How to get all the sleep you need
By Jenny Stamos
You toss and turn, wake up at weird hours of the night and feel exhausted in the morning. Is there a way to get a good night’s rest?
Yes—with some help from the pros.
Think fast—when was the last time you made it through a whole day without feeling tired? If you’re like most people, you can’t remember. But short of selling the kids, quitting your job and reverting to childhood, what can you do about it? You can start by testing your sleep knowledge with our quick quiz.
True or false:
- The average person needs eight hours of sleep every night.
- If eight hours of sleep is good, nine or 10 hours is even better.
- Sleeping in on the weekend doesn’t mean you’re lazy.
- When you sleep, your body and brain shut down to rest and relax.
- The room you sleep in should be slightly cool.
- Worrying is the main cause of insomnia.
- A glass of wine before bed is a good cure for insomnia.
- Smoking can cause insomnia.
- You can get eight or more hours of sleep every night and still be tired.
- The best way to tell if you’re sleeping enough is to keep track of the hours you get.
Answers:
1. The average person needs eight hours of sleep every night. False. Though eight hours has been considered the “magic number” for a long time, Sanjay Patel, M.D., an instructor at Harvard Medical School, says some updated studies suggest that seven hours may actually be long enough. Any less than that and you may be taking chances with your health. “If you’re getting less than seven hours, you’re hurting yourself in the long run,” Dr. Patel says. In a recent study published in the Archives of Internal Medicine, researchers found that women who averaged five hours or less of sleep a night were 39 percent more likely to develop heart disease than women who got eight hours. Those who slept an average of six hours a night were also at a higher risk—18 percent more likely to develop heart disease than the 8-hour sleepers.
2. If eight hours of sleep is good, nine or 10 hours is even better. False. Surprisingly, the same study also showed that more sleep isn’t necessarily better. Women who slept for nine hours or more each night had a 37-percent increase in their risk of heart disease over the eight-hour sleepers. Researchers think these women may have slept more because of an underlying illness such as obstructive sleep apnea that made them need more sleep. If you consistently sleep for 10 hours a night or more, and are still excessively sleepy during the day, you should talk to your doctor about the possibility of a sleep disorder.
3. Sleeping in on the weekend doesn’t mean you’re lazy. True. If you skimp on sleep, even for one night, you start racking up a “sleep debt.” Like your credit card balance, this debt continues to build until you pay it off. Many people don’t get enough sleep during the work week, so they sleep longer on weekends and holidays in an effort to reduce their sleep debt. But if you lose too much, sleeping in on the weekend might not completely reverse the damage. According to a recent poll by the National Sleep Foundation, the average adult gets 6.9 hours of sleep during the week and 7.5 hours on weekends. Dr. Patel sees this weekend increase as a warning sign. “If you’re sleeping in on the weekends, your body is giving you a signal that you’re not getting enough sleep,” he says.
4. When you sleep, your body and brain shut down to rest and relax. False. Although it is a time when your body rests and restores its energy levels, sleep is an active state that affects both your physical and mental wellbeing. Like diet and exercise, sleep is critical to good health. Not getting enough can result in mental and physical health problems and maybe even early death. (See Answer 9 for more about what happens while we sleep.)
5. The room you sleep in should be slightly cool. True. According to the National Sleep Foundation, the best temperature for sleep is a slightly cool room, because it matches the temperature drop that occurs inside our bodies while we sleep. A hot sleeping environment, on the other hand, may lead to light sleep and frequent awakenings.
6. Worrying is the main cause of insomnia. False. Insomnia has many different causes, including physical and mental conditions and stress. If you have insomnia, you’ll feel as if you’re not sleeping well. You may have trouble falling asleep or staying asleep, wake up too early in the morning or just not feel refreshed. Insomnia affects people of all ages, usually for just an occasional night or two, but sometimes for weeks, months or even years. Because insomnia can become a chronic problem, it’s important to have it diagnosed and treated if it goes on for more than a month.
7. A glass of wine before bed is a good cure for insomnia. False. While alcohol can help you fall asleep faster, it actually increases the number of times you wake up in the later half of the night. For a healthier, more natural sleep that lasts all night, try drinking warm milk or chamomile tea before bed.
8. Smoking can cause insomnia. True. Like caffeine, the nicotine found in cigarettes and skin patches is a stimulant that may make it difficult for a person to fall asleep and stay asleep. According to the National Sleep Foundation, people who smoke may also experience more nightmares.
9. You can get eight or more hours of sleep every night and still be tired. True. You can spend 10 hours in bed every night and still be tired if your sleep is constantly being interrupted. According to Dr. Najib Ayas, M.D., M.P.H., assistant professor of medicine at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, fragmented sleep is very poor quality sleep. “You may be in bed for eight hours, but you never get down into the really deep sleep or REM sleep which may be the most refreshing,” he says.
Experts are still not completely sure why we sleep, but they can guess based on what happens when we don’t. “We think what’s happening during the deeper stages of sleep is important for allowing the body to repair itself,” Dr. Patel says. “A lot of important hormones such as growth hormone are secreted at that time that help the body rebuild muscle tissue and restore damage from the use that’s happened over the course of the day. We believe REM sleep to be important for the brain to recover and learn new things and make new connections.” The cause of frequent awakenings can range from a new baby, a sleep disorder such as obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), periodic limb movement disorder (PLMD) or restless leg syndrome (RLS), or a bed partner with a sleep disorder.
10. The best way to tell if you’re sleeping enough is to keep track of the hours you get. False. According to Dr. Patel, the number of hours you sleep is less important than how those hours make you feel. “The best way to tell if you’re getting enough sleep is to see how you feel during the day,” he says. “Are you tired or sleepy in the afternoon or evening? And how do you feel in the morning—do you feel ready to go, or does your body want to spend another hour in bed?”
Four Steps to Better Sleep
- Set the stage—Turn your bedroom into a sanctuary for sleep (and sex) only. That means no work, no worrying, and no TV. Arrange your furniture and sleepwear for maximum sleeping comfort. Experts say that most of us sleep best in a cool, dark room, but experiment to see what works best for you.
- Soothe your spirit—Give yourself time to relax before bed. Read, cuddle with your sweetheart, or soak in a warm bath. A regular pre-bedtime routine will help you unwind before your body hits the mattress.
- Seduce the sandman—Wait until you’re seriously sleepy before you crawl into bed. If you’re worried or stressed, take a piece of paper and scribble down a list of worries or things to do. Schedule a time to deal with them tomorrow when you’re more rested.
- Stay serene—If you’re still awake after 15 or 20 minutes of lying in bed, stay calm. Get out of bed, go to another room, and do something relaxing like reading or listening to quiet music. Before you know it, you’ll be stumbling back to bed, and sliding off into slumber.?
Jenny Stamos writes about health, nutrition, psychology, work, money and love for magazines such as Self, Shape, Glamour, Women’s Health, Prevention and Woman’s Day.
