Recent studies have shown that getting enough sleep is an important aspect of learning, brain health, and Alzheimer’s prevention. If you are a college student, who is concerned about not getting enough sleep at night, here are some tips from Huffington Post on how to ensure the quality and quantity of your sleep is adequate:
1. Go to bed at the same time each night.
Staying up partying until 4:00 a.m. on the weekends will inevitably lead to the inability to fall asleep early on Sunday night. This in turn may lead to oversleeping the next day, and the pattern continues to repeat itself. When you do not set, and keep a regular bedtime, it’s not very realistic to expect to get enough sleep on a regular basis.
2. Ease up on drinking alcoholic beverages before bed.
Alcohol tends to disrupt the sleep pattern. Although a drink before bed may initially help to promote drowsiness, the effects are usually short-lived, and frequent waking—later in the night—is common.
3. Don’t hit the snooze in the morning.
Sleeping between alarm buzzers is considered low quality sleep. The sound of the alarm going off will disrupt REM sleep, resulting in difficulty feeling alert upon awakening. It’s better to set the alarm for a slightly later time (15 or 30 minutes later, depending on how many times the snooze button is usually hit), then get up right away when the alarm goes off.
4. Keep your feet and hands warm.
Donning warm socks, and keeping the hands warm, before slipping between the sheets, was found to help promote a faster rate of falling asleep—according to a study in 1999.
5. Keep the room temperature down.
Sleeping in a cool, dark room promotes restful sleep. If you can’t get the room dark enough, you may consider wearing an eye-mask to bed. The temperature should be set at no lower than 60 degrees and no higher than 67 degrees Fahrenheit, according to a Huffington Post article, written by Dr. Christopher Winter, M.D.
6. Wind down before you hit the hay.
Turn off laptops, tablets, phones and televisions—none of which should be inside the bedroom—approximately an hour before bedtime.
7. Avoid caffeinated beverages in the evening/night time hours.
Limit coffee and other drinks with caffeine to no later than early afternoon.
8. Engage in physical activity every day.
According to the National Sleep Foundations, those in a survey, who exercised robustly on a regular basis, slept the best. If you don’t have a lot of time to work out, don’t worry. According to the research, even those who added only a few minutes of physical exercise each day, rested better at night. Make sure you avoid a strenuous work-out right before bedtime.
9. Don’t eat a lot of heavy foods late in the evening or before bedtime.
Avoid eating in the middle of the night as well. Protein is difficult to digest, so if you need a bedtime snack, make it a light fare.
10. Reserve the bed for sleeping.
Reading in bed, doing crossword puzzles, or other activities, may keep a person more alert. The sleep experts recommend light reading before bed, in another room, hen retiring to the bedroom when it’s time to sleep.
11. Keep the bedroom as quite as possible.
If there are noises that can’t be controlled—such as sirens, and street traffic—consider using ear plugs, or a white noise machine.
Learn more tips on getting enough sleep by CLICKING HERE.