With age, sleep problems get more common. Whether it’s due to anxiety or certain health issues, there are several things you can do to improve the quality and quantity of your sleep. Besides outlining some of these tips, a detailed infographic below gives you additional information on sleep and what you can do to sleep better.
So, what can you do to improve your sleep?
1. Stay away from your electronic devices
One thing that we are all guilty of is taking our electronic devices to bed with us. Instead of leaving them on the nightstand or in our office, where they truly belong, the last thing we do before going to bed is checking our phones. Although this might seem harmless, the electromagnetic signals that they emit might disrupt our sleep.
2. Cut down on your caffeine intake
Another thing that we should all steer clear from is caffeine. With that being said, it doesn’t mean that we should completely cut down all caffeine intake, but maybe we should just try to limit it. On top of that, if you don’t want to toss and turn in bed, make sure you have your last caffeine fix by 3 pm.
3. Choose your snacks
A very common thing that almost everyone does is having a snack at night. However, what we eat and how late we consume it also influence our sleep quality. So instead of eating whatever you find in your fridge, a banana and a spoon of peanut butter or fruit and low-fat yogurt would satisfy your hunger and won’t give you any difficulties sleeping.
4. Exercising helps
Just like exercising helps with your physical health, it can also better your sleep. However, you have to be careful when you exercise. Instead of working out right before going to bed, always make sure you work out at least 3 to 4 hours before going to sleep.
5. Get the right mattress
An easy tip would be to get the right mattress. Sometimes our lack of sleep is closely related to the environment and the bed we sleep on. It’s reported that sleeping on a proper mattress can solve 25-30% of our sleep problems.
These are just a few of the things you could do to ensure you get a better night’s sleep. The infographic below showcases these and a lot more. However, if nothing helps, make sure you consult with a physician since some sleep disorders are more common among seniors. For example, the incidence of sleep apnea increases with age.
Infographic Credit
