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12 Tips for Restful Sleep
Your sleep can be affected by your lifestyle, environment, body
rhythms and mental state. Try these tips for helping to maximize
your chances of getting a good night's rest.
- In order to give you the best rest, computers, televisions and
games consoles should be removed from your bedroom. They all
stimulate the mind rather than relaxing it and prevent you from
preparing properly for sleep. If you simply can't live without a
computer or TV in your bedroom, ensure you switch it off 30
minutes before you want to sleep.
- Make sure your bed is comfortable. Hard mattresses are not
always best even if you have a back problem.
- Make an effort to de-clutter your room. Piles of clothes,
boxes of books or papers on the floor and crowded shelves and
surfaces won't encourage peaceful sleep.
- Fit thick curtains or blackout blinds to ensure your bedroom
is as dark as possible, also use low wattage bedside lighting.
- When trying to sleep, noise plays a very important part of
getting a good night's rest. If you live near a noisy road, fit
double-glazing or heavy curtains to reduce the noise.
Alternatively, if possible, move your bedroom to one away from
the road.
- If you have noisy neighbors, try leaving a radio or cd playing
softly to prevent you focussing on extraneous noise. Many people
find natural sounds such as a recording of waves on a rocky
seashore or a bubbling brook or even rainfall to be very
effective.
tips 7-12 after these sponsor ads
- Tests have shown that as little as 0.3 degrees C can make the
difference between a good night's rest and a poor one. Keep warm
and sleep with a window slightly open for some fresh air.
- Dual-layer duvets that can be used with both layers for winter
and just a single layer for warmer months are an excellent way to
ensure you won't get too hot or cold in bed throughout the year.
- Don't exercise late at night, it produces chemicals that keep
the brain active. Aim to stop working-out at least an hour before
sleep time. The only exercise that is recommended for a good
night's sleep is sex - scientists believe sex helps produce
chemicals that promote better sleep.
- Sleeping too long, just as sleeping too little can lead to
grogginess and lethargy. Aim to get between 6 to 8 hours each
night. However the quality of sleep is more important than the
amount of sleep.
- For good quality sleep avoid drinking more than 2 glasses of
alcohol before bedtime. Similarly herbal supplements can disturb
sleep. Ginseng, Ginkgo biloba, Guarana and Ephedra are powerful
stimulants and may keep you awake.
- Nicotine initially relaxes you, but then speeds up the heart
rate, increases blood pressure and stimulates brain activity -
exactly the opposite of what is needed for restful sleep! Try not
to smoke within 30 minutes of bedtime.
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Note that the contents here are
not presented from a medical practitioner, and that any and
all health care planning should be made under the guidance of your
own medical and health practitioners. The content within only presents
an overview of the topics and
does not replace medical advice from a professional physician.
Where I have listed the nutritional contents of foods, that information is from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. 2005. USDA National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference, Release 18. Nutrient Data Laboratory Home Page.
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