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Sleep hygiene is a variety of different practices that are necessary to have normal, quality nighttime sleep and full daytime alertness. -National Sleep Foundation
Stages of a Sleep Cycle
Stage 1 - Light sleep
Stage 2 - Light sleep; memory consolidation and synaptic pruning
Stage 3 - Deep sleep; no eye movement and muscle activity, evidence of growth hormone release
Rapid Eye Movement (REM) - People dream during this phase
Each cycle usually takes about 90 min for the average person and it recommended adults should aim to get 5 sleep cycles
Sleep Hygiene
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What is sleep hygiene?
Most organizations will recommend getting at least 7-8 hours of sleep a night, but all sleep is not created equal. Sleep hygiene can determine the quality of sleep you get, the human body has a natural biological clock called circadian rhythm. Put simply, our brains are hardwired to want to sleep when it gets dark and wake when it is light and prepares to body to sleep and wake up according to environmental cues. The circadian rhythm interacts with a separate sleep-wake homeostatic process - the body sleep regulation mechanism. This sleep homeostat is why our body telling us to sleep after staying up all night - our body is wired to return to balance, a "normal" amount of sleep.
Problems start arising when these two systems start clashing, some experts estimate half of adults have rhythms that are out of sync with their daily schedules - known as "social jet lag" (Nature, 2009).
Examples of good sleep hygeine include (Sleepfoundation.org, 2016):
-Exercising regularly
-Avoid napping
-Avoid stimulants (caffeine, nicotine and alcohol) close to bedtime
-Avoid large meals close to bedtime
-Have a relaxing bedtime routine
-Associate your bed with just sleep
-Exposure to natural light helps maintain your circadian rhythm
The following video is a good summary of sleep hygiene.
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