Sleeping is a major influence on our well-being. It aids in the functioning of our brains and protects us from heart disease, and helps strengthen the immune system. Without it, we’d be dead.
While it’s a crucial thing it is, we’re not trained to conduct ourselves properly according to Rebecca Robbins, an expert in sleep science at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital and an assistant professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School. “In America, you learn about nutrition and sex ed at school, but you don’t learn about sleeping.”
It could be the reason only one-third of Americans are getting the amount of sleep they need every night, as per the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
In order to in educating the public on healthy sleep She and her coworkers discovered common myths concerning sleep. They disproved these myths in a paper released in the journal sleep Health. They examined claims like “many adults require only five or less hours rest” and “it doesn’t matter which time of the night you go to bed.” They also found that the claims were based on “a weak or unproven evidence foundation.”
Robbins talks about the myths in Life Kit. He also offers some essential strategies for getting better sleep.
Myth 1 It doesn’t matter the time of day that you are sleeping
“Unfortunately the time of the day is a factor that does have an impact,” says Robbin. The rhythm of our circadian cyclethe internal circuitry which regulates the release of the vital sleep hormone melatonin is “significantly affected by the natural light that we encounter in our surroundings.”
When the sun rises and we step out, the sun “stops the melatonin-induced flood gates and switches to the “on” cycle of the circadian rhythm” she says.
“Conversely the fact that you are in darkness is what permits the release of melatonin” she says.
Due to how important light is, those who work on nighttime schedules or work outside of the standard 9-5 p.m. window may experience health problems, according to Robbins. A investigation released in the Journal of Occupational Medicinein 2011 showed that doctors and nurses working during the shifts that were not scheduled for them are more likely be afflicted with adverse health outcomes, such as breast cancer and diabetes.
They could be able to rest well and helps their health when they are “very careful about the exposure to sunlight that is natural,” she says. This includes, for instance, staying clear of exposure to sunlight in their workplace when they are nearing the close of their shift or wearing sunglasses during the way home to shield their eyes from the sun’s rays and sleeping in a space that has very large curtains to block out the sun.
MYTH 2: A single night of sleeping in a bed will be long-lasting.
The quality of your sleep won’t be flawless every night, according to Robbins. “Every every now and then, we’ll have to be struggling. If we feel stressed throughout the day, sleeping patterns suffer that night.”
Insufficient sleep, or the absence of sleep for a minimum of 24 hours, may result in short-term negative effects like a decrease in focus or a rise in resting blood pressure report Robbins and her coworkers on their paper of research.
They will probably resolve themselves through restorative sleep. If you’ve experienced an unlucky night, don’t get down about it, advises Robbins. Instead, you should try to get back to your normal sleeping schedule whenever you can.
Myth 3: The ability and able to fall asleep at any time, from anywhere is a great thing.
“It’s an untruth that a person who is a good slumberer would be able to lie on the pillow and sleep immediately,” says Robbins. “This happens because sleeping is an ongoing process.”
It can take a well-rested, healthy person between 15 and 20 minutes or just a bit longer before they fall to sleep, she explains.
If you’re able to go to sleep immediately, it could be an indication of a sleep-deprived condition that is persistent in the words of Robbins and her coworkers in their research. “If you’re hungry for food and you sat down whenever you could to eat a massive food item and consumed it all at once then it could indicate that there’s not enough nutritional intake. Similar to sleeping.”
MYTH 4: You could endure on less than 5 hrs of sleep
People boast of needing just a few hours of sleeping at the night. This could be due to the idea in our high-performing culture the idea that “well-rested individuals are lazy” claims Robbins – “which is a rumor.”
Adults require between 7 and 9 hours of rest each night according to her. “That’s where we get the most optimal health outcomesincluding increased heart health, longevity and brain health as we enter the aging years.”
A sleep duration of more than seven hours per night can lead to weight growth as well as diabetes, obesity and hypertension in a research report by the American Academy of Sleep Medicine and Sleep Research Society. It’s also linked to impaired immunity, performance impairment and a higher rate of errors such as “sending emails to an incorrect person or entering wrong numbers into the spreadsheet,” says Robbins.
If you’re able to achieve that target of sleeping between 7 and 9 hours on as many nights in the course of the week is possible She adds. You’ll know you’ve hit your ideal level in the moment you “wake up with a sense of energy, feel refreshed throughout the day and not grabbing energy drinks or coffee during the daytime.”
MYTH 5: Keeping a TV on can be a great way to unwind prior to going to bed
Many people prefer to unwind in bed with a TV. However, that’s not a great plan, according to Robbins. “You’re beginning to associate your bed with other things than sleeping.”
A show you are watching on a device that produces heat, such as the laptop that is placed on your stomach can hinder your ability to sleep. “Keep your body cool as you get closer to your bedtime,” she says. The ideal temperature for your bedroom is less than 70 degrees. Higher temperatures can result in “tossing and tossing as well as more sleepless nights.”
Additionally, watching disturbing shows such as the nightly news can trigger the cortisol hormone that regulates stress to increase within your body, which can “hinder the ability of your body to relax,” she says.
If, however, you are watching a few minutes of a relaxing television show such as Friends and Seinfeld can be an integral element of your routine, and it helps unwind before going to the bed If so, then “carry your show,” She adds. If your routine for sleeping “isn’t damaged, you don’t need to stress about repairing it.”
MYTH 6: Exercise during the 4 hours preceding the time of your bed will disrupt your sleep
For years experts in sleep advised people to “avoid exercising before bed,” says Robbins, since it could raise the body temperature as well as heart rate, and adrenaline levels, leading to poor sleep. “But we do not have any evidence to prove this.”
Research willshow is that both exercise and sleep are “mutually positive,” write Robbins and her coworkers in their research paper. One review of a number of research papers revealed that people who regularly exercised experienced “small to moderate improvement in their sleep.”
“Exercise releases endorphins that boost mood and can aid in tackling the no. #1 reason for sleep problems Stress,” she says.
This is why Robbins advises people to work out even when it’s nearing the time of bed. “If it’s the only chance you’re able to get your workout in, then go for it.”
The audio component of this episode was created by Clare Marie Schneider. Digital story writing was done by Malaka Gharib. Editing was done by Clare Marie Schneider and Meghan Keane. the visual editor for this story is Beck Harlan. We’d like to talk with you. Contact us via voicemail at 202-216-9823 or write to our team at LifeKit@npr.org.
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