Top tips for a good night sleep
Good quality sleep is paramount for optimal mind and body health. Seven to eight hours of good quality sleep each night is usually enough for most adults. Reports show people who exercise have better sleep than those who don’t. Vigorous exercisers report the best nights sleep and non-exercisers are the sleepiest and are at the highest risk for sleep apnea.
Those who sit for less than eight hours a day are significantly more likely to report an “excellent” sleep quality. So fewer bums on seats, more moving means better sleep and better health.
Top tips for a good night sleep...
- Find a routine, go to bed and get up at roughly the same time each day, this programmes your body to sleep better.
- Temperature, lighting and noise all play a part in a good nights sleep. It can also be a challenge to get good quality sleep on a mattress that you find uncomfortable. Make your bedroom a peaceful, comfortable place to be; this will help you fall asleep.
- Exercise on a regular basis can help relieve the stress of the day. So whether that is 45 minutes in the gym, a game of tennis or even a simple walk this will all help you drift off to sleep worry-free.
- Caffeine affects your sleep, whether that's in coffee, tea or fizzy drinks and it's especially detrimental to an evening. So avoid caffeine and try herbal tea instead.
- And likewise, overindulging in food and alcohol is not going to help your sleep patterns either. Alcohol can help you fall asleep, but it could disrupt your sleep later on in the night, and indeed, you won't wake up fresh as a daisy.
- Reports show that smokers take far longer to fall asleep and they wake up more frequently through the night. So if you can, ditch the cigarettes.
- And lastly try to relax...have a warm salt bath, read a book, take time to relax the mind and body. If needed write your worries down, lying in bed thinking about everything you need to achieve the following day is just going to keep you awake. And if you can't sleep, don't just lie there, get up and do something that will relax you, then go back to bed.
If a bad nights sleep is something you suffer from regularly and is affecting your day to day life then it's best to make an appointment with your doctor.
