Desperately searching for a cure for chronic sleep issues
If you’ve had a great night’s sleep, your morning coffee is a bonus, not a personality relocator. “Sleep deprivation is such a rampant problem that last year the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention called insufficient sleep a public health epidemic,” reports CNN. Trouble is, all that not sleeping can lead to serious health issues – and in some cases, early death.
So what’s keeping everyone up?
We’d like to say that we could cure the sleep deprivation epidemic simply – just put a new Restonic mattress in every bedroom. But we know the answer’s not that simple. In fact, the reason is so complicated that even sleep experts struggle to agree on a solution.
We all need different amounts of sleep
According to WebMD, “For most people, getting less than six hours sleep translates into a bigger sleep debt than they may realize. Over a two-week period, missing out on the recommended eight hours of nightly sleep adds up to two full nights’ sleep debt, one study found. If you’re averaging only four hours a night, your brain reacts as though you haven’t slept at all for three consecutive nights.”
If you struggle to get a good night’s sleep, check out what our research turned up this week. Hopefully these resources will help you get the sleep and enjoy your mornings a whole lot more.
- Cut back on after-dinner drinks. According to Health Magazine, “A study published online in the journal Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research found that although booze may help put you to sleep, it prevents you from getting high quality rest.”
- Exercise and stick with it. “A study from Northwestern University’s Behavioral Sleep Medicine program found that insomnia patients who began an exercise regimen did eventually sleep longer and boost energy, but it took two to four months to see an effect,” from Reader’s Digest.
- Make time for sleep. Did you know that just one extra hour of sleep can positively boost more than 500 genes that control a gamut of bodily functions? When you rob yourself of sleep, you impair your body’s ability to control inflammation, ward off disease and handle stress.
- Optimize your bedroom. Your bedroom is to sleep what your gym is to exercise. You need the right equipment close by if you want to succeed. “Sleeping on a mattress that’s old or doesn’t offer you the right amount of comfort and support can lead to health problems like backaches and sleep deprivation,” says the Better Sleep Council.
When it’s time for a new mattress
We know a new mattress won’t solve all your sleep woes, but it may solve some of them. When you begin to dread going to bed because discomfort is your bed-partner, it’s time to go mattress shopping. If you’re not sure if it’s time to buy a new mattress, ask yourself these questions:
• How old is your mattress? If you can’t answer this question, its paid it’s dues to you. Most mattresses are built to last 7-10 years.
• Back, shoulder or hip pain? If you wake up pain-free away from home but creaky and sore when you sleep in your bed, your mattress is probably to blame.
• Rock and roll all night long? Tossing and turning and waking up multiple times a night may be your body letting you know pressure points are not being cushioned well enough, which reduces circulation and can cause pain.
Because most of us only shop for a new mattress once a decade, the process can be grueling. Take your time and find something you truly love – or commit to another decade of poor sleep.
