Monday, November 22

What is sleep hygiene?

Sleep hygiene can be defined as the methods of controlling "environmental and personal behavioural factors interfering with sleep". These factors can both precede sleep and occur during sleep.
Sleep hygiene is the practice of following methods to ensure effective and restful sleep for promoting daytime alertness and agility. Following sleep hygiene also helps in avoiding certain kind of sleep disorders as well as treating them. The tell-tale sign of poor sleep hygiene is daytime sleepiness and trouble getting sleep.

Sleep hygiene involves timing of sleep, timing of food and quality of food, exercise, mental conditioning, following routines, sleep environment etc. Sleep hygiene is also about re-education of people with sleep problems by advising them about how to avoid sleep deprivation, how to respond to unwanted awakenings from sleep if these occur and about adaptive, homeostatic and circadian aspects of sleep control. The cure to poor sleep hygiene lies in optimizing your nightly rest with pre-sleep schedule, a routine sleep schedule and bedtime habits.

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