How to improve your sleep? Here are 3 small steps.
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Getting enough sleep is quite important. It will boost your mood and help you have a healthy weight. It will also help sharpen your brain and improve the quality of your life. However, according to research, one-third of American adults sleep for fewer hours than they ought to.
Some of these adults do not stay asleep for the recommended time because they are stressed. Others have a hard time falling and staying asleep due to other reasons. If you are like these people, you need to look for ways of improving your sleep. Below are some of these ways.
Avoid chemicals that might interfere with your sleep
Caffeine is one of the chemicals that can interfere with your sleep. This chemical is found in chocolate, tea, cola, some pain relievers, and coffee. It is also found in tobacco products. Caffeine is a stimulant. Therefore, when it enters your body, it will block the action of the adenosine receptor, a substance that promotes sleepiness. As a result, you will not feel sleepy.
Caffeine gets absorbed into the humans’ bloodstream quickly. For instance, after taking a caffeinated drink, caffeine from that drink will be absorbed into your bloodstream within 30 minutes. However, this chemical has a long half-life. Therefore, you will feel its effects for several hours.
To avoid having a hard time falling or staying asleep due to this chemical, do not take any caffeinated drink 5 hours before your bedtime. You should also avoid consuming tobacco products 4 hours before bedtime. Other things that you should stay away from before bedtime include alcohol and nicotinic drinks.
Ensure that your bedroom’s environment is good for sleep
According to research, human beings sleep well in bedrooms whose environments promote sleep. Therefore, you need to ensure that your bedroom’s environment favors sleep. Creating such an environment is not expensive and will not require you to use all your savings. There are cost-effective ways that you can use to make your bedroom environment good for sleeping.
One way you can achieve such an environment is by ensuring that your bedroom’s temperature is low. Such is important because low temperatures promote sleep while high temperatures promote alertness. The ideal temperature for a bedroom is 18.3 degrees Celsius. You can lower your bedroom temperature using a thermostat. Covering yourself with a light blanket when sleeping and wearing light bedclothes will also help keep your core temperature low.
You should also ensure that your mattress and bed offer maximum comfort. Depending on your preferences, you can buy a good quality memory foam mattress, a mattress with coils, or a latex mattress. After buying a mattress, select good pillows. For instance, buy pillows that are loft, firm, and durable.
Your bed should also be good and firm. If you love changing your sleeping positions when sleeping, you should buy an adjustable bed. An example of a good adjustable bed is the dm9000s adjustable bed. This adjustable bed base offers support, and it does not produce a lot of noise when functioning.
Another thing that will help you have a sleep-inducing bedroom is keeping the light levels in your bedroom low. You can achieve this by using heavy curtains that block light. Keeping TV screens and mobile phones outside your bedroom will also help you keep the light levels in your bedroom low.
Develop a relaxing pre-sleep routine
You have probably come across parents who have set pre-sleep routines for their cranky children. Some of these parents sing soothing songs to their children to make them sleep while others tell them interesting stories.
Just like these children, you need a pre-sleep routine. A pre-sleep routine will help you to easily transit from being awake to falling asleep. The routine should involve relaxing activities such as reading a novel and listening to soothing music.
When you perform these activities in the same order every night, your brain will recognize when it is time for you to sleep. These activities will also keep you from feeling anxious or stressed when you are sleeping. Instead of having anxiety feelings, you will feel relaxed.
Good sleep is quite important. It will improve your mental and physical wellbeing. To get this kind of sleep, you need to avoid chemicals that are likely to interfere with your sleep and develop a pre-sleep routine. You should also ensure that your bedroom has a sleep-inducing environment.