MORE THAN JUST A BED
More than just a bed
How to fall asleep faster: Specialist shares top tips
By: Rebekah Scanlan from NZherald
There’s a weird reason you might not be getting the kip you need – but it’s easier to fix than you might think.
There’s nothing worse than that feeling of tossing and turning all night.
Recent statistics show that an estimated 1.5 million Australians aged 20 years and over struggle to get off at night — leading the big question. Why?
There’s actually a weird reason you might not be getting the kip you need — and thankfully, it’s easier to fix than you might think.
According to sleep specialist Dr Justin Hundloe, one of the major reasons most of us aren’t getting enough sleep is because of Netflix.
“It’s so easy to get hooked on a new show and stay up late binge watching Netflix from your bed,” he told news.com.au.
“But what this can do is create a link in your subconscious between your bed and being awake consuming content, rather than sleeping.
“This can make it increasingly difficult for your mind to relax and allow you to fall asleep when you get into bed to go to sleep, resulting in a disrupted night’s sleep.”
In fact, the sleep medicine specialist from GenesisCare Australia said our “sleep environment” plays an important part in getting those all important hours of rest.
“It is very important that you avoid using your bed for anything other than sleep or sex, and instead stick to the lounge if you want to stay up late bingeing your new favourite show,” Dr Justin said.
“Sometimes a person can feel exhausted, but will lay in bed unable to sleep. This can be due to a sub-optimal sleep environment that prevents their body from being able to fall asleep or achieve a deep sleep, which allows the body to rest.”
But not getting sleep can have detrimental consequences on your body, Dr Justin explains.
“Many sleep disorders are also strongly connected to cardiovascular disease (CVD), with poor sleep quality potentially causing or contributing to CVD, and CVD also potentially disturbing sleep.
He added that a poor night’s sleep is also associated with stress, illness and poor health.
While changes to your routine such as shift work or long working hours, travel and jet lag are all common factors that can lead to disrupted sleep, Dr Justin believes the major problem is a person’s sleep environment.
Luckily, Dr Justin said there are several simple things that you can do to help create an ideal sleep environment, which may lead to a better night’s sleep. Hooray.
Here are his top tips to help you get a better night’s sleep on World Sleep Day:
• Go to sleep at the same time each night and get up at the same time each morning
• Refrain from taking naps during the day
• Go to bed only when you are drowsy
• Avoid caffeine and alcohol within six hours of bedtime
• Avoid the use of nicotine close to bedtime or during the night
• Obtain regular exercise, but avoid strenuous exercise four hours before bedtime
• Avoid eating a heavy meal late in the day
• Minimise light, noise and extreme temperatures in the bedroom
• Do something to help you relax. Read a book, listen to music, or take a bath
• Avoid using your bed for anything other than sleep or sex
• Try making a to-do list before you go to bed. This will prevent “Worry Time”
• Avoid clock watching
• If you have ongoing sleep issues seek professional medical advice
New Year, New Bed
A New Year means new opportunities. And one of the biggest, high-impact opportunities for a happier, healthier you is already in your house. You might be reading this article there right now. Your bed may not seem like the biggest investment in your well-being, but it truly is. It all comes down to ensuring you get consistent, quality sleep each night. In addition to picking out a new mattress suited to your needs, they recommend making the most of your investment by kicking off this New Year with a few tweaks to your nighttime routine. Discover the difference a bed from Sleep Tight Beds could make to your life! Visit us in store and speak to one of our Sleep Specialists today.
Sleep, Who Needs It?
We’re all familiar with the bromide “sleep is the best medicine.” Recent research shows that sleep is also being the best tutor, the best stress reliever, and the best productivity booster. Basically, sleep is the ultimate habit magnifier. The right bed helps, we can’t argue with that, but a good night’s sleep isn’t just about finding the right mattress, it’s about developing a few small habits that will have a big impact on your year.
The simple fact is most people do not get enough sleep. Sometimes we are resigned to it, sometimes we claim it an as the accomplishment, since it shows how busy we are. Whatever our attitude, there are some very simple truths about the benefits of good sleep.
Who needs to get more sleep?
Everyone actually. “Enough” sleep is not one set number. Everyone in your family will have a slightly different ideal sleep range. Age plays a major role, so does personal preference. Generally, toddlers need around twelve hours of sleep, school-aged children need at least ten, and teenagers eight to ten. Adults need between seven to nine hours of quality sleep to feel rested. But studies also show that sleep is deeply personal. We each have certain preferences on the feel of our mattresses,
Your Brain on Sleep
Understanding the impacts of a good night’s sleep is the first step in taking charge of your nightly routines. First off, sleep really is like a medicine. A lack of sleep affects the immune system in profound ways. Studies show that not getting enough sleep, or even getting restless sleep, will increase your likelihood of sickness when exposed to a virus (like a cold). Poor sleep will then slow your recovery, leaving you exposed to additional infections just when you start to feel better. The evidence isn’t anecdotal. Your infection-fighting antibody count actually decreases when you don’t get enough sleep.
Sleep supercharges your brain. Your body may be resting but your brain kicks into hyperdrive while you sleep- arranging information, prioritizing memories, and literally taking a bath. Research shows that sleep improves learning by giving your mind a chance to mull over experiences from your day and hang on to the things that matter most. Can’t pick up those new dance steps? Have a hard time remembering names? Your brain consolidates this kind of information when you get enough sleep, meaning it’s easier to access, and act on, the next time around. Likewise, sleep clears out the information you may not need long term. With quicker access to important information and fewer random factoids clouding your thinking, more sleep keeps you sharper day-in and day-out.
The brain benefits of sleep cannot be understated. Improved sleep habits are linked to a reduced risk of dementia, lower levels of stress, and better regulated blood pressure. When you sleep your brain is literally bathed by a cerebrospinal fluid that clears out potentially harmful proteins. Research is ongoing, but a build-up of these proteins in the brain is linked to Alzheimer’s later in life.
How Much Sleep Do You Need?
Your need for sleep and your sleep patterns change as you age, but this varies significantly across individuals of the same age. There is no magic “number of sleep hours” that works for everybody of the same age. Babies initially sleep as much as 16 to 18 hours per day, which may boost growth and development (especially of the brain). School-age children and teens on average need about 9.5 hours of sleep per night. Most adults need 7-9 hours of sleep a night, but after age 60, nighttime sleep tends to be shorter, lighter, and interrupted by multiple awakenings. Elderly people are also more likely to take medications that interfere with sleep.
In general, people are getting less sleep than they need due to longer work hours and the availability of round-the-clock entertainment and other activities.
Many people feel they can “catch up” on missed sleep during the weekend but, depending on how sleep-deprived they are, sleeping longer on the weekends may not be adequate.
The Third Pillar of Health – Sleep
Most of us know that diet and exercise are key parts of staying healthy and boosting our energy levels. No one would dispute the fact that they are important to our overall well-being. These are the first two pillars of health.
However, there is a third pillar that many people over look and yet it is just as important to our body and mind as diet and exercise. This is of course sleep.
We have for centuries neglected our sleep at great cost to both our physical and mental being. Thankfully this is starting to change with a real movement towards the understanding of the body’s circadian rhythms and the science of sleep. The research undertaken in the last quarter-century has brought a greater insight into sleep and our bodies internal clock.
Why is sleep as important as diet and exercise?
- Sleep is essential to our brain function. This includes how our nerve cells communicate with each other. Ours brain don’t go to sleep when we do! They are remarkably active and recent findings suggest that sleep helps your brain to detox, by removing harmful toxins that build up while we are awake.
- Sleeping well improves learning no matter how old we are! We all know we never stop learning, so sleep is just as important to an adult as it is to a child or a teenager.
- Sleep helps to enhance your problem-solving skills, makes decisions easier and makes us more creative.
- Studies have shown that sleep deficiency alters our brain activity. We can have trouble focusing on tasks or problems, even controlling our behaviour or emotions and coping with change. Next time you are feeling a bit short tempered, ask yourself if you have had enough “quality” sleep.
- Sleep is a key factor in our physical health. Did you know that sleep is linked to the healing and repair of your heart and blood vessels? Ongoing sleep deficiency has proven links to an increased risk of heart disease, kidney disease, high blood pressure, diabetes and stroke.
- Losing sleep increases the risk of obesity. It’s all linked to the hormones that make you feel hungry or full (ghrelin and leptin). When you don’t get enough sleep, your hungry hormones go up and your full hormones go down. So, if you ware well rested you won’t feel so hungry.
- Sleep has an impact on your body’s reaction to insulin, the hormone that controls your blood sugar levels. If you are sleep deprived your blood sugar levels will be higher than normal which in the longer term can lead to diabetes.
- Sleep is your bodies defence against infection. Long term sleep deficiency changes the way your immune system responds, and you may find you have trouble fighting common bugs.
- People who sleep well are more productive, they complete tasks faster, have quicker reaction time and make less mistakes. If you have several nights of losing sleep, even if it is only an hour or two per night, your ability to function will suffer as though you haven’t slept at all for a couple of days.
- You might be Microsleeping! Microsleep is where you experience brief moments of sleep that happen when you are usually awake. You may not even be aware it is happening! You can’t control it and it can affect how you function. Have you ever driven somewhere and then thought that you couldn’t remember part of the trip? Then, you may have had an episode of microsleep.
Many people aren’t aware of the risks of sleep deficiency. Many don’t even realise that they are sleep deprived and think that they can still function perfectly well. It is estimated that driver drowsiness is a factor in around 12% of fatal crashes in NZ (Ministry of Transport statistics).
Too Hot to Sleep?
Now that we are approaching the summer months we know that its going to get hotter and for many that means restless and even sleepless nights. Sure, we all love summer, the longer days, BBQ’s and the beach, but how do you keep cool during those hot sticky summer nights and get a good night’s sleep?
We have put together a list of life hacks that will help you out and ensure that when it’s too hot you still sleep soundly and wake up refreshed in the morning.
- The heat tends to make us all a little frazzled, especially if you aren’t sleeping well. Try to keep your head, lie still and accept the heat. The more you thrash around, the more your body heats up and makes it harder for you to sleep.
- Stick to cotton sheets. Avoid bedding that contains polyester, silk or satin. Save your silk and satin sheets for when the weather is a bit cooler. Cotton is breathable and will allow air circulation around you and your bedroom.
- Wear pyjamas. It is so tempting to ditch your jammies and go commando, but it really doesn’t help. Again, stick to cotton. It lets your skin breath and will encourage air circulation around you.
- We sleep better in a cool bedroom. The ideal temperature is 17° Unfortunately, we are not all lucky enough to have air-conditioning, so open a window, or invest in an electric fan. Place a bottle of frozen water in front of it to give an added cooling effect which should last all night.
- Those beautiful long summer evenings tend to lead to later nights, which often means eating and drinking closer to bedtime. We all like to relax with a beer or a wine with friends but it’s a well-known fact that alcohol can disturb our sleep levels, and food to close to bedtime can lead to trouble sleeping. To improve your quality of sleep, try to leave at least two hours between eating and sleeping and limit your alcohol intake close to bedtime.
- If you use a duvet select one manufactured form natural fibres, avoid polyester as it doesn’t breathe and will build up heat. A light weight/ summer duvet made from Wool, Alpaca, Tencel or Bamboo will allow airflow around you and help to disperse the heat from your body.
- Keep a glass of water beside the bed to sip on if you need it. Don’t drink a full glass before going to bed however. This can lead to multiple trips to the toilet through the night.
- Have a cool shower before you head off to bed. It’s a good way to drop your body temperature quickly. You should avoid a freezing cold shower however as this can overstimulate you and make you more awake. The idea is to bring your body temperature down enough that your body prepares for sleep.
- Keep the curtains and blinds closed during the day. If you are choosing curtains or blinds for your home avoid dark colours or metal blinds as these will absorb and store heat.
- Avoid too much sun during the day, and don’t get sunburned. It will raise your body temperature and make sleeping very uncomfortable.
- Chose your bed carefully. You should make sure that your bed has breathable foam layers and products like Silk, Alpaca and Wool in the comfort layers. Products like Outlast® that were specially designed for NASA absorbs, stores and releases heat for optimal thermal comfort.
Routine is a very important part of good sleep hygiene
Routine is a very important part of good sleep hygiene. Get yourself into a routine not only at night time but also during the day.
One of the best ways to train your body to sleep right is to go to bed and to get up at the same time every day. Even at the weekends and on your days off. Your body works on rhythms and cycles so keeping a regular cycle will give your body a sound basis to work from.
Don’t think that after a late-night sleeping in will help you catch up on your sleep. Unfortunately, your body just gets out of its cycle and you simply disrupt your next sleep cycle.
Even if you have a bad night’s sleep and are tired the next day, don’t change your planned activities just because you are tired. All this does is help to reinforce insomnia and begins a cycle of sleep issues.
An introduction to Sleep Hygiene
No, it’s not all about how often you change your sheets! Although there is nothing better than getting into a nice fresh bed. Sleep Hygiene is a term that is used to describe good sleep habits. There has been a considerable amount of research into developing guidelines and tips that will enhance a good night’s sleep and there is a great deal of scientific evidence to support the strategies the can provide long-term solutions to sleep problems.
As we all know there are many medications that can help, and are used to treat insomnia, but these tend to only be useful in the short term. Using sleeping pills long-term can lead to a dependency and will interfere with good sleep habits which in turn can lead to prolonged sleep difficulties.
You should of course talk to your doctor or health professional about what is right for you, but remember, good sleep hygiene is an important part of reducing those sleepless nights whether it is in conjunction with medication or on its own.
Over the next few weeks we will bring you a series of sleep hygiene tips that will help you to improve your sleep patterns and gain a better understanding of why you perhaps aren’t sleeping as well as you could.
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