Sleep tight!

Getting the morning blues is not the best way to start your day. You may feel overly tired, cranky, and lose interest in everything. This could disrupt your daily routine, causing you to snooze and yawn throughout the day. Here comes the role of sleep hygiene, which can reset your sleep habits for healthy living.

Reputed neurologist Dr. Prashant Makhija weighs in

If you want to wake up early every morning looking and feeling fresh, you better have a proper dose of sound sleep the previous night. This will prepare you for the day ahead with renewed energy and enhance your performance in every task you undertake. In medical terms, sleep hygiene has now become indispensable to modern-day lifestyles with backbreaking deadlines and undue stress jeopardising human health over the years.

Healthy Slumber

“Sleep hygiene refers to a set of healthy practices and habits that promote optimal quality sleep. This includes maintaining a consistent sleep schedule, creating a restful environment, avoiding stimulants like caffeine and cigarettes before bedtime, and establishing a relaxing pre-sleep routine. Sound sleep hygiene helps regulate the body's internal clock or circadian rhythm and improves the overall sleep quality,” explains Dr Prashant Makhija, consultant neurologist at Wockhardt Hospitals, Mumbai.

Importance of a Good Night’s Sleep

A good night’s sleep is crucial for the brain and body to rest, recover, and rejuvenate. “It supports cognitive functions, memory consolidation, emotional regulation and physical repair. Poor sleep can affect concentration, mood, and overall health, inducing long-term issues if not addressed,” informs Dr Makhija.

Catching Up on Missed Sleep

Overworking, burnout, stress, and jetlag due to long flights can wreak havoc on modern-day lifestyles. “Catching up on occasional sleep loss can indeed help, but that’s not a long-term solution. Sleep debt can accumulate, aggravating stress on the brain and body. Steady maintenance of adequate sleep hours is better for cognitive and physical health rather than trying to compensate for the sleep loss on weekends or during breaks,” prescribes Dr. Makhija.

Worst Hit

Insufficient sleep affects multiple organs and vital bodily functions, namely the brain, heart, immune system and metabolism. It can impair cognitive functions, deteriorate immune response, increase blood pressure, and disrupt hormonal balance, particularly those regulating stress, appetite, and glucose. Poor sleep patterns can also adversely impact the liver, kidneys and endocrine system.

Power Nap

“To manage a hectic roster, catnaps of 10-20 minutes can be beneficial. Napping in a reclined seat during traffic snarls (if safe and stationary), pulling up a comfortable chair during office recesses, or finding a quiet corner in public places can help refill your drained energy reservoir. At home, using noise-cancelling headphones or an eye mask can soothe one’s nerves and create a calming microenvironment. Short snoozes can improve alertness and mood, but they shouldn’t replace a full night’s sleep,” suggests Dr Makhija.

Medical Intervention

“Neurologists provide guidance on proper sleep hygiene and may advise lifestyle modifications or alternative treatments like light therapy or melatonin supplements for improved sleep quality. In some cases, medication adjustments or the use of specialised sleep aids may be necessary,” says Dr Makhija.

Health Benefits

Undisturbed sleep plays a pivotal part in maintaining cardiovascular health, reducing the risks of heart disease, hypertension and stroke. It supports metabolic processes, helps regulate blood sugar levels and reduces the perils of obesity and type 2 diabetes. It also enhances mental health by lowering anxiety and depression.

Sleep Duration

For most adults, 7-9 hours of sleep per night is recommended. Children and teenagers require more, ranging from 9 to 12 hours of adequate sleep, depending on their age. Older adults may still need around 7-8 hours, though sleep quality often changes with age.

Bedtime Checklist

Things to do before bedtime to ensure peaceful and silent sleep:

l Maintain a consistent sleep schedule of going to bed and waking up at the same time daily.

l Create a relaxing bedtime routine. This could include reading, light stretching or meditation.

l Avoid caffeine, nicotine and heavy meals close to bedtime.

l Limit screen time an hour before bed to reduce exposure to blue light.

l Ensure a comfortable sleep environment, keeping the room cool, dark and quiet.

l Consider using favourable white noise or soft music to aid relaxation.