How to improve your sleeping habits

We can eat the best nutrition and exercise all we like but if we are not getting enough sleep our health is in danger. Many of us is simply getting too little sleep. This can be due to staying up too late or waking up too early. Sometimes the sleep quality is also not what it’s supposed to be. Anyhow too little sleep, especially when poor quality jeopardizes our health. Too little sleep can lead to memory problems like dementia and Alzheimer’s but it also makes it difficult to maintain healthy eating habits and this could lead to weight issues. It is known that when a person is tired, she makes poorer dietary choices and consumer excess calories. In this blog we share few tips to better night’s sleep.

1. Consume your coffee or tea during the first part of the day! If possible, do not consume caffeinated coffee or tea past mid day. Caffeine is a stimulant that will disturb your sleep. Instead choose decaffeinated alternatives like herbal teas or decaffeinated coffee. These taste equally good!

2. Maintain your sleep schedule even on weekends and during holidays! A long lie in may sound tempting on a Saturday morning but this might confuse your body and make it more difficult to maintain a good sleeping routine. This means that if you go to bed at 10pm and wake up at 7am during the week, you will have to do the same during the weekend also.

3. Avoid using smart devices just before bed! Blue light from your smart device will interfere with Melatonin production and will make it harder for you to wind down and fall asleep. Melatonin is a hormone that regulates our sleep. Putting your phone and tablet away at least an hour before bed will improve your sleep noticeably.

4. Take a cold shower before bed! Cold shower will lower your body temperature and will make it easier for you to fall asleep. Literally turn your tap to the coldest it gets and try standing underneath the shower for two minutes. This might feel first a little chilly but soon you notice you will get used to it!’

5. Get as much sun light during the day as possible! Ideally we should get outside and expose ourselves to sun light as soon as we wake up. However, there are also benefits to our sleeping pattern if we just make sure that we do this during the day. This will start the cortisol production which regulates human circadian rhythm. Cortisol levels are highest early hours of the morning and will fall during the day till melatonin takes over.

6. Consider a good quality magnesium supplement! Magnesium is known as a sleep mineral that relaxes our bodily systems and supports our sleep. Good quality magnesium contains few different types of magnesium and is easily absorbable by the body. To get best results take your magnesium both in the morning and in the evening.

7. Practice meditation and stress management! Meditation activates something called parasympathetic nervous system that slows down our breathing, the heart rate and makes it easier to snooze off! Meditation together with our eye massager in the evening will support good sleeping habits, relief stress and get rid of any tension you may have!