5 Tips to Sleep Better During the Night
We all know how important regular exercise and a healthy diet is for our bodies. The same applies to a good night’s sleep.
Consequently, poor sleep can have immediate negative effects on our bodies hormones, brain function and our performance during physical activities.
Furthermore, not sleeping properly can increase the risk of catching diseases as well as weight gain in both children and adults.
With that in mind, having a good night’s sleep is extremely important for your body to remain healthy.
Here are 5 tips to sleep better during the night.
- Increase Bright Light Exposure During the Day
Our bodies have a natural time-keeping internal clock known as the circadian rhythm.
Importantly, it signals our brain, body and hormones when it’s time to go to sleep at night and helps to stay awake during the day.
As such, natural daylight or bright light throughout the day is a good way to keep your circadian rhythm in the right place. Thus improving energy during the day and quality of sleep during the night.
Research reveals, those who suffer from insomnia found an improvement in their sleep when they increased how much daylight they were exposed to.
In fact, during a similar study it was found that an extra 2 hours of bright light exposure during the day increased sleep efficiency by 80%.
With that in mind, if you’ve been experiencing poor sleep, consider being outside for longer during the day. If that’s not an option, then consider investing in indoor bright light devices.
- Stick to a Sleep Schedule
The recommended amount of sleep for a healthy adult is between 7-8 hours – most people do not need more than 8 hours of sleep.
As mentioned earlier, the circadian rhythm is an internal clock and functions on a set loop that is in alignment with sunrise and sunset.
Being consistent and sticking to a regular sleep schedule can benefit the quality of sleep. In the long run as it reinforces your body’s sleep-wake cycle.
By doing so, you may even find you don’t even need an alarm after a few weeks. However, this could be risky for some!
- Tech Free Evening
Technology, such as laptops or smartphones, give off blue light in large amounts.
Consequently, this blue light suppresses the production of melatonin – which is the hormone that helps us fall asleep.
So, avoid using any device that gives off blue light at least an hour before you go to bed.
Moreover, most of us are guilty of using electronic devices in our beds before we doze off, but the bed should only be associated with sleep.
Where possible, you should remove distractions from your bedroom. Check social media in a different room. Watch TV downstairs.
- Take a Relaxing Bath
Taking a hot relaxing bath is a popular way to unwind in the evenings, and it helps you sleep better too.
Studies indicate that relaxed baths or showers improve the overall quality of your sleep and specifically, helps adults to fall asleep faster.
Don’t worry if you’re not a ‘shower before bed’ person – even if you bathe your feet in hot water, this can still help you relax and positively impact your sleep too.
- Limit Daytime Naps
If you suffer from a bad night’s sleep, you may be inclined to take a nap during the day to catch up on some shuteye.
Sometimes though, this can actually do more harm than good, making it even harder to fall asleep that evening.
Unless you’re feeling dangerously sleepy, such as driving or operating machinery, you should limit your daytime naps to improve the overall quality of your sleep at night – short power naps are beneficial, but very long or irregular naps may have a negative effect.
The Final Word
Sleep is very important to our health, but the odd night of poor sleep here and there will not do any harm. However, if you have trouble sleeping often, book an appointment with your registered medical practitioner as there could be an underlying issue preventing you from a good night’s sleep.
To learn more, get in touch with us today. We run a free on-line Sleep Enhancement Clinic that runs for 30 minutes to help create sustainable sleep success habits.
During these sessions, we share experiences, tips, and techniques, to sleep better.
The aim is to educate, engage, and inspire each other to sniff out secrets of sweet slumber.
Free for anyone to attend.
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