Good sleep is often taken for granted or ignored when you don't get enough. However, it affects all aspects of our life and is important to maintain good health.
We may tend to ignore a few nights of disturbed sleep but we need to understand that in order to have a balanced lifestyle and good health, having a good sleep is imperative.
Good Sleeping habits
Developing good sleeping habits is a small step, but an important one as it sets the tone of our day. Let’s understand, what are sleeping habits? Sleeping habits means simply having a routine set up for yourself. As per health management experts, developing a sleeping routine helps our mind and body to start preparing for sleep and rest. Everyone can have different types of body needs and depending on that a sleep routine can be set.
You can start by setting a sleep time and wake up time. This simply means to get into bed every day at the same time and get up on time, including weekends. Some people also have an entire routine set, like brushing teeth, having a warm bath, changing into comfortable nightwear, applying some moisturising creams, reading a book to relax your mind and body and eventually falling asleep.
Setting an environment to induce sleep
Sleeping in a clean and dimly lit room helps you fall asleep better. Experts suggest you need to create an environment to help your body relax and fall asleep. This includes having the right set up in your bedroom. Having the right light setting, furniture and room temperature helps create an environment that can induce sleep.
Natural sources of light
Our body has a natural clock known as circadian rhythm. Exposure to natural sunlight during the day helps keep the circadian rhythm healthy. This improves body energy levels during the day and helps include a good sleep during the night. According to some studies, exposure to bright sunlight during the day helps increase two hours of sleep during the night.
Reduce exposure to blue light
While it is important to expose your body to sunlight during the day, it is equally important to reduce your exposure to artificial light. When you are exposed to too much artificial light during night time, it tricks your mind into thinking that it is still day time and disturbs your circadian rhythm. Similarly, exposure to blue light emitted by devices like laptops, mobiles or television during the night affects the production of hormones like melatonin in your body, which help you relax and induce sleep. This results in lack of sleep, ultimately affecting your overall health.
Eating right before sleeping
Our food habits and daily dietary intake also affects our sleep. Doctors recommend eating food a few hours before we go to sleep to help us digest our food better. Eating a large dinner late in the night may affect the natural release of melatonin, and won't allow your body to relax naturally. Similarly, consuming caffeine in the latter part of the day also hampers your sleep, as it may affect your nervous system that may stop your body from naturally relaxing and inducing sleep. However, a few studies have also stated that having a light snack before sleeping also helps us sleep better.
Drink less liquids during the night
Excessive urination during night is known as Nocturia; it affects your sleep quality and day time energy levels. Drinking large amounts of water during the evening may have a similar effect on your sleep. Hence keeping a check on your water intake may help you improve your sleep quality and quantity both.
Having adequate amounts of sleep plays a vital role in our overall health. Lack of sleep can lead to many health issues like being overweight, heart diseases, blood pressure issues and diabetes. So, if you want a good healthy life, it is important to have a good night's sleep.
