Do blackout curtains improve sleep quality?
Blackout blinds are one of the easiest ways to reduce the amount of light coming in through a window when you are trying to sleep.
The fabrics used are designed specifically for window blackout, providing an effective barrier against light pollution at night, and significantly reducing light levels in the daytime too.
As a result, you benefit from a much darker room. Blackout shades are often used in the bedroom, for obvious reasons, but they can be fitted anywhere in the home to achieve the same effect.
Light pollution vs sleep quality
The importance of reducing light pollution to improve sleep quality is well documented. Back in 2009, the journal Environmental Health Perspectives published a report which claimed 63% of the world's population, and 99% of people in the EU and USA, live in places that meet or exceed the International Astronomical Union's threshold for light-polluted status.
In the report, Professor Richard Stevens from the University of Connecticut said: "In an environment where there is much artificial light at night ... there is much more opportunity for exposure of the retina to photons that might disrupt circadian rhythm.
"I think it is not only night owls who get those photons; almost all of us awaken during the night for periods of time and, unless we have blackout shades, there is some electric lighting coming in our windows."
How to achieve effective window blackout
If you plan to install blackout blinds, it's important to choose good-quality fabrics and frames, to prevent unwanted light entering through the weave or around the edges.
Louvolite Perfect Fit blinds are a good option, as they fit snugly into your window frame with minimised gaps for unwelcome light to penetrate.
For hands-free window blackout on a daily basis, add the Louvolite One Touch motorised blinds system, which includes the ability to schedule your blackout blinds to close at a certain time each day - and to open in the morning when you want to get up.
Not just for night-time
Blackout blinds are not only good to reduce light pollution at night; they can also be highly effective in the daytime, making it easier to sleep during daylight hours.
This is ideal if your sleep schedule is not in sync with your time zone. Perhaps you work night shifts, and the daytime is your only available sleeping time. Or maybe you travel a lot and need to catch up on sleep without suffering from jet lag.
Essentially, blackout blinds give you the ability to create 'night-time' whenever you need it, just by closing your window blinds.
Other uses for blackout blinds
Finally, blackout blinds are not just to improve sleep quality, they can have plenty of other valuable uses too:
- If you suffer from light-sensitive migraines, give yourself a dark space to retreat to when a migraine hits
- Reduce the amount of heat entering your home as sunlight (especially when you choose cellular blinds in blackout fabrics)
- Prevent glare on projector screens if you have a home cinema room with windows, or a projector in your living room
To find out more about Louvolite blackout blinds or to ask us about a particular light pollution problem you're trying to tackle, use our Find a Stockist search and speak to a Louvolite dealer near you.
