Scientifically tested
7 tips to ensure restful sleep
© naka / Adobe Stock
Sleep provides us with valuable energy, yet we are often adept at putting it off and spoiling our restful time. We’ll give you a few tricks that people have been shown to sleep better with.
Unfocused, drained and of course just tired: too little sleep is quickly reflected in our well-being and also in our behavior towards other people. Among other things, lack of sleep makes us even less helpful, as recently a study discovered. And quality sleep is becoming increasingly rare. In Germany alone, 25 percent of those surveyed slept in a Statista conducted in 2021-Opinion poll bad or very bad. Another 40 percent rated their sleep quality only in the medium range. Anyone who has been suffering from sleep problems for a long time should have it checked to see whether they have a sleep disorder that should be treated by a specialist. In some cases, however, we can already improve our sleep with small things. We have seven promising methods for you that are scientifically proven.
1. More bright light
Exposing your body to bright light more often during the day can naturally help you become tired more quickly at night. Because you actually already have a built-in circadian rhythm that ensures that you stay awake during the day and feel tired in the evening. Due to the often pronounced use of screens in our everyday life, however, this is often inhibited. Bright light influences during the day could in a study improve the quality and timing of sleep. In addition, it was easier for the subjects to fall asleep.
Also important when it comes to light – and an often mentioned help for years: less blue light from electrical devices. In the best case, according to scientists, we should avoid blue lights about two hours before going to bed. So: no television or smartphone – or just suitable glasses with a blue light filter or an app on your cell phone or tablet that blocks the rays.
2. Don’t eat late
Avoid late meals not only for the nutritional benefits, but also for your sleep. Because that could negatively affect your sleep quality and also the natural release of melatonin and the growth hormone HGH. Among other things, this supports the process of cell division in your body. What we should eat best, however, does not seem entirely clear. one study According to them, eating a low-calorie meal four hours before bedtime had a positive effect on the deep sleep phase and at the same time shortened the REM phase, the part in which we dream. Another investigation However, came to the conclusion that a high-calorie meal four hours before bedtime could have a positive effect on the time it takes to fall asleep. The scientists agree on the four-hour break in particular, so that your body has enough time to process the food.
3. Regular exercise
Sport exhausts the body and helps it to calm down better. At least that’s how it seems when you look at several studies on insomnia. In a study With people aged 50 and over, researchers found that regular physical activity enabled them to sleep better and longer than before. In another investigation with female subjects it was also shown that fears and worries before going to bed decreased. But be careful: You shouldn’t start exercising too late in the evening, otherwise it can keep you awake for a while afterwards.
4. Fall asleep and wake up routine
We often find it difficult to stick to fixed bedtimes. Getting up early in the morning at the weekend and still going to bed early in the evening? That doesn’t really sound like relaxation or fun to us. However, for a body that is quickly thrown off course when the rhythm changes, this can be quite helpful. Several studies have found that irregular sleep routines can cause us to sleep poorly and even negatively affect the hormone melatonin, which normally regulates our sleep-wake cycle.
Naps, too long, can also be detrimental and reduce the quality of your night’s sleep. However, this may not be true for all people equally. For subjects: one study the sleep breaks during the day even made them more tired. Further researchers found that 30 minutes or less of power napping during the day actually increased brain function, but longer naps negatively impacted nighttime sleep. However, if you’ve been a regular power napper for a while and don’t have any problems at night, then you don’t have to worry about it now.
5. Better sober
Alcohol can make us sleep less well and, as a result, feel less rested. On the one hand, because it can, for example, help us wake up more often or even start to sleep snoring. It also has a negative effect on our melatonin production and the growth hormone HGH.
6. The bedroom and you
Sometimes it’s the little things that help us. For example, is your pillow uncomfortable, your mattress too soft, or your duvet cover too warm? Then think about what other materials might be able to help you – or what might just be too old to continue to spend a large part of your life with. According to Stiftung Warentest, we should replace mattresses after about eight years for hygienic reasons. And at the very latest when you notice a hollow in your mattress. By the way, the right temperature in your bedroom can also make a difference – according to one study it has even more influence on us than distracting noises. According to research, the ideal temperature is around 20 degrees. But this varies from person to person and you can test it out for yourself and create your favorite climate.
7. A relaxing (foot) bath
Too much stress makes it difficult to sleep and tension is our biggest enemy when all we really want to do is fall asleep. This causes us to toss and turn and lie awake longer than necessary. A warm and soothing bath 90 minutes before bedtime is according to one study but a great way to get a better night’s sleep. However, it does not always have to be a full bath. Even a warm footbath can make you noisy researchers help improve your sleep. If both are somehow too much effort for you, der:die can also try out socks in bed. This helped subjects in a study fall asleep 15 minutes earlier on average.
Sources used: Healthline, National Library of Medicine, Statista