LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM -- (Marketwired) -- 05/16/13 -- Britons who are sleeping in a blue decorated bedroom are regularly getting the best night's sleep according to a new sleep study out today. On average people sleeping in blue are getting seven hours and fifty two minutes sleep per night.
The other favourable bedroom decor colours that aid Britons in achieving a good night's sleep are certain shades of yellow, green, silver and orange.
As colour has a remarkable impact upon an individual's psychological and physical well being, Travelodge looked through the keyhole of 2,000 British homes to investigate the influence of the nation's bedroom colour scheme against the quality and quantity of sleep they are getting every night.
Key findings from the study revealed that households who have a blue colour scheme in their bedroom are getting the best night's sleep across the country. This is probably due to the fact that the colour blue is associated with a feeling of calmness and provides protection against nightmares. The colour also helps to reduce blood pressure and heart rate which are essential in achieving a good quality night's sleep.
The second most favourable colour scheme for inducing a good night's sleep is certain shades of yellow. Britons who sleep in a yellow decor bedroom are on average getting seven hours and forty minutes shut eye per night. The colour yellow stimulates the nervous system which aids relaxation. It also creates a warm and cosy atmosphere which is essential when nodding off.
A green themed bedroom colour scheme is the nation's third most popular sleep inducing colour palette - with sleepers getting on average seven hours and thirty six minutes of kip. The colour green creates a restful, calming environment which helps relaxation which is essential in inducing sleep.
A silver bedroom decor is Britons fourth most popular sleep inducing colour scheme - with individuals getting on average seven hours and thirty three minutes sleep per night. The metallic colour silver makes a bedroom feel luxurious and glow like moonlight - this tricks the eye into believing it is night time which induces sleep. The colour silver also creates a soothing and calming environment which encourages good sleep.
An orange themed bedroom colour scheme is the nation's fifth most popular sleep inducing colour palette - with sleepers getting on average seven hours and twenty eight minutes snooze time. Shades of orange add warmth to the room and help create a stable and reassuring atmosphere and can even help digestion too - especially if you have eaten a large or late evening meal. The colour orange also helps to warm and relax body muscles, which is an essential element to attain a good quality night's sleep.
In contrast, the study also revealed the least favoured bedroom colour schemes for obtaining a regular good quality night's sleep are purple, brown and grey. Britons who sleep in a purple bedroom are, on average, only getting five hours and fifty six minutes sleep per night. The reason for this could be that the colour purple is a mentally stimulating colour which makes it difficult to switch off after a busy day.
The other two least favoured colour schemes are brown, where sleepers obtain on average six hours and five minutes sleep per night and a grey colour scheme which results in individuals getting on average six hours and twelve minutes sleep per night. The colour brown and grey in decor can be dreary and depressing especially in the bedroom and make occupants feel emotionally isolated and uncomfortable - resulting in a restless sleep.
The table below highlights the nation's top ten bedroom decor colour schemes that help obtain a good night's sleep.
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Bedroom decor colour Average amount of
scheme sleep per night Key feature of the colour scheme
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Blue 7 hours & 52 minutes Provides a calming environment
and prevents nightmares
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Yellow 7 hours & 40 minutes Provides a warm and cosy
atmosphere and stimulates the
nervous system which aids
relaxation
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Green 7 hours & 36 minutes Provides a restful, calming
environment
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Silver 7 hours & 33 minutes Provides a moonlight glow that
tricks the eye into believing it
is night time which induces
sleep
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Orange 7 hours & 28 minutes Provides warmth, aids digestion
and helps warm and relax body
muscles
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Red 6 hours & 58 minutes Provides energy, will lift the
pulse rate and not considered a
restful colour. It is associated
with passion, love and energy
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Gold 6 hours & 43 minutes Provides an opulent warm
environment but linked to wealth
- not good if you have money
problems
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Grey 6 hours & 12 minutes Provides a dreary and depressing
environment which drains the
physical body
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Brown 6 hours & 05 minutes Provides a sad, sombre
environment
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Purple 5 hours & 56 minutes Provides mental stimulation,
making it difficult to switch
off after a busy day and can
promote vivid dreams or even
nightmares
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Chris Idzikowski, Sleep Expert from the Edinburgh Sleep Centre commented on the study and said: "This is an amazing result, as there are specialised receptors called ganglion cells in the retina part of our eyes, which are most sensitive to the colour blue. These receptors feed information into an area deep in our brain that controls 24 hour rhythms, and affects how we perform and feel during the day. That interaction between light, sleep and wakefulness is supremely important. It's no surprise but spectacular nonetheless to pick this up in this study."
Colour Therapy & Holistic Interior Design consultant, Suzy Chiazzari, said: "Your bedroom decor can certainly impact upon your quality and quantity of sleep per night. So it is worth considering taking a close look at the colours in your bedroom decor.
"It's not surprising that blue came out top in the study of the best colours to promote sleep, as the colour blue is very restful to the eye. Psychologically we relate blue to calm waters and the blue sky, both of which we find very soothing. Like blue, certain shades of yellow and green, are relaxing colours too, which are known to reduce stress which aid a good night's sleep too.
"At the opposite end of the scale, although many people think purple creates a sense of luxury in the bedroom, this colour can reduce the number of hours of sleep you attain. Purple has a strong connection with the more artistic community being a colour reported to stimulate creativity and the unconscious mind. Therefore sleeping in a purple room is more likely to promote vivid dreams or even nightmares; resulting in you feeling tired in the morning."
The sleep study also delved deeper into how the spectrum of colours impacts upon our daily psychological and physical wellbeing and revealed the following results:
-- Contrary to popular belief, couples who sleep in a bedroom that is
decorated in a luxurious caramel decor make love on average three times
per week. In contrast couples who sleep in a passionate red decor
bedroom make love just once a week.
-- Fifty eight percent of Britons who have a blue bedroom reported they
regularly wake up feeling happy. Whilst 22% of respondents who sleep in
a bedroom decorated in a shade of green reported they regularly wake up
feeling upbeat and positive
-- Britons who have a grey themed bedroom are the ones spend the most time
shopping online in bed
-- A fifth (21%) of Britons who have a silver decor in their bedroom
reported they are more motivated to exercise in their bedroom
-- Britain's workaholics who like to work in bed will have either a brown,
cream or white bedroom colour scheme and will take work to bed with them
at least three times during the week.
The sleep study also revealed the nation's top working professions bedroom colour schemes. Interestingly bankers and estate agents opt for a colour scheme associated with wealth which is a gold decor in their bedroom. Whilst, builders, teachers, civil servants opt for a sleep inducing blue colour scheme in their bedroom. Shop workers are more likely to have a boring brown themed bedroom.
The table below highlights the most popular colour scheme by profession.
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MOST POPULAR
PROFESSION COLOUR SCHEME
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Bankers Gold
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Teachers Blue
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Lawyers Orange
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Doctors Silver
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Estate Agents Gold
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Shop Assistants Brown
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Builders Blue
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Engineers Gold
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IT Workers Blue
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Civil Servants Blue
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Taxi/ lorry Drivers Silver
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Frances Whitley, Travelodge In-house Interior Designer said: "Room colour does influence your mood and set the tone for your living environment. Therefore it's important to choose a bedroom decor that will help you relax and induce sleep.
"I have spent the last 12 months working with our customers to create a purpose room for them. In today's modern world, Britons want a high level of co-ordination between colours, shades, patterns and features. They are no longer happy with everything being the same colour. Tastes are also moving away from dark shades hotel users want a clean, fresh and calming colour scheme. Therefore in our new Travelodge hotel room, we have injected different shades of the colour blue into o room decor. This creates a calm relaxing environment to help customers attain a g night's sleep whilst enabling them to feel totally energised upon walking up in the morning."
Research was conducted with OnePoll in May 2013.
About Travelodge:
The first budget hotel brand to launch in the UK in 1985, Travelodge now operates over 500 hotels and over 35,400 rooms across the UK, Ireland (11) and Spain (4). Travelodge plans to grow its estate to 1,100 hotels and 100,000 rooms by 2025. Over 13 million people stayed with Travelodge last year and 90% of reservations are currently made online at travelodge.co.uk, where room rates start at GBP 19 per night. The chain employs over 6,000 staff.
Contacts:
Travelodge Press Office
01844358703
pressoffice@travelodge.co.uk
www.travelodge.co.uk
