Health Tips & Tricks That Will Improve Your Sleep

Are you experiencing difficulties getting a good night’s sleep? Perhaps that’s an indication that you have insomnia, which can lead to serious health problems. According to the Harvard Medical School, inadequate sleep increases your risk of type 2 diabetes, obesity, and heart attack, among other severe health issues. Although controlling the factors that disrupt your sleep at night is nearly impossible, there are simple health tips and tricks you can embrace to improve your sleep. You can begin with the following health tips and tricks that will improve your sleep:

1. Exercise More Often — But Not Just Before Bedtime

Daily workouts will help you cut excess weight and improve your ability to fall asleep and remain asleep for long at night. That’s because exercise promotes the effect of natural sleep hormones, including melatonin, which improves the quality of sleep you get at night.

Postmenopausal women engaging in workouts for three-and-a-half hours each week were found to fall asleep more quickly than those who didn’t engage in any workouts. However, exercising a few hours before bed can have a contrary effect. Therefore, timing your workouts can improve your sleep.

2. Get Regular Checkups

Going for regular checkups is one of the most effective ways to identify any underlying health problems, including insomnia. Therefore, if you’re experiencing certain symptoms, including snoring and a burning sensation in your throat, stomach, or chest, consider visiting your doctor for a checkup. Often, these symptoms point to three common sleep disruptors — sleep apnea, GERD, and restless legs syndrome.

Read More: How Much Sleep Do You Require for Better Health?

Additionally, if you’re having headaches, jaw and tooth pain, shoulder and back pain, or facial pain, you may be diagnosed with temporomandibular joint (TMJ) disorder. Often, this is a painful condition whereby your mouth’s main joint becomes painful due to misalignment or overworking. If you’re experiencing these symptoms, getting a checkup from a TMJ specialist in Los Angeles can determine if your lack of sleep is due to TMJ disorder. Ultimately, regular checkups will help identify and manage underlying issues that make it difficult for you to fall asleep at night.

3. Set Up a Restful Atmosphere

Setting up a conducive atmosphere for falling and remaining asleep can improve sleep quality at night. You can achieve this by keeping your bedroom cool, dark, and quiet. Also, avoid extended use of blue light-emitting screens a few hours before going to bed. Furthermore, consider using earplugs, room-darkening shades, a fan, or any other appliance to set up the right mood for you to fall and remain asleep all night long. Not forgetting, undertaking calming activities minutes before bedtime, including meditation and taking a warm bath, can improve your sleep.

4. Be Cautious of the Foods and Drinks You Consume

Paying attention to the foods and drinks you take before bedtime can contribute to better sleep at night. In particular, avoid caffeine, alcohol, and nicotine drinks as they contain stimulants that can disrupt your sleep at night. Likewise, avoid eating heavy meals several hours before bedtime since doing so will keep your stomach busy, causing discomfort that may keep you up all night. In the end, paying attention to what you eat and drink before bedtime can improve your sleep quality.

5. Develop and Adhere to a Regular Sleep Pattern

The human body’s circadian rhythm operates on a set loop, orienting itself with the time when the sun rises and sets. Therefore, creating and sticking to a regular sleep pattern can, in the long run, improve your sleep quality at night.

One survey discovered that individuals who had irregular sleeping patterns and slept late on the weekends had difficulties falling and remaining asleep. Likewise, other studies have demonstrated that irregular sleep patterns can disrupt your circadian rhythm and production of melatonin. These two components tell your brain when it’s time to sleep. Therefore, they can improve or disrupt your sleep depending on how they’re affected.

Take Away

Sleep is a vital yet neglected aspect that can impact your overall health negatively or positively. For instance, poor sleep can increase your risk of having obesity, heart attack, and diabetes. Therefore, adopting these health tips and tricks can improve your sleep quality and thus improve your overall health.