10 tips to help you sleep

Content

• Danger of getting enough sleep
• Duration and quality of sleep
• 10 lifehacks to sleep

According to statistics, over 70% of the adult population of the Earth regularly suffers from lack of sleep. It is he, the hidden lack of sleep, in one way or another is responsible for such “scourges” of modern society, such as excess weight, laziness and at the same time – perfectionism (the obsessive desire to bring things to the ideal and end up not completing them at all), chronic fatigue syndrome and other nasty things.

Danger of getting enough sleep

Healthy sleep is an integral part of a no less healthy metabolism. Taking away the hours of nighttime relaxation, we do about the same as if we were withdrawing one or another useful vitamin from our diet. With the corresponding consequences.

 

It seems to be all clear? But there is a nuance. Lack of sleep is cunning: it is often hidden, especially during the early off-season, when the body has not yet determined how much he needs to rest. It was then, in March – the beginning of April or the end of October-November, that fatigue, reduced immunity, and weight gain are waiting for us.

In addition to excess weight and fatigue, sleep deprivation affects genes. As recent studies show, sleep deficiency “confuses” almost 400 genes: our DNA does not begin to work as originally intended.

And genes that are sensitive to the quality of proper relaxation are extremely important – they include those that are responsible for metabolism, reaction speed, brain work, accelerated aging.

And in order to organize their failure, it takes not so much – enough, for example, one or two weeks of insufficient sleep.

Duration and quality of sleep

Sleep is considered healthy if three criteria are met:

• Awakening should be easy and vigorous;
• The feeling that the body rested during the night;
• During the day there is no sleepiness.

As you can see, they are talking only about well-being. Figures, that is, the absolute duration of sleep, is not recommended. For two reasons: firstly, this factor is individual – it takes at least 8–9 hours for someone to sleep, and someone costs 5–6 hours completely, and secondly, the duration of healthy sleep varies depending on on the season. Surely, many people noticed that in the spring it’s not at all sleepy, you have enough time to relax from the heart even in the shortest night, but in the late autumn and in winter you wouldn’t get out from under the blanket.

But we are accustomed to focus on numbers, and that is what brings us. Because the clock seems to show “Sleep enough!”, And your body (in accordance with the above criteria) harbors resentment and saves a dangerous lack of sleep.

10 lifehacks to sleep

Scientists have long been studying the question of how to improve the quality of a night’s rest and get enough sleep even during a busy week of work. For example, they voiced 10 mandatory life hacking, which is worth adhering to anyone who wants to tame lack of sleep and normalize the genes, along with metabolism.

1. The most important night of the week is from Sunday to Monday. According to numerous studies, it is she who determines whether you will get enough sleep in the next seven days. Therefore, do not stay up late on Sunday.
2. Mode. It is important not to go to bed exactly at 21:00 or, for example, before 23:00, but to make it a rule to observe a constant sleep pattern. That is, if it is convenient for you to go to bed at midnight or one o’clock in the morning, and waking up at 8–9 in the morning, do not knock down the schedule — by sticking to this regime constantly, you will not harm the body. The main thing is not to arrange a “roller coaster” for yourself, when today you consider yourself a “morning person”, lying down at nine, and tomorrow you dance all night until the morning.

To restore the body after a night of sleep deprivation, it is necessary from 1 to 2 weeks.

1. Lighting. It is possible to sleep quickly and fully sleep only in complete darkness – without any light fixtures and a full moon looking in the windows. Pure physiology: the hormone melatonin, which regulates sleep, effectively acts in the absence of light. Therefore, if you are a “lark” and lie down before dark, or, conversely, an “owl” and wake up already after the sun has risen high above the horizon, try to create an artificial night in the bedroom – for example, using opaque curtains.
2. Sound. Minimize the flow of external sounds in the place where you will sleep. Turn off the TV, computer, radio – it will not distract the body to the processing of incoming sound, and it will focus on rest. You can use earplugs – special ear plugs that muffle the sound.
3. Gadgets. Reduce the number of gadgets before bedtime. Yes, we all understand that in modern life, to give up your favorite TV show for the night or “buy-by” on a messenger to a loved one is an extremely simple task. Well, physiologists are resigned to progress and ask only one thing: try to avoid films and videos with a tense plot and an alarming soundtrack for the night. Such a video series raises the level of stress hormone cortisol in the blood, which destroys melatonin, and with it the hope of a good full sleep.
4. Alcohol. Forget about such a “remedy for insomnia,” as a little wine or alcohol balm for the night. Even 50 weak grams violate the alternation and duration of sleep phases, without which a healthy night relax is impossible. As a result, your brain may turn off faster, but it will not get enough sleep: sleep will only be an illusion, but in fact it will be forgotten with mixed phases. And the next morning, even if you formally slept for more than 8 hours and woke up on your own, you cannot escape the feeling of being broken. The optimal time for libations is no later than 3-4 hours before bedtime.
5. Temperature balance Sleep in the cold is worse than warm (but not heat). At bedtime, airing the room is necessary. If it is cold outside, you can close the windows at night. The main thing that the room was not stuffy. Sleep will be much stronger if you sleep in a cool room, covered with a blanket, than in the stuffiness without taking shelter. In turn, at high temperatures there will also be no full sleep. This is explained by the fact that in the cold and in the heat, the body needs to connect additional resources for thermoregulation.
6. Food. With a full stomach, the body spends a lot of effort to digest food, and not for regenerative processes. Those who cannot sleep with an empty stomach can drink warm water or eat an apple. If you give up a hearty dinner, replace it with light salads, tea, you can get enough sleep and get rid of the hanging sides and tummy. The last meal should be 3-5 hours before bedtime.
7. Warm shower. In addition to hygiene, when the dirt is cleaned and the pores open, through which the body breathes, a warm shower relaxes and soothes, which favorably affects the quality of sleep.
8. Get some sleep. If there is an opportunity to sleep longer on a day off or any other day, be sure to use it. According to numerous observations and evidence of some scientists, lack of sleep can catch up enough sleep.