Insufficient sleep is a fairly common problem. However, there are several ways to get a good night’s sleep that you can try to improve sleep quality. Not only improving the quality of sleep, good sleep is also good for physical and mental health. Several studies have revealed that lack of sleep or poor sleep can cause a decrease in one’s thinking power, concentration level, and ability to work. Such conditions must be put in check, otherwise, you might suffer from sleep deprivation which can lead to an increased risk of having a heart attack, suffering from obesity, diabetes, or even cancer. Therefore, it is necessary to find a way to get a good night’s sleep and quality. To get a good night’s sleep and quality, there are several steps you can take.
Always Use A Good Mattress
First and foremost, we must create a suitable environment for sleeping. That includes having a good mattress. It is important to know what type of mattress is suitable for your needs, the size, heights, the material it is made of and what it offers in the long run for your health. Good mattresses should come naturally and click with what you need and desire. Materials such as bed linen is really cozy and enjoyable for people who have been out of work for a long time, and come back to enjoy their sleep. Bed linen can absorb heat and also bug repellant, so you do not worry about the temperature, as by using linen, your body will feel the right temperature when you sleep.
Avoid Hard Exercise Before Bed
Exercise can make you tired, which will make you fall asleep easily. To some extent, it is true. However, more often than not, it can also give false signals to our body that we are about to do something and activate too many muscles. Exercising before bed might give a refreshing effect which in turn dial our senses back and make it even harder to rest. To counter such things, if you insist on sweating your body for some reason, you might want to consider changing the type of exercise you take. Try a light one such as doing yoga and top it off with book reading, followed by a nice warm bath, etc.
Avoid Heavy Meals Before Bedtime
This might be hard to follow as people tend to have an ever-changing lifestyle and or a cultural thing where they have dinner with the whole family very close to bedtime. Having a late dinner or any food can activate your digestive systems and even if you are able to relax, your body will still process that food and in the end lower your quality of sleep. In addition, limit the time to eat, at least one hour before bedtime. Nothing is wrong with consuming food at night, just do not take it at the last minute before you jump into bed. The limit is not to eat within 4 hours of going to bed. Since it takes about 4 hours to digest food, give it a 4-hour gap from the time you eat until bedtime. Why is that? The answer is that during sleep, your body releases growth hormone 30 minutes after you sleep. This hormone is also produced when you exercise. This is a hormone that plays a role in growth and is responsible for breaking down fat. That is why children are often recommended to get enough sleep because the more sleep, the growth hormone produced will increase and is very useful for the growth and development of children.
No Coffee Before Bed
Everyone’s favorite beverage, coffee, is hard to resist. As a matter of fact, it contains caffeine, substances that can give you an energy boost and can sometimes be addictive. Hence why it is better consumed in the morning to help you stay awake or start your day. Even if you are forced to sleep, you may wake up several times during the night. This makes the quality of sleep decrease and reduces sleep time. You must have often heard that coffee can keep you up at night. Many people deliberately drink coffee so they can stay up until midnight, even until the morning to do work or just to watch football in the early hours of the morning. Yes, the impact of coffee that makes people awake is widely used by many people. For coffee fans and for people who like to stay up late, maybe coffee is useful. However, for those of you who are not, of course, coffee can disrupt your sleep.
Stay Away From Electronic Devices Before Bed
Avoid working in bed so that your mind can be more relaxed. You are also advised to forget any thoughts or minds that have to do with work, deadlines, or exams. Extra tips that you should not take lightly is that, try to avoid using your smartphones, or watching TVs, or anything with a screen as it has been suggested that screen glare can fool our vision into thinking that the day is still early.
All of that will be meaningless if you cannot do it consistently. To help you stick with the plan, try creating a sleeping schedule. Try to build a habit of a regular sleeping schedule and stick to it every day, no cheat day, even on the weekends. A regular sleep schedule will help you sleep well. Do not forget to make the bedroom atmosphere as comfortable as possible so that your sleep is of higher quality.
In Short
Good quality sleep is one way to keep the body healthy. In addition, sleep can also increase endurance, maintain mood, and keep the mind from stress. Simple tips like using good quality mattresses, paired with a good quality of linen bedding, no heavy meal, and sugary drinks, as well as staying away from distractions can really go a long way to improving your sleep. Should all of those tips mentioned above be not enough, the last resort for you is to go consult with a doctor and ask for an appropriate treatment because when left untouched, many issues will certainly come out in the future. Please take care of your body.
