Invest in quality sleep to live healthily, advises university Professor

You want a long and healthy life, invest in sleeping nicely at night.

This is the advice from Matthew Walker, a sleep expert who has published his findings on the relationship between sleep and healthy life.

Walker, a professor of neuroscience and psychology at the University of California, Berkeley, studied the data from millions of people involved in a number of epidemic studies and published his discoveries on the relationship between sleep and healthy life in a book – Sleep is the most democratic and free health system in the world.

Professor Walker summarized the benefit of the sleep in his recent research.

What are the benefits of good sleep?

After about half a century of research, scientists who work in the field of sleep are no longer focusing on the question of “what are the benefits of sleep,” but rather the question of “whether any benefit the sleep does not provide us?”

Scientific studies have shown insomnia has serious effects on our brain and our body. Almost all of the conditions leading to death such as Alzheimer’s disease, cancer, heart attack, obesity, diabetes, depression, and even committing suicide have somehow connected with insomnia as the major physiological systems and brain-related activities in the human body are being renewed while sleeping. In the case of insomnia, serious problems arise.

However, despite all the benefits of sleep, it is not always easy to fall asleep and the sleeping pills cause a number of health problems.

“What can be done for a good quality sleep?” Professor Walker suggests six pieces of advice:

1. Lie and get up at the same time every day

Professor Walker firstly suggests that going to bed and waking up at the same time is very important. If a person wakes up on a certain time, will also go to bed on same time, Walker says.

2. Make your room dark

Professor Walker explains that a dark environment must be provided for the secretion of the hormone melatonin, which is of great importance in the regulation of the body’s biorhythm. Sleep experts explain blue lights come from electronic items negatively effect the secretion of the melatonin, hence people should darken their room before 30 minutes of the sleep and switch off the electronics.

3.    Keep the bedroom cool

For a good sleep, a cool environment is necessary and the ideal temperature of your room is around 18 degrees. For a night of restful sleep, the temperature of our brain and body should be 1 degree lower than normal.

4. Use your bed for sleep only

“If the time you spend falling asleep exceeds 20 minutes, get out of bed and work in another room until your sleep comes. Read a book, watch TVs in another room but not in your bedroom. The fact that we do not engage in any activity other than sleeping in our bed will cause your brain to connect here to sleep and this will increase your sleep quality.”

5. Reduce your caffeine addictions

Professor Walker warns that people must stop taking caffeine drinks before 12 hours from going to bed as the caffeine in the coffee which keeps people awake remains in the body for 12 hours.

6. Drink less alcohol

Professor Walker explains alcohol does not help when it comes to sleeping comfortably. The high amount of alcohol consumption before sleep may affect your sleep quality very seriously.

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from IPA NEWS https://ipa.news/2019/03/20/invest-in-quality-sleep-to-live-healthily-advises-university-professor/