How to fall asleep – 5 ways to make your bedroom a sleep haven

Your bedroom environment has a huge impact on your sleep. Today’s post in my series on sleep shows you how you can make your bedroom a sleep haven that helps you fall asleep and sleep better.

Here are five ways to make your bedroom a sleep haven.

1. Make your bedroom dark when it’s time to sleep

Our sleep patterns are regulated by light and darkness. Therefore making your bedroom dark when it’s time to sleep will help you fall asleep and sleep better.

To make your bedroom dark use heavy curtains or blackout blinds (shades) to block out light from windows or cover your eyes with an eye mask.

2. Keep your bedroom slightly cool

If your bedroom is too cold or too hot it can keep you awake. Most of us sleep best in a slightly cool bedroom, around 65ºF (18ºC), with enough ventilation.

Try different temperatures to find the temperature which you find most conducive to sleep.

3. Keep your bedroom quiet

We differ in our sensitivity to noise but in general you will fall asleep and sleep better when your bedroom is quiet.  Even if you have learned to sleep through certain noises, such as traffic noise or the roar of a plane, research shows that these noises still disrupt your sleep.

If you can’t avoid or eliminate noise from traffic, loud neighbours, others in your household or other sources, block it out using earplugs, recordings of relaxing sounds or white noise.

White noise can be very effective in blocking out other sounds and helping you sleep. To create white noise you can use a fan, a white noise machine or generate your own by setting your radio between stations.

White noise machines allow you to choose from various sounds, for example rain, a babbling stream or the wheels of a train on a track. You can also get free white noise online.

4. Ensure your bed is comfortable

Give yourself enough sleeping space. You should have enough space to stretch and turn comfortably. If you share a bed, make sure it is large enough to give both of you room to move around.

Make sure that your mattress and pillows are comfortable and supportive. If your mattress is more than 10 years old it may not give you the support you need and you should also change your pillows regularly.

Use comfortable and attractive bedding materials that invite you to sleep.

If you have allergies or asthma, buy hypo-allergenic covers for your mattress, pillows and bedding that are designed to protect you from possible allergic triggers such as dust mites.

5. Limit your bedroom activities

If space in your home permits, limit your bedroom activities to sleep and sex only. Keeping TVs, computers and work and school materials out of your bedroom will strengthen your mental association between your bedroom and sleep.

If you can’t keep TVs and computers out of your bedroom, turn them off at night.

Today’s takeaway health tip

So today’s takeaway health tip is make your bedroom into a sleep haven to help you fall asleep and sleep better, by following the five ways detailed above.

Let me know how you get on making your bedroom into a sleep haven by posting a comment below.

You can find out more about how to fall asleep and sleep better in the other posts in my series on sleep.

Foods that help you sleep

Some foods can help you sleep, while other foods will keep you awake. Today’s post in my series on sleep focuses on the foods that can help you sleep.

The foods that can help you sleep are foods containing tryptophan. Tryptophan is the amino acid your body uses to make serotonin and melatonin, the neurotransmitters that slow down nerve traffic and so calm your brain.

The foods that will keep you awake are those containing amino acids, such as tyrosine, which stimulate the neurochemicals that perk up your brain.

Eating protein foods containing tryptophan with foods containing complex carbohydrates can help you fall asleep and get a good night’s sleep.

The complex carbohydrates help more tryptophan enter your brain and produce the serotin and melatonin that calms it. This is because they stimulate the release of insulin that helps clear from your bloodstream the amino acids which compete with the tryptophan amino acid.

Eating protein-rich foods without accompanying carbohydrates may keep you awake as protein rich foods also contain the amino acid tyrosine that perks up your brain.

Foods containing calcium can also help you sleep as calcium helps your brain use the tryptophan to make the calming neurotransmitter melatonin.

As dairy products contain both tryptophan and calcium, they are some of the best foods to help you sleep.

Examples of good bedtime snacks

Good bedtime snacks are light snacks which contain foods that are high in complex carbohydrates and calcium and medium to low in protein. For example:

• A small bowl of whole-grain low sugar cereal with milk
• Granola with yoghurt
• Half a turkey or peanut butter sandwich
• Apple pie and icecream
• A banana with a glass of milk

Eat your bedtime snack about an hour before you go to bed as it takes around one hour for the tryptophan in the foods to reach your brain.

Experiment with different combinations of foods for your bedtime snack to see which give you the best night’s sleep.

Eating a light snack before bedtime will also keep hunger pangs from waking you up during the night.

If you have diabetes, discuss bedtime snacks with your doctor before you start eating them.

Today’s takeaway health tip

Today’s takeaway health tip is that eating a light snack about an hour before you go to bed that is high in complex carbohydrates and calcium and medium to low in protein can help you fall asleep and get a good night’s sleep.

Eating such a bedtime snack helps me sleep. My favourite bedtime snack is two wholegrain wheat biscuits, such as Weetabix, with cold milk.  In the winter months I also like porridge, made with jumbo porridge oats and milk.

What bedtime snacks do you find help you sleep?  Which are your favourites? Please let me know by posting a comment below.

For more on how to get a good night’s sleep check out the other posts in my series on sleep.