Why is sleep important: 8 ways to maximize your night's rest
Getting enough sleep is vital for maintaining optimal health and well-being. Sleep is as essential as daily exercise and consuming healthy, nutrient-rich foods. Getting regular high-quality sleep has been linked to better concentration, mental hygiene, and productivity. Source (themorningmind.com)
AUSTIN, Texas, April 1, 2021 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- Sleep is an essential part of physical health. When we sleep, the body performs a vast array of therapeutic and healing functions that detox and repair the body. According to the American Sleep Association, up to 70 million adults experience sleep problems.
"Breaking into high-quality sleep isn't always easy, sometimes it requires making changes in your life like reducing stress and replacing bad habits with empowering new habits that bring encouraging changes in life," says Dr. Rob Carter III, co-author with his wife, Dr. Kirti Salwe Carter, of The Morning Mind: Use Your Brain to Master Your Day and Supercharge Your Life (http://www.themorningmind.com).
Carter has eight ways to help maximize the chance of getting quality sleep at B.E.D.T.I.M.E.
"Block all sources of artificial light," Carter says, "exposure to artificial light from television and smartphones can adversely affect our ability to fall asleep. Light exposure excites the nerve pathway between the eye and the brain that control hormones, body temperature, and other biological factors that play a role in falling asleep," Carter says.
"Establish a consistent sleep-wake cycle," Carter says, "the human body will acquire an internal clock cycle to the new schedule and will ultimately react to internal cues to sleepiness at a given time."
"Dine at least 1 ½ -2 hours before bedtime," Carter says, "eating foods particularly high in protein or carbohydrate too close to bedtime disrupts sleep, which leads to excessive stomach acid release." "If you cannot avoid a nighttime snack, eat foods which help promote sleep," Carter says, "cheese with crackers is an excellent snack that does not disrupt sleep."
"Try to limit your caffeine and alcohol throughout the day and avoid them close to bedtime," Carter says, "caffeine is a stimulant that can make it challenging to get to sleep or stay asleep."
"Imagine yourself achieving your goal of waking up well-rested," Carter says, "creating the feeling of how you want your experience to be is a solid way to get your subconscious to take notice."
"Manage your daytime stress," Carter says, "chronic daytime stress causes restlessness by making it hard to fall asleep and to stay asleep." Carter says, "daytime stress and sleepless nights are interconnected."
"Embrace a routine of getting into bed and waking up at the same times every day," says Carter, "an essential component of a healthy sleep routine during the week is to maintain the same routine over the weekend."
How can we manage our stress and regulate our sleep?
"Keep a positive attitude, accept things as there are, and avoid trying to control any aspect of life and work," Carter says, "be assertive instead of aggressive, exercise regularly, and practice simple relaxation techniques."
About Dr. Rob Carter III and Dr. Kirti Salwe Carter
Dr. Rob Carter III and Dr. Kirti Salwe Carter are co-authors of The Morning Mind: Use Your Brain to Master Your Day and Supercharge Your Life (http://www.themorningmind.com). The Carters reside in Austin, Texas.
Dr. Rob Carter is a Colonel in the U.S. Army, an expert in human performance and physiology, and has academic appointments in emergency medicine at the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio. He holds a Ph.D. in biomedical sciences and medical physiology and an MPH in epidemiology.
Dr. Kirti Carter was born in Pune, India, and received her medical education in India, where she practiced as an intensive-care physician before moving to Texas to complete postgraduate training in public health. She is a Fellow of the American Institute of Stress (FAIS), has more than 18 years of experience in meditation and breathing techniques, and has been facilitating wellness seminars for the past decade.
Media Contact
Robert Carter, themorningmind, 5083334815, [email protected]
SOURCE The Morning Mind
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