What is Sleep Hygiene?

By the time you are reading this blog post, I'm pretty sure you would have been given some form of advice on 'sleep hygiene'; whether it's from your doctor, from online or books. However, what I found is that people often find the information confusing and they don't know how to put those tips into practice, how it works, how effective it is and what it involves. 

What is Sleep Hygiene?

Sleep Hygiene is a collection of habits and behaviours relating to your lifestyle, that influence and support good sleep. People often get confused about what the term actually means, whether they have done it properly. Practicing healthy sleep hygiene can help people fall asleep more quickly, remain asleep throughout the night, and feel refreshed in the morning. However, it is not one single intervention and there is no defined approach or universally agreed list. Having said that, the way I look at sleep hygiene is that they are just principles intended to set us up for better sleep and poor sleep hygiene can have an adverse effect on our sleep quality and duration.

There are more and more research being conducted about sleep so the standards for sleep hygiene are constantly evolving. In this blogpost, I will cover all of the latest sleep hygiene recommendations and explain why good sleep hygiene is essential for your overall health and well-being.

Sleep hygiene is generally broken down into two categories; one being the activities and habits during the day that impact sleep. These guidelines include:

Prioritize sleep and follow a consistent sleep-wake schedule: It's vital to treat sleep as a priority. Going to bed and waking up at the same time each day can help you to establish a healthy routine and sleep better each night. I personally find this a little restrictive so regardless of whether it's a weekday or weekend, I will try to wake up at the same time so that I can get into a rhythm of consistent sleep and gets my brain and body accustomed to. Bear in mind that in order for this system to be effective, you will need to stick to the same schedule even on weekends and during the holidays. If you want to shift your sleep times, don’t try to do it all in one fell swoop because that can throw your schedule out of whack. Instead, make small, step-by-step adjustments of up to an hour or two so that you can get adjusted and settle into a new schedule.

Exercise daily: Physical activity during the day can help you feel more tired and ready for sleep in the evening. Exercising close to bedtime may cause arousals that make falling asleep more difficult, so morning to mid-afternoon will probably be the best time.

Spend some time in the sunshine: Natural light and darkness guide the circadian rhythms that regulate your sleep cycle. Exposing yourself to sunshine during the day can help keep your circadian cycle properly aligned.

Don't overdo it with naps: I know how handy a power nap can does wonder to regaining energy during the day but they can also throw off your sleep at night. to avoid this, try to keep naps relatively short and limited to the early afternoon (before 3pm). Furthermore, nap duration is an important consideration. Napping for more than 30 minutes can lead to deep sleep that creates feelings of confusion and grogginess after waking that may last for hours. Shorter naps, on the other hand, make you feel refreshed without the cognitive impairment.

No Smoking: Cigarettes and other tobacco products that contain nicotine can interfere with healthy sleep, causing sleep disturbances. 

The second category belongs to sleep hygiene you practice in the hours leading up to bedtime and during the night. These guidelines talks to how you prepare for bed, including tips that can put you at ease and make it easier to fall asleep when you want to. 

• Avoid caffeine late in the day: Caffeine is a stimulant that produces feelings of alertness that can last up to six hours. Consuming caffeinated foods and drinks in the morning or early afternoon may not affect your sleep, but these should be avoided in the late afternoon and evening.

• Create a sleep-friendly bedroom: The ideal bedroom for sleeping should be dark, cool, and quiet. Try to keep away from bright lights because again, they can hinder the production of melatonin. Turn off mobile phone alerts during the night. The optimal temperature for sleeping is thought to be between 18°C and 21°C, so adjust your bedroom’s thermostat accordingly. 
• Avoid heavy meals at night: If you feel hungry after dinner, opt for a light snack instead of a larger meal. The latter can make falling asleep difficult and disturb your sleep during the night.

• Limit alcohol before bed: Many people believe alcohol is a sleep aid, but this is untrue. Alcoholic drinks can induce feelings of sleepiness that help you fall asleep more easily, but alcohol can also cause sleep fragmentation during the night that interferes with your sleep cycle. The effects of alcohol on sleep are largely dose-dependent – the more you drink, the greater the impact on your sleep quality.
• Limit your screen time and unplug from electronics: Build in a 30-60 minute pre-bed routine that is device-free. Mobile phones, i-pads, televisions, and computers all emit blue light through their screens and can cause mental stimulation that is hard to shut off. The blue light is believed to suppress production of melatonin, a sleep-inducing hormone your body releases in the evening. Research also suggests blue light can damage photoreceptors in the eyes. 
• Carve out time to relax in the evening: Take advantage of whatever puts you in a state of calm such as Light stretching or yoga, reading, and listening to music. Choose activities that promote feelings of relaxation before bedtime and avoid vigorous exercise and other arousing activities. Instead of making falling asleep your goal, try to focus on relaxation. Meditation, mindfulness, paced breathing, and other relaxation techniques can put you in the right mindset for bed.
• Don't toss and turn, get up if you can’t sleep: Lying in bed during the night can negatively impact your sleep. It helps to have a healthy mental connection between being in bed and actually being asleep. For that reason, if after 20 minutes you haven’t gotten to sleep, get up and stretch, read, or do something else calming in low light until you feel tired again.

Summary

Your sleep environment and daily routines play a critical role in optimizing your ability to sleep well. It applies to just about everyone, but what ideal sleep hygiene looks like can vary based on the person. For that reason, it’s worth testing out the different tips to find out what helps your sleep the most. You don’t have to change everything at once; small steps can move you toward better sleep hygiene.

It’s also important to know that improving sleep hygiene won’t always resolve sleeping problems. People who have serious insomnia or sleep disorders like obstructive sleep apnea may benefit from better sleep hygiene, but usually will go hand in hand with other treatments as well.

In other words, even though it may be beneficial, sleep hygiene alone isn’t the magic bullet. If you have long-lasting or severe sleeping problems or daytime sleepiness, it’s best to talk with a doctor who can recommend the most appropriate course of treatment.

I hope you have found this post useful, I'm interested to know if you practice good sleep hygiene so let me know in the comments! 

Stay happy and healthy, sleep well! 

With love,

*Medical Disclaimer: The following content should not be used as medical advice or as a recommendation for any specific supplement or medication. It is important to consult your health care provider prior to starting a new medication or altering your current dosage.