25 science-backed tips for how to sleep better – Business Insider Australia

If you wake up in the morning feeling groggy, then you may not be getting quality sleep.
Tossing and turning at night can take a toll on your life, causing restlessness, weight gain, and even chronic illnesses like heart disease.
If you’re tired of waking up tired, we’ve provided 25 science-backed tips that promote healthy sleep hygiene. Here’s how to fall asleep, stay asleep, and wake up feeling refreshed.
1. Understand what a good night’s sleep means
You’ve heard this one before. Getting 7-9 hours of sleep a night is one of the most important things that you can do for your health. Depending on your age, you may need slightly more. For example, teenagers need 8-10 hours and newborns need 14-17 hours.
Here’s how much sleep you should be getting based on your age:
Getting any less than the recommended amount could impair your cognitive function, negatively affect your mental health, and make it harder to lose weight. A lack of sleep could even leave you more susceptible to infection since sleeping enough can boost your immune system.
2. Sleep on your back
If you are standing up or sitting most of the day, your spine and joints can become strained from supporting your weight. The best sleeping position to mitigate joint strain is by lying down on your back because it offers relief from the constant pull of gravity.
Moreover, sleeping on your back opens up the pecs, allowing these muscles to completely relax. If you work at an office job, this can help relieve the toll your body experiences from slouching forward over a desk each day.
3. For certain medical conditions, sleep on your side
Back-sleeping doesn’t work for everyone. If you have a condition like acid reflux, then you might want to consider sleeping on your left side, since it allows the esophageal sphincter muscle to relax. This can help prevent flare-ups during the night, improving your quality of sleep.
You should also sleep on your side if you have back pain that is exacerbated by walking or standing, if you have lumbar stenosis, or if you are pregnant.
4. Set a bedtime and stick to it
Your body operates on an internal clock, called your circadian rhythm, which regulates organ function. Going to sleep and waking up at the same time each day, even on the weekend, will help your body synchronise this internal clock so that you’ll desire sleep at a certain time each night. This is helpful because it can allow you to fall asleep more easily when bedtime rolls around.
Otherwise, “if your sleep pattern is frequently changing, your body doesn’t know when it’s supposed to be awake or asleep,” says Stephanie Stahl, MD, a Sleep Medicine expert at the Indiana University of Health.
5. Watch what you eat before bedtime
According to the National Sleep Foundation, you should avoid simple carbs like white bread, pasta, and white rice before bed. These foods can reduce your levels of serotonin, a chemical that plays a key role for sleep.
You should also be sure to avoid caffeine and any food or drink that may induce heartburn. As far as the foods you should eat, here are some healthy choices for a late-night snack that won’t disrupt your sleep.
Almonds and walnuts: These kinds of nuts contain melatonin, a sleep-inducing hormone. Eating almonds and walnuts before bed can increase the level of melatonin in your blood, which may help promote restful sleep.
Fruits: Many fruits like raspberries, tart cherries, bananas, pineapples, and oranges also contain melatonin.
Cottage cheese: Cottage cheese contains tryptophan, an amino acid that can increase the production of serotonin. Since a lack of serotonin can contribute to insomnia, having a late-night snack of cottage cheese may help you fall asleep.
6. Avoid alcohol before bed
A nightcap may help you fall asleep faster, but that doesn’t mean you’re getting quality rest. In fact, there are multiple ways that alcohol negatively impacts the quality of your sleep. For example:

• Alcohol suppresses the production of melatonin.
• It reduces the amount of REM sleep that you get. REM sleep is the deepest stage of sleep, so less of it means less quality sleep and more next-day fatigue.
• Alcohol is also diuretic, meaning it will make you urinate more often. So if you have a drink before bed, you’ll likely wake up more often in the night to go to the bathroom, further damaging your sleep quality.

7. Stay cool at night
If your bedroom is too warm, your sleep may suffer. Studies indicate people get the best quality sleep in a room that is around 60 °F to 67 °F. While this may be the best sleeping temperature, it might not be best for your electricity bill. Here are some tips for how to stay cool at night without an air conditioner:

• Use cool bedding and wear light clothes to bed.
• Take a warm shower before bed. Though this may sound counterintuitive, warm showers actually increase blood flow to your hands and feet, which helps your body remove heat more effectively.
• Avoid exercising before bed, since exercise raises your body temperature.

8. Don’t oversleep
If you sleep more than nine hours a day, several days a week, and still feel tired during the day, then it’s possible that you are oversleeping.
In addition to throwing off your sleep schedule, too much sleep could be bad for you because it’s associated with a number of health issues including type 2 diabetes, heart disease, obesity, and depression.
9. Try short naps
Naps are good for you if they are taken in moderation. Ideally, naps should last 20-30 minutes, which gives your body enough time to relieve the symptoms of fatigue without inducing grogginess. Doze off longer than 30 minutes and your body starts to go into a deep sleep. This can disrupt your circadian rhythm which throws off your sleep schedule and can make it harder for you to fall asleep at night.
10. Don’t drink too much caffeine
Though many people turn to caffeine to stay awake, too much of it during the day could keep you up at night. That’s because caffeine can stay in your system for up to 9 hours. One study found that 400 mg of caffeine – equivalent to about four 8-ounce cups of coffee – as much as six hours before bed can contribute to poor sleep.
11. Stick to a sleep routine
If you struggle to fall asleep quickly and easily at night, you may try establishing a calming bedtime routine. Two to three hours before bed try the following to destress:

• Take a hot bath
• Drink a cup of caffeine-free tea
• Read a book

Establishing calming routines may help your body feel fully relaxed when you eventually climb into bed.
12. Try a pair of blue light blocking glasses
Blue light glasses work by blocking blue light from screens. Blue light signals to your body that it is daytime, which suppresses the production of melatonin making you feel more alert. However, this is a problem at night when you’re trying to sleep.
If you can’t give up screens before bed, then consider purchasing a pair of blue light glasses. Though these glasses are marketed to prevent eye strain from electronics, they are far better at helping with sleep. They work by reducing the amount of blue light from reaching your eyes and interfering with melatonin production. If you’re going to try these out, experts recommend that you start wearing them two hours before bedtime.
13. Check medication side effects
Certain medications may cause insomnia as a side effect. A few of them are:

• SSRIs: Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors (SSRIs), which are commonly used to treat anxiety and depression.
• Blood-pressure medications: Alpha-blockers and beta-blockers are used to treat high blood pressure. Alpha-blockers may reduce REM sleep, while beta-blockers suppress melatonin.
• Steroids: Steroids, like those used to treat arthritis, can make it difficult to fall asleep, so it’s recommended that people take these medications in the morning.

If you are taking any of these and are worried that they may be affecting your sleep, talk to your doctor about the pros and cons of the medication.
14. Take melatonin supplements
Melatonin is a hormone that our bodies produce naturally, but you can also purchase over-the-counter melatonin supplements that can help boost melatonin levels at bedtime. Melatonin plays a role in our internal clock – as bedtime nears your body will ramp up melatonin product making you feel tired and signalling that it is time to relax and go to bed.
Though different doses work for different people, start off by taking 0.5 milligrams per night

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