Quality of sleep is one of the most important aspects in maintaining a long and healthy life, regardless of age. While in your early years sleep aids growth and development, it has different functions in adult health.

Here are some of the most important benefits of a good night’s sleep…

  • Reduces the Risk of Obesity. Sleep helps maintain normal levels of the hormones that regulate hunger. Missing out on sleep means that you get hungrier faster, which can lead to chronic overeating and obesity.
  • Increased Heart Health. One of the most important functions of rest is that your body utilizes this time of rest to repair the heart muscle and blood vessels. Prolonged sleep deprivation is associated with heart disease, high blood pressure, and even stroke, so it’s extra important to ensure you’re getting enough rest.

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  • Immune System Health. Your immune system also relies on sleep to fight off infection or any other foreign substances in your body. Without good-quality rest, common colds and viruses are harder to fight off.

How Do You Improve Your Quality of Sleep?

Sleep research has provided a lot of useful information regarding the best way to get a good night’s sleep. Choosing these simple steps or slight alterations in your nightly routine may just help you get the rest you need..

  1. Integrate physical activity into your daily routine, including time outside whenever possible, helps release endorphins and makes for an easier transition to sleep.
  2. Keep a consistent sleep schedule by going to bed and waking up at the same time each day to help  your body’s clock regulate itself. You can accustom your body to going to bed at a certain time as part of its natural rhythm.
  3. Avoid stimulants in the late afternoon and evening. Caffeine can stay in the system for up to eight hours and greatly impacts your ability to fall asleep.

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  1. Avoid heavy meals within a few hours of bedtime. Heavy meals can create bloating and indigestion, which seriously impacts the ability to fall asleep.
  2. Take a hot bath, practice meditation, or do some other relaxation technique before bedtime. This creates a sense of relaxation in the brain as well. If you can find some way to relax physically, your sleep will be better for it.
  3. Limit screen time at the end of the day to let your brain wind down. This means that it’s also helpful to limit phone calls, bright lights, or other stimulating activities during  the hour before bedtime.
  4. Use your bedroom for sleeping and relaxing, not for watching movies, doing crafts, or using the computer.

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