearls. Our guide to menopause and sleep covers it properly.

An overactive thyroid, obstructive sleep apnoea and obesity are all commonly associated with night sweats. Autoimmune conditions and some infections can cause them too. These overlap significantly in how they feel, so they’re worth raising with a GP who can determine which one it is.

Night sweats can occasionally be a sign of a more serious condition, including some cancers. It’s worth saying clearly that this is the exception. The American Family Physician review found that most people who report persistent night sweats in primary care do not turn out to have a serious underlying disorder.

That isn’t a reason to ignore them. If your night sweats are persistent, unexplained or come alongside other symptoms, the section below covers what to do.

Night sweats in women

Women are more likely than men to experience night sweats as a result of hormonal changes during perimenopause, menopause, pregnancy and at certain points in the menstrual cycle. Our 2026 Sleep Survey found that more than 1 in 4 women (27%) who experience disrupted sleep say being too hot is a regular cause, compared to around 1 in 5 men.

Night sweats in men

Men can experience night sweats for all the same environmental reasons as anyone else. A warm room, too many layers, a couple of drinks before bed. If it’s a recurring thing with no obvious cause, sleep apnoea, anxiety and hormonal changes can all play a part, and they’re worth raising with a GP. Sleep apnoea is worth knowing about here because it’s considerably more common in men, affecting roughly 24% of younger and middle-aged men compared with 9% of women.

Night sweats in children

Kids sweat in their sleep too, usually for exactly the same reasons as adults. The room’s too warm, too many blankets, too many layers of pyjamas. Night terrors are another common culprit in younger children. They’re more intense than a bad dream and can cause sweating, rapid breathing, and sudden sitting bolt upright. Unsettling to witness, but usually harmless. A cooler room, lighter bedding and a calm, consistent bedtime routine all help.

Most cases of night sweats respond well to changes in your sleep environment, bedding and evening habits. Work through these in order, since the first few are the easiest wins:

1. Cool your bedroom down before you go to sleep: Aim for a room temperature between 16°C and 18°C. Open a window an hour before bed, use a fan to circulate the air, or invest in a smart thermostat to keep the temperature consistent overnight. Even a degree or two makes a meaningful difference.
2. Switch to a mattress that doesn’t trap heat: Dense traditional memory foam retains body heat beneath you, worsening sweating throughout the night. Cooling mattresses use breathable open-cell foams and moisture-wicking covers to prevent heat build-up. Gel mattresses actively draw warmth away from your body.
3. Replace your duvet with a lighter, breathable alternative: Swap a 10.5- or 13.5-tog duvet for a 4.5- to 7-tog duvet. Cotton and bamboo absorb moisture significantly better than synthetic fills, which tend to trap heat and stay damp. If you share a bed with someone who runs colder, two single duvets let you each manage your own temperature.
4. Wear loose, natural or moisture-wicking sleepwear: Tight or synthetic fabrics trap heat against your skin. Loose-fitting cotton or bamboo pyjamas breathe far better. Moisture-wicking fabrics, originally developed for sport, are now widely available in sleepwear and handle sweat more effectively.
5. Keep cold water and a damp cloth by your bed: It costs nothing, and it’s the thing you’ll be glad of when a flush hits at 2 am. Cooling your wrists and face can quickly lower your overall body temperature.
6. Turn your pillow regularly throughout the night: Flip your pillow to the cool side when you wake. It’s a small thing that genuinely helps. Or consider a cooling pillow designed to stay at a lower temperature throughout the night. Keeping your head cool has a noticeable effect on how hot the rest of you feels.
7. Cut common evening triggers in the hours before bed: Alcohol, spicy food and caffeine after midday can all raise your body temperature and increase the likelihood of night sweats. Eating a heavy meal too close to bedtime has a similar effect and makes reflux more likely, too. None of this means avoiding them completely, just being more deliberate about timing.
8. Take a lukewarm shower before bed: Not cold, lukewarm. The goal is to gently lower your core body temperature before sleep. A cold shower can backfire, triggering your body to generate heat in response. Aim for warm enough to be comfortable, cool enough to leave you feeling settled.
9. Build a proper wind-down into your evening: Arriving at bedtime already stressed or anxious can worsen temperature regulation. Even ten minutes of calm activity, whether that’s reading, slow breathing, or gentle stretching, helps calm your nervous system before sleep. Our guide to creating a good bedtime routine covers this in more detail.
10. Try sleeping separately if sharing a bed is making things worse: However much you love them, another warm body doesn’t help. Worth testing a night or two on your own to see whether it’s a factor before you change anything else.

Night sweats are usually nothing to worry about. If they’re happening regularly, waking you up, or accompanied by other symptoms like unexplained weight loss, fever, swollen glands, a persistent cough, or ongoing fatigue, it’s worth a GP visit.

The same goes if you think perimenopause or menopause might be behind it. Treatment options have come a long way, and a conversation with your GP is always a good place to start.