How to maintain quality sleep patterns during winter

Less sunlight, combined with reduced physical activity and an overindulgence of carbs thanks to the time change and shorter days during winter can significantly impact your sleep cycle.

While the total amount of sleep varies by individual, most adults require an average of eight hours per night.

“The number of hours you need is the number of hours it takes to feel refreshed the next day without any feeling of sleep deprivation,” says Aaron Milstone, M.D., a sleep specialist with Williamson Medical Group in Franklin.

Whether you’re sleeping too little or too much, not getting the right amount of quality sleep can lead to high blood pressure and high blood sugar, lower your immunity to common illnesses, and increase your risk of respiratory tract infections. In addition, sleeping too much may lower your desire to socialize with friends and family and negatively impact your work.

 

Maintain a consistent sleep schedule

To ensure you give your body the right amount of sleep it needs, Milstone recommends going to sleep at the same time every night and waking up at the same time every morning. Be sure to follow this schedule on weekends as well.

“When you change your sleep schedule, your body becomes off kilter,” Milstone says. “Sleep debt over the weekend will affect when you go to bed during the week.”

 

Start your day off bright

Open your blinds or curtains as soon as you wake up. The best way to stave off melatonin — the body’s darkness hormone that promotes drowsiness — and get your body back in rhythm is to come into direct contact with sunlight. If it’s dark or gray outside when you wake up, artificial light could do the trick — though it’s not as effective as natural light, Milstone says.

 

Keep it cool at night

When the overnight temperature drops below freezing, it’s easy to crank up the heat to a relaxing 72 degrees. However, warmer temperatures can affect your quality of sleep. According to Milstone, the ideal sleeping temperature is around 65 degrees.

“I know that’s a bit on the cold side,” he says. “But people tend to sleep quite well when it’s cool in the bedroom.”

 

Don’t eat a heavy meal before bed

If you’re going to eat a heavy dinner, make sure you finish it more than two hours before bed.

“When you eat a heavy meal before bed, blood flow is diverted to your stomach away from your brain. So your body tends to be more focused on digestion than sleep,” Milstone says.

 

Exercise improves sleep, but not before bed

Studies show that exercise can significantly improve your overall health, including quality of sleep. However, exercising too close to bedtime could have a negative effect on your sleep cycle.

“Your body’s core temperature goes up significantly with exercise, and it can take up to three hours for it to go back down to a normal body temperature,” Milstone says. “If the core temperature is high, the body is unable to induce sleep, which can lead to insomnia or difficulty getting into deep sleep.”

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