Written by Amy Kosowski, M.S., LDN. Sleep plays a vital role in good health and well-being throughout life. How much you sleep, the quality of sleep, as well as when you sleep all affect various aspects of health, including cardiovascular function, immunity, metabolism, mood, and cognition.
Most people don’t realize how important sleep is to their overall health and longevity. Sleep plays a vital role in good health and well-being throughout life. The way you feel while you are awake depends on what how well and how long you sleep. In fact, how much you sleep, the quality of sleep, as well as when you sleep all affect various aspects of health, including cardiovascular function, immunity, metabolism, mood, and cognition.
Listed below are some benefits of getting adequate sleep.
- Improved immunity:
- Sleep has a powerful influence on the risk of infectious disease and vaccine response.
- Sleep helps to normalize the inflammatory response and supports healing.
- Sleep deprivation is associated with an increased risk of cancer.
- Maintenance of normal weight:
- Sleep deprivation has been shown to impair glucose tolerance. Even one night of lost sleep can have profound effects on blood sugar and insulin responses.
- It has been shown that not having a regular sleep schedule increases the risk of obesity, metabolic syndrome, and diabetes.
- Improved heart and circulatory health:
- Adequate sleep helps to reduce the risk of hypertension and heart disease.
- Reduced stress and improved mood:
- Sleep is closely connected to mental and emotional health and research has demonstrated links to depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, and psychiatric other conditions.
- Studies have shown that even partial sleep deprivation has a significant effect on mood and the ability to handle even normal stressors.
- Many adults report negative consequences from not getting enough sleep. More than half (53 percent) report feeling sluggish or lazy, 38 percent report feeling irritable, 29 percent report they have trouble concentrating and 25 percent report feeling no motivation to take care of responsibilities.
- Improved cognitive performance:
- Short-term cognitive impacts of poor sleep include excessive daytime sleepiness, poor attention span, reduced ability to adapt to circumstances, reduced emotional stability, and impaired judgement.
- Long-term cognitive impacts of poor sleep include impaired memory and an increased risk of Alzheimer’s disease and dementia.
- Sleep deprivation increases the risk of accidents and injury.
Most adults need 7-9 hours of high-quality sleep on a regular schedule each night. Teens need about 8-10 hours, school-aged children need 9-12 hours, preschoolers need between 10 and 13 hours, toddlers need between 11 and 14 hours, and infants between 12 and 17 hours. Furthermore, because our bodies are set to a biological clock and respond to light/dark cycles, it is best to sleep at night and to stay on a regular schedule, going to bed and getting up at roughly the same time every day. Of course, these are ideal recommendations. The demands of family and jobs often make it difficult to achieve.
Here are some tips to getting a better night’s sleep:
- Avoid late-night snacking, sugar, caffeine, and alcohol.
- Turn off electronics, TVs, and computers two hours before bed. The blue light from these devices causes your brain to stay active. Turning them off a couple hours before bed gives your brain a chance to unwind and get ready for sleep.
- Store all digital devices (e.g., smartphone, tablet, laptop, etc.) in an area of the house other than the bedrooms.
- Sleep in a dark room because light stimulates our brains.
- Use an alarm clock rather than your smartphone or tablet as a wakeup device.
- Keep room temperatures on the cooler side – ideally low to mid-60s.
- Aim for a consistent bedtime routine and sleep schedule to help your body stay on a regular track. Find a good time for you to go to sleep every night and wake up at the same time every morning. It’s also important to keep that same schedule even on the weekends.
Work schedules that fall outside of 7:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. are considered to be shift work. Shift workers have unique challenges around getting adequate sleep. Here are some suggestions for night workers:
- Get into a routine. Having a regular bedtime, a workout schedule and established times for meals can help regulate the body so it knows when it’s time to sleep and when it’s time to wake up.
- Create an ideal sleep environment. Typically, people sleep when it is dark and wake up when it is light. Shift workers can create a bedroom environment that mimics these cues for sleep. Ideally, a sleep area should be dark, cool and quiet.
- Use blackout curtains on bedroom windows.
- Wear a sleep mask.
- Use earplugs to minimize sound.
- Silence cell phones.
- Find the right time to exercise. Timing for exercise can vary from person to person. Some people struggle to sleep when they exercise after their shift and closer to bedtime; others may not enjoy working out when they first wake up if it makes them feel tired before their shift starts.
- Make smart food and snack choices. Eating close to bedtime can affect the quality of sleep.
- Eliminate caffeine intake four to six hours before bedtime.
- Avoid alcohol close to when you plan on going to sleep. While having a drink may help you feel relaxed, the metabolization process can cause disruptions in sleep.
- Finish eating (including snacks) about two hours before going to bed.
- Avoid dairy near bedtime to avoid nasal cavity congestion and breathing issues while sleeping.
- Skip spicy food, which can cause sleep disturbances due to digestion issues.
