By Lydia Irving

Can you relate to waking up in, what feels like the middle of the night, and it seems the whole world is sleeping except you?

Sleep arrives in response to a delicate balance of hormones that shut off your mind and sink you deep into slumber.
Here are 3 ways to ensure your sleep hygiene is healthy and to assist your body in shutting off.

1.Temperature
There is no set temperature that is ideal for inducing sleep because we are all individuals and responds to heat and cool differently. That being said, keeping the body under 21 degrees Celsius while sleeping may reduce the release of wakeful hormones. To ensure your comfort, avoid certain synthetic fibers that can interact with your body temperature in more extreme ways. This making you hotter or cooler than expected or may even cause you to sweat. When in doubt, stick to pure natural fibers for your bedding. According to sleep expert Nick Littlehales, it is best to use breathable bedding fabrics to help regulate your temperature.

2.Clean, fresh air
Outdoor pollutants are more commonly made talked about, such as fumes from cars and factories. However, indoor air also needs to be cleaned and purified! Indoor pollutants come from dust mites, paint fumes, moulds and dead skin. To help keep the air fresh in your bedroom keep windows and doors open throughout the day. Ensure you regularly vacuum under your bed and dust shelves. To clean the air of indoor paint fumes you can decorate your room with air-purifying plants like the succulent Mother-In-Law’s Tongue or Dracaena. These are indoor plants that require minimal care and are attractive to the eye.

3. Light and Dark of sleep
Make sure your bedroom is blackout dark and reduce your late night exposure to artificial light to ensure you stay asleep undisturbed. Exposure to changes in light and dark have direct impact on your sleep. In order to fall asleep and stay asleep your body releases a hormone called melatonin. Melatonin is released in response to dark lighting. Whereas bright lighting (natural or artificial) stimulates your body to produce and increase your levels of the wakeful hormone serotonin. It is a good idea to switch to candlelight 90 minutes before bed and keep you screens (TVs, phones and laptops) out of the bedroom. Keeping this in mind it is important to then expose yourself to natural sunlight first thing in the morning to help wake you up and for your body to release serotonin.

Check out these articles on sleep

https://spectrumchiropractic.com.au/how-to-get-a-good-nights-sleep/

https://spectrumchiropractic.com.au/pain-relief-thats-natural-and-free-and-has-no-side-effects/

Here are some tips on how to choose a mattress https://spectrumchiropractic.com.au/mattresses/

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