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Sleep is a precious commodity in today's fast paced, anxiety-filled world. High
quality, consistent sleep is vital to your health in ways that many people don't yet
realize. For this reason, it is important that you follow a few simple rules to ensure you
get consistent, high quality hours of rest every day.
Not only can your lifestyle habits help you get the best sleep possible, but there are
also a few natural remedies that will help when you just can't seem to relax.
The first habit to practice before bed is to avoid any bright lights. That means no bright
computer screens, and no sitting close to a bright television. Reading is probably one of
the best pre-bedtime activities you can partake in which facilitates relaxation and
drowsiness.
Make sure your bedroom is as dark as it can get at night. The reason for this is that
light interrupts the body's process of making melatonin. Melatonin is a naturally
occurring chemical that our bodies produce; it relaxes us and supports normal sleeping
patterns.
Another big sleep disruptor is noise. If you live on a noisy street or have any other
audible disturbances that typically happen during the night, try a water machine or a soft
noise machine to block out any loud noises. Quality of sleep matters just as much as the
quantity, so it is important to minimize nightly sleep disturbances.
Sufficient exercise is also a prerequisite to sound sleep. Studies have found that those
who work out consistently tend to get better sleep when compared to those who lead
sedentary lifestyles. Physical energy expenditure during the day is one of the best ways
to ensure a peaceful resting time at night.
Exercise essentially works off excess energy that may keep you awake at night. You should
never work out before bed though, as this can have the opposite effect.
If you have practiced these lifestyle
habits, and you are still having problems achieving deep, satisfying sleep, there are
some natural remedies to
try.
The first and perhaps most well known natural
sleep aid is melatonin, the natural chemical mentioned earlier. This organic compound
comes in supplement form, and many swear by its sleep inducing capabilities. It also can
help you to sleep more soundly during the night, and therefore to wake up feeling more
refreshed.
Kava kava is another natural remedy that can be used as both a sleeping aid and an anxiety remedy. This can either be
taken in supplement form or can be steeped as a tea. Be careful not to over do it on this
one, as it has been known to cause strange dreams if too much is taken. However, its mood soothing and muscle relaxing
properties are a great preparation for sleep.
Chamomile is another natural relaxant that may be taken as a tea to help relax the body and mind to prepare for sleep.
Chamomile has natural sedative and anti spasmodic properties, which makes it the perfect
pre-bedtime tea. (10.20.2010, Danna Norek, citizen journalist, See all articles by this author, Email
this author)
http://www.naturalnews.com/z030101_sleep_habits.html
Sources :
http://www.umm.edu/altmed/articles/...
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3950990...
http://www.kickbackwithkava.com/
http://www.botanical.com/botanical/...
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Knowledge is the key to good health.
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