Our mental and physical health is interlinked with our sleeping habits at night. An unhealthy sleep can cause serious effects on our energy, creativity, and daily routine work. If you are suffering from regular poor sleep at night then it can also give way to severe physical health conditions as heart problem, obesity, and diabetes.

Our short and long-term memory is also associated with a night of good sleep. Lack of sleep or insomnia (a sleeping disorder in which person feel difficulty to fall asleep) can cause memory loss issue as well. Sleep deprivation can be a source of lack of sex drive especially in men. In short lack of enough sleep is a root cause of many problems.

A sleepless person can get back to normal track only with a solid night's sleep. Some of us need less sleep and some need more. It all depends upon our body and brain. If you wake up energetic and active in the morning then you are getting sufficient sleep at night but if you are drowsy and tired then it means you are not achieving the goal of enough sleep.

Here is what you need to do to enjoy a good night’s sleep:

Relax Your Body and Brain
The bedroom environment plays a vital role in a good night’s sleep. First of all your bed is not a place for nerve-wracking activities like office work, family responsibilities, and anything stressful for you. Your bedroom should be a symbol of relaxation and peace.

Try to avoid usage of a cell phone because blue lights of phones adversely affect our sleep. Because of blue lights, your body thinks it’s daytime. To prepare yourself for sleep take a warm bath to cool down the temperature of your body. A hot shower increases blood circulation and as a result decreases down the temperature of the body.

External noise, extra and heavy lights, uncomfortable pillow, tight sleeping dress, the extra warm or cold temperature of the room should be avoided to relax your body. Strategies like listening to soft music, reading book, and imagination can improve sleep quality in people who are suffering from sleep deprivation.


Avoid Caffeine and Alcohol in the Evening
Caffeine is known as a sleep thief. Because caffeinated drinks make it hard to fall asleep at night. Most of us drink coffee in the morning to keep us energetic but the same drink has negative effects at night. Caffeine provides a burst of energy to our body by stimulating our nervous system. No doubt, it offers relaxation to a fatigued body but it can’t be an alternative to a good night’s sleep.

Doctors suggest a cut-off time for the usage of caffeine is a minimum of five to six hours before bedtime. For example, if you go to sleep at 8 pm then avoid usage of caffeine or caffeinated drinks after 2 pm. Otherwise excessive sleep during the daytime will ruin your work routine.

Drinking alcohol before bedtime can also enter as another thief in our sleep cycle. Healthy people think that alcohol allows them to fall asleep faster but it’s not like that. It has sedative effects but it reduces the quality of sleep. The excessive consumption of alcohol can cause wake you up after few hours of restless nap.

To reduce the risk of sleep deprivation and excessive daytime sleep, avoid using alcohol and caffeine before bedtime.

Practice Physical Activity and Meditation during the Day
Physical activity keeps our body stress-free and active.it dramatically improves the quality of our night’s sleep and increases the duration as well. Experts suggest that outdoor exercise helps the body to absorb the natural sunlight and promotes deep breathing.

Vigorous exercise before bedtime is not recommended at all because it stimulates the body and makes it hard to sleep. So you can do exercise in the evening at least 2 hours before going to sleep. A proper exercise can sort out your sleep-related problems and you can get better sleep.

If someone is unable to do outdoor exercise then he/she can give a chance to meditation. Meditation comprises several techniques used to restore deprived sleep.it is a fact that when we are stressed, hyper, or anxious we find it difficult to fall asleep.

Studies have found that with the help of meditation we can manage or control our anger, stress, and depression. Meditation slows the heart rate and deep breathing during this exercise helps the body to calm down the nervous system. As a result, it increases the prospect of a good night’s sleep.

Don’t take naps during the day
If you are struggling with the problem of sleep-deprived especially at night time and want to take a nap to relax your body then wait for a while, because it can backfire. Too long nap or napping at the wrong time can affect your sleep at night.

Napping has some benefits like it relaxes our body, improve performance and sharpen our memory. Normally short naps several hours before bedtime don’t disturb our sleep cycle. Ideally napping should last 10 to 20 minutes. But too long naps can become the cause of insomnia or sleep inertia (feeling drowsy and disoriented after waking up).

Moreover, if your sleep requirement is 9 hours and you take 2 or 3 hours nap in the mid or late afternoon then your overnight sleep will be more fragmented with frequent awakening and long awake in the night. Your body doesn’t want additional sleep anymore.

Studies have found, you should avoid napping for up to six hours before bedtime. The wrong time napping interferes with your sleep at a reasonable time later that night of the day. If you are getting enough sleep at night and sufficient hours of sleep and still require prolonged naps then it’s high time to speak to your sleep specialist.

So if a daytime nap might be the culprit and throw a monkey wrench at good night’s sleep then avoid it and stay asleep.

Have a healthy diet
Getting good sleep is very important for our overall health. We have discussed many strategies that can be used to promote good sleep at night with a UVC lamp on your beside table. The good news is that we can improve our sleep quality by making few changes to our diet too.

Here are the 6 best foods and drinks you can choose to improve the quality of sleep.

Turkey: A moderate amount of proteins in our diet especially in the night meal is associated with better sleep quality at nighttime. Fortunately! Delicious and healthy food is high in protein that is turkey. An adequate portion of roasted turkey encourages sleepiness. That’s why it should be consumed at night to avoid tiredness.

Tart Cherry Juice: It is a magical drink even for people who are suffering from insomnia or any other sleeping disorder. It contains magnesium, potassium, and phosphorous. But most importantly it holds a sufficient amount of melatonin which promotes a healthy sleeping habit. So why not, some tart cherry juice before bedtime.

Kiwi: Kiwi is a fruit that possesses vitamins C and E. Some studies have shown that eating a kiwi just before your bedtime can make you sleep better.it improves sleep quality because of its antioxidant properties.

Milk: Milk contains melatonin properties so it serves as a great source in providing better sleep at night – whether you sleep with your UVC led on or off. That’s because it contains two compounds – melatonin and tryptophan – which catalyze the production of sleep hormone.

Nuts: Almond, cashews, and pistachios are not only delicious to eat but having some essential supplements and minerals like melatonin, magnesium, and zinc which help to get a night of better sleep.

Rice: Rice is a great source of carbohydrates. People who eat rice daily or on regular basis enjoy better sleep. But remember not all carbohydrate foods are equal. Studies are required to identify the sleep-related effects of different carbohydrates enriched food.

Conclusion
Whether you want to increase your productivity at work, hoping to enjoy better mental and physical health or are looking for something that would make you better at whatever you do, having excellent sleep at night is something you cannot take lightly.

Which is why we’ve presented you with five strategies to have a better shut-eye time. They include relaxing your body and brain before you go to bed, avoid the intake of caffeine and alcohol in the late hours and working out in the morning.

It should go without saying that if you take long naps during the day, you won’t be able to sleep well at night. That’s why you might want to change your schedule and make sure it doesn’t include you napping in the evening. That is not all.

We have also presented you with a list of diets that will improve your sleep quality. Some of them, like milk, can be afforded by almost anybody. Others, like almonds and cashews, might end up blowing a hole in your pocket. Yet all of them will let you sleep better.