Are you struggling with sleep? Here Are 4 Ways to Improve Sleep

There is no argument that quality sleep is critical to human physiologic process and repair. Poor sleep often leads to many adverse health outcomes including insulin resistance, cognitive decline, increase in stress hormones and cardiovascular disease.  High quality sleep is crucial for brain, mental, and physical health. We will review 4 ways to improve sleep.

Sleep is a complex, homeostatically regulated biological state characterized by reversible behavioral quiescence, altered consciousness, reduced sensory responsiveness, and decreased muscle tone. It is divided into two main states: non–rapid eye movement (NREM) sleep, which includes stages N1, N2, and N3, and rapid eye movement (REM) sleep, each defined by distinct neurophysiological activity and cycling throughout the night. Sleep is essential for recovery, energy conservation, neural development, learning, memory consolidation, emotional regulation, cardiovascular and metabolic function, and cellular toxin removal.

The architecture and quality of sleep are influenced by intrinsic factors such as age and health status, as well as external factors including environment and behavior. The American Heart Association highlights that adults should aim for 7–9 hours of sleep per night to support optimal brain and systemic health. Disrupted or insufficient sleep is associated with increased risks of obesity, diabetes, hypertension, stroke, coronary artery disease, depression, and impaired cognitive performance. Thus, sleep is a fundamental pillar of health, and maintaining regular sleep-wake habits is critical for overall well-being.

Here are 4 Ways To Improve sleep habits.

1. Optimize your sleep environment. Reduce blue light exposure, and bright lights at least 2 hours before your bedtime. Studies have shown that our modern environment with bright lights and LEDs, especially during winter when the days are shorter, can negatively impact our natural circadian rhythm seasonal shifts. 

2. Keep your bedroom cool. Sleeping environment temperature has been shown to have an impact on time spent in REM sleep. Warmer temperatures can reduce time spent in deeper stages of sleep. The National Sleep Foundation showed that temperatures above 75F or below 54F can disrupt sleep by interfering with thermoregulation.

3. Exercise! A large meta-analysis published in Sleep Medicine Reviews demonstrated that exercise interventions may be a cost-effective, safe, and easily accessible alternative or supplement for the treatment of insomnia. Although more research is needed to determine the exact prescription for exercise, we can reasonably conclude that exercise should be part of the treatment for insomnia or to improve sleep quality

4. Further reading: Say Goodnight to Insomnia by Dr. Gregg Jacobs is a book I routinely recommend to my patients. Jacobs's program, developed and tested at Harvard Medical School and based on cognitive behavioral therapy, has been shown to improve sleep long-term in 80 percent of patients, making it the gold standard for treatment. He provides techniques for eliminating sleeping pills; establishing sleep-promoting behaviors and lifestyle practices; and improving relaxation, reducing stress, and changing negative thoughts about sleep.