Weighted Blankets for Sleep: 4 Checks Before You Buy One

Weighted blankets are sold as a calmer, deeper night’s sleep in a box, and the good ones aren’t cheap. Before you pick a weight and a fabric, check what the research measured and whether a heavy blanket suits your body and your bed.

1. Know what the well-known trial found

The study most often quoted on product pages comes from Sweden. It enrolled 120 adults who had insomnia alongside depression, bipolar disorder, ADHD or generalized anxiety disorder. For four weeks they slept at home under either a metal chain blanket weighing 6 or 8 kilograms (about 13 or 18 pounds) or a light plastic chain blanket.¹

On a standard insomnia questionnaire, about 59% of the weighted blanket group improved by at least half, compared with about 5% of the light blanket group. Participants were told only that they would receive one of two chain blankets, though the weight was hard to hide. One participant’s blanket type came out at airport security.¹

Two limits matter before you count on the same result:

• Who was studied. Every participant had a psychiatric diagnosis as well as insomnia, and the average age was about 40. The results may not carry over to insomnia from hot flashes, pain or a full bladder at 3 a.m.
• What was measured. The improvement showed up in how people rated their own sleep. Harvard Health notes that wrist-worn activity monitors didn’t show significant changes in key insomnia measures.² Cleveland Clinic³ describes the studies as small, with limitations.³

2. Check your health first

Harvard Health lists people with sleep apnea, certain other sleep disorders, respiratory problems or other chronic medical conditions as people who should not use a weighted blanket or should check with their doctor first.⁴

If you snore loudly, wake gasping, or someone has seen you stop breathing in your sleep, ask about a sleep apnea assessment before you add weight to your chest.

Try: “I’m thinking about a 15-pound weighted blanket for sleep. With my conditions and medicines, is there any reason I shouldn’t use one?”

3. Pick a weight you can push off

Sellers commonly suggest about 10% of your body weight, which comes to 15 pounds for a 150-pound person.⁴ Cleveland Clinic³ advises staying at or below 10%.³ For healthy adults, Harvard Health says weighted blankets are considered safe as long as you can lift the blanket off when you need to.²

Before you pay for a heavy one, test that point honestly:

• Can you push it off with arthritis in your hands or shoulders, or after surgery?
• Can you get it off quickly if you need the bathroom in the night?
• Will you be able to lift it into a washing machine, or does it need a removable cover?
• Does it make hot flashes or night sweats worse? A heavier blanket can mean more layers on top of you.

If a full-size blanket fails any of these, a lighter weight or a lap-size blanket for the couch may suit you better. Check the return window before you buy, since you may need a couple of weeks of nights to judge it.

4. Keep it away from babies

If grandchildren nap or sleep over at your home, keep the weighted blanket off their sleep space. The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission’s⁵ safe sleep advice for babies says not to use weighted blankets or weighted swaddles.⁵ Harvard Health suggests talking with a doctor or trained therapist before trying a weighted blanket for a child.⁴

If sleep is still poor

A blanket can’t tell you why you’re waking. If poor sleep has lasted for weeks, bring a record of your bedtimes, wake-ups and what woke you to a primary care visit, and ask whether a sleep assessment makes sense.

Did I Do That in My Sleep? includes a 14-Night Lights-Out Record and a Visit Brief. Use them to track your nights before and after any change, and to organize your questions for the visit. See the book.