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Are you sleeping at night or maybe sleep deprived? How many hours are you sleeping on average?
According to Dr. Kenneth G Burge, MD, the number of hours of sleep depends on your age. Infants need 16 hours, preschoolers 11 hours, children 10 hours, teenagers nine hours, and adults eight hours.
As we get older, our sleep patterns change. Do find yourself feeling tired, fatigued. Have you experienced a loss of energy causing poor performance, loss of memory and/or experiencing excessive daytime sleepiness?
Maybe someone has told you that you snore a lot while sleeping. Do you have trouble falling asleep, staying awake or with waking up too early? Without proper sleep, this effects brain behavior and weakens our immune systems.
If you have any of these symptoms, you may have a sleep disorder. Many Americans suffer from sleep disorders. Anywhere from 10 to 25 percent have trouble sleeping.
Common sleep disorder signs include sleep apnea, snoring, choking, losing breath while sleeping and waking up. Disrupting sleep patterns maybe hundreds of times during the night and feeling like you had a bad night's rest causes fatigue.
Insomnia leaves you tired and moody, leading to sleep attacks during day, falling asleep though out the day at the office.
Here are some health tips that may help. Exercise regularly. Have a light snack that contains amino acid, tryptophan and carbohydrates. Calcium-laden snacks helps the process of tryptophan which manufacture melatonin.
Here are some good bedtime sleep foods: Peanut butter, hot milk, grains, bananas, cheese, low sugar oatmeal cookies and yogurt.
Avoid high-fat meals before bedtime. Try to keep a sleep log book. Wake up and go to bed at the same times each day. Keep your room cool. Use dark, soft sheets and pillows. Avoid watching television in bed. Maintain the bed for sleep and intimacy.
Avoid smoking (has nicotine, a stimulant which causes and disrupts sleep patterns), alcohol (prevents deeper stages of sleep patterns which awakens you in the night) and caffeine (a stimulant that keeps you awake and causes your heart rate to increase).
What should you do to help prepare you for a good night's sleep? Listen to soft music before bed time. Try to let your mind and body wind down. Perhaps a warm bath or shower would be good. Drink soothing teas. And taking a natural melatonin supplement may help.
But I would also recommend you see a sleep specialist to do a sleep study. Try to have a good night's rest. Sweet dreams! - Lisa
