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Getting healthy sleep is crucial for both physical and mental well-being, Ensuring a good sleep hygiene can enhance productivity and improve overall life quality.
Maintain a consistent sleep schedule and create a restful environment to ensure sleep hygiene.
Sleep is an essential and habitual activity that has numerous links to health and well-being. It is necessary for preserving both the physical and mental health of humans. Additionally, it is also essential for maintaining cognitive capabilities such as memory, learning, and the capacity to perform complex mental tasks. As per the findings from the Apollo Health of the Nation Report, based on a study of 5,000 individuals, sleep disorders are a hidden trigger for metabolic syndromes like diabetes, obesity, and cardiovascular diseases, all of which are rising in prevalence across India. High-quality sleep enhances nearly every bodily system, offering crucial benefits to the nervous, cardiovascular, immune, and endocrine systems.
Sleep Hygiene And Its Importance
‘Sleep hygiene’ describes modifiable behaviours and environmental adjustments that can be used to promote sleep quality and improve sleep duration. Getting healthy sleep is crucial for both physical and mental well-being, enhancing productivity and improving overall life quality. People of all ages, from children to seniors, can benefit from better sleep, and practicing good sleep hygiene is a vital factor in reaching this goal.
How Does Sleep Affect Your Learning And Memory?
Sleep plays a big role in helping your brain sort and store new memories after you learn something.
Two Types of Sleep Work Differently
- Non-REM Sleep (especially deep sleep): This helps your brain replay and strengthen what you learned during the day, like practicing it while you sleep.
- REM Sleep (dream sleep): This stage helps store those new memories into your long-term memory so you can remember them later.
How Does Sleep Affects Your Mood And Mental Health?
Getting enough sleep helps keep your mind healthy and balanced at every stage of life. Poor sleep can make you feel more stressed, irritated, and less happy the next day. During REM sleep (dream sleep), certain brain areas calm down while others stay active. This helps your brain process emotions and handle stress better.
Effects Of Sleep Deprivation On Memory, Attention And Cognitive Performance
- 1. Lack of sleep makes it harder for your brain to store memories properly. This happens because a key brain receptor (NMDA) that helps turn short-term memories into long-term ones doesn’t work well when you’re sleep-deprived.
- 2. When you’re asleep, your brain keeps a balance between two key networks: the default mode network that handles background thinking and daydreaming when you’re not focused on a task, and a Fronto-Parietal Network that controls attention and focus when you’re working on something. This balance helps your brain stay focused and alert. The thalamus (a part of the brain that regulates alertness) helps maintain this balance. When you don’t get enough sleep, this balance is thrown off. The DMN becomes overactive, and the attention network becomes weaker, making it harder to focus and complete tasks. If the DMN isn’t properly controlled, you’ll struggle to concentrate and stay on track.
Essential Tips For Better Sleep Hygiene
- Going to bed and waking up at the same time every day helps regulate your internal body clock and improves sleep quality.
- Ensure your bedroom is dark, quiet, and cool. Comfortable bedding and a supportive mattress also enhance restfulness.
- Limit caffeine and nicotine intake, especially in the evening, as they can disrupt sleep patterns.
- The blue light from screens can interfere with the production of melatonin, making it harder to fall asleep.
- While alcohol may initially make you feel sleepy, it can disrupt sleep cycles and lead to poor sleep quality.
- Engage in deep breathing, meditation, or light stretching to calm your mind and body before bed.
- Establishing a bedtime routine signals your body that it’s time to relax and prepare for sleep.
- Physical activity during the day promotes better sleep, but avoid intense workouts close to bedtime.
- Eating large meals late at night can cause discomfort and disrupt sleep. Opt for light snacks if needed.
- Keep naps short (20–30 minutes), and avoid them late in the day. Also, manage noise and other disruptions for uninterrupted sleep.
(This information has been shared by Jayanth S S, Consultant Dr Neurologist, Apollo Hospitals, Sheshadripuram, Bengaluru)
- Location :
Delhi, India, India
