If you want a great night of high quality sleep, it isn’t as simple as climbing into bed and turning off the lights. Confirmed through questionnaires and studies, researchers and doctors know that most people aren’t sleeping enough or correctly. Practicing bad sleep habits is one of the easiest ways to put your health at risk. Apply these rules to your sleep hygiene routine for healthier, deeper sleep:
Rule #1: Follow a sleep schedule 7 days a week. Stay consistent – go to bed at the same time every night and wake up at the same time naturally, including weekends. Keep in mind that you have one biological clock; you can’t set it differently for your work week and for the weekend. To figure out your personal sleep time, choose a time that is 8 hours before you need to wake up and follow it for one week. If you still feel sleepy in the mornings set an earlier bedtime by 15 to 30 minutes. You’ll know it’s right when you can wake up without an alarm and feel alert most of the day.
Rule #2: No more caffeine after 2 p.m. It can be tempting to go for that cup of coffee in the late afternoon when you’re losing focus, but the effects of caffeine may linger closer to you bedtime than you want it to. Coffee remains in the body 6 hours after its been consumed, so avoid it after 2 p.m. and try to keep your daily intake at 300 mg.
Rule #3: Control your sleep environment temperature. Overheating can cause you to be uncomfortable, thus adversely affecting sleep quality. According to Maas. Research, 65 degrees is the sweet spot for a great night of sleep. Control the temperature by setting the thermostat, choosing lighter blankets or using a fan.
Rule #4: Dim devices or ditch them. Blue light coming from your electronics such as your TV, smart phone and iPad disrupts your biological clock, causing your body to think it’s daytime. Avoid any electronics at least one hour before bed so that you don’t block melatonin production, the sleep hormone that’s secreted when you’re in the dark.
Rule#5: Say no to sleep drugs. Avoid prescription sleep aids, if your doctor thinks it is safe for you. Melatonin is a natural alternative to go and it is effective for some people. Also, behavioral treatment for sleep is making its way to the top of the list to put an end to insomnia.
Sleep is the foundation that pushes us toward having more productive and optimistic days, not to mention, it keeps the doctor away. Make sure you are getting great quality sleep of 7-9 hours without any disruptions for success!
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