by Henry Chew

Created on: January 07, 2010   Last Updated: January 08, 2010

Sleep, is perhaps the most underrated basic human needs that we take for granted. Most people, especially teenagers treat sleep as something that they can afford to put off or skimp a little. What they don't realize is that sleep is actually essential for a person's health and overall well being. An average person needs about 8 hours of undisturbed sleep. Studies have shown, people who are getting enough good sleep are generally happier with their lives. They are also less likely to suffer from depression. Getting bad sleep or poor quality sleep is just as bad. That is why to live better, one should start to be more conscious about the quality of their sleep. You need to ask questions like, am I getting enough sleep? Am I sleeping soundly at night? If not, you could have been doing things that you shouldn't do, before you go to sleep. Here are the things that you should observe to avoid, if you were to get a good night's sleep.

Eating

It is best to avoid having a heavy meal, right before your bedtime. Doing so will give you indigestion, which makes your sleeping experience an uncomfortable one. Finish eating your last meal of the day at least 3-4 hours earlier, before retiring to bed. The aim here is to avoid feeling bloated when you sleep. However, having a snack high in both protein and carbohydrate before bedtime can help you sleep better. Foods high in carbohydrate and protein make available an amino acid call tryptophan to our brain. It is this substance that makes us feel drowsy and sleepy. The key here is to eat in small proportion rather than eating as a normal meal. A cup of warm milk with crackers will do just fine.

 Strenuous Physical Activity

Vigorous and strenuous physical activities like running, and weight lifting should be avoided near bedtime. You should finish any strenuous exercise, 3 hours before you go to sleep. The reason is that if your body is over stimulated with vigorous activities, the body secretes its own natural stimulant such as endorphins which makes us awake. Your muscles become tense and your body temperature also increases, making you more alert rather than sleepy. Relaxing your body will be difficult at this stage, and will definitely affect your sleep. The vigorous and strenuous activity here should not be confused with other light exercises and brief activities which induce sleep. For example, most people know that having sex helps us sleep better. Not that I need to elaborate more, but with regards of sleep,

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