Why is sleep so important?

Did you know that while you are asleep and your body is resting, your brain is actually hard at work? It is controlling your body temperature, boosting your immune system, keeping your heart and blood vessels healthy, controlling your brain function, supporting your immune system, repairing tissues, stimulating growth, controlling your blood glucose levels and regulating your appetite and weight.

When you suffer from poor sleep, you are more likely to develop many chronic health problems such as heart disease, high blood pressure, stroke, kidney disease, diabetes, obesity and depression so as you can see good quality sleep is very important.

This blog will give you 7 practical tips to improve your sleep.

1. Create your perfect sleeping environment

Having your bedroom environment setup perfectly is essential for good sleep: – Try

• Making sure your room is cool, dark and quiet
• Make sure your mattress and pillow is comfortable and supportive.
• Avoid bright lights in your bedroom at night
• Reduce noise or other distractions that can interrupt your sleep
• Have the temperature set at 18-20 degrees
• Don’t have a clock facing you in the bedroom
• If necessary consider earplugs and an eye mask to block light.

2. Develop a regular sleep routine

Having a regular nightly sleep routine helps to prepare your brain for sleep. To improve your routine try :

• Going to bed and getting up at the same time each day even on the weekends. This helps to sets your body’s “internal clock” Even when you have a poor sleep getting up at the same time will help to set your clock and consolidate sleep your following night
• Light reading
  or listing to music before you go to bed. This relaxes the brain and prepares for sleep
• Do relaxation exercises or meditation that help calm your mind,
• Avoid Technology for at least 1hour before you sleep-the light produced by smartphones, tablets, computers, televisions and gaming systems activates areas of the brain that suppress sleep.
• Don’t watch TV or use electronic devices in bed at all.
• Avoid napping after 3pm and limit your naps to 30 minutes maximum

3. Reduce your intake of stimulants at night

Avoid any stimulants at night that suppress your sleep cycle. To reduce stimulants start with:

• Avoid Caffeine: for 4-6 before you go to sleep (includes coffee, tea, chocolate and energy drinks)
• Reduce Alcohol consumption: it causes you to wake during the night and disrupts your normal sleep cycle – if you want to have a drink limit it to one to two drinks per day and don’t drink within 2 hours of bedtime
• Avoid Cigarettes: not only will they kill you, they will stop you sleeping as well

 4. Balance your food and water intake

Balancing your food and fluid intake will improve the quality of your sleep. To help your body prepare for sleep try:

• Finishing your dinner 2-3 hours before bedtime
• avoid any foods at night that give you indigestion
• don’t overeat- having a heavy stomach will interrupt your sleep
• don’t go to bed hungry, a light snack 1 hour before bed can sometimes help you sleep.
• Drink enough water to stop you getting thirsty but not enough that you wake during the night needing to go to the toilet

5. Maintain a healthy body

Keeping your body functioning well is an essential part of a regular sleep pattern To help improve your sleep try:

• Getting regular exercise
• Where possible exercise in the morning and never exercise 2-3 hours before bed
• Avoid bright light in the evening and expose yourself to sunlight during the day to help your body clock stay in rhythm
• Have your chiropractor check your spinal function on a regular basis to ensure that your spine is functioning well and that back and neck pain doesn’t interfere with your sleep.

6. Lower your stress levels

Stress has been proven to interfere with your normal sleep patterns. To reduce your stress before bed try:

• Resolving your worries or concerns well before bedtime.
• Meditation or relation exercises to help unwind
• reading or listening to calm music at night
• Have a pen and paper next to your bed so if you think of something important, write it down, get it out of your mind and deal with it later

 7. If you can’t sleep don’t stay in bed

If you’re not asleep after 20 minutes or wake up for longer than 20 minutes don’t stay in bed. You will just end up frustrated. Get up, go to another room and do something relaxing, like reading or listening to relaxing music. Remember to keep the lights dim. When you start feeling sleepy return to bed

Getting good quality sleep essential to your ongoing health and enjoying your life. If you are not getting good quality sleep try some of tips above and see what works for you. Remember everyone is different so look for your individual sleep habits and patterns to find what you can change to improve your sleep.

We hope that you found this blog useful and if you did we would really appreciate you leaving a comment in the section below.

Have a great sleep!