A good quality sleep every night for a minimum of 7 hours is as essential as a healthy diet and exercise. Poor sleep can lead to various health issues which not only affects the physical health affecting but also impact on your brain functioning too. Moreover, it can lead to obesity and an increased chance of chronic diseases like diabetes, heart ailments, etc. Over the past decade or so there is a general decline in not just the quantity of sleep but also its quality due to various reasons. If you believe that you are not getting the best sleep here are a few things to do.

Make a schedule: Stick to a daily sleep routine so that your biological clock is in sync and helps you sleep better. Ensure that you set a time to retire for the day, it can be a time when you start feeling tired at night and go to sleep at the same time every night even on weekends and holidays. Though it may be a little difficult initially once your internal clock gets tuned, your sleep pattern will be set right. If you have to change the sleep time do it in small increments of 15 minutes.

Exercise: Regular exercise not only helps you stay fit and healthy but also can lead to good quality sleep. But it should be done at the right time if you workout just before bedtime, the body temperature increases and that keeps you awake for a longer time. Exercise in the morning or mid-noon is the best time which can help you fall asleep in the night without tossing and turning.

Drinking alcohol or caffeine: Coffee or alcohol after dinner will have a stimulating effect on the body and keeps you awake. The caffeine can remain in the blood for more than 6 hours and if you want to have coffee ensure to do so in the midday. Alcohol also affects your sleep, being a diuretic it causes you to wake up to use the bathroom and disturb sleep. If you have got into the habit of drinking something before bed then you can opt for a glass of warm milk or chamomile tea.

Declutter: Your bedroom should be your sleep sanctuary, but most often than not it is used as your home office, to watch TV and a place to store things, etc. Remove all the unwanted distractions from your room and make it a place for only sleep so that when you enter the room it helps you unwind and rest.

Make it convenient to sleep: The bedroom you sleep in should be quiet, dark and cool to get a good night’s sleep. Ensure proper ventilation so that there are enough air-flow and the room does not get too hot. To make the room dark install blinds or curtains to block light. Noise can also be an annoying factor which can disturb sleep use earplugs or furnishings that can absorb noise. Avoid blue lights from screens like TV, laptops, smartphones, etc. a few hours before bedtime.

Mattress: Your mattress and pillow can greatly impact your sleep. Is your mattress more than 7 years old and is no longer giving you the comfort it did earlier? Do you sleep better in a hotel than at home? If the answer is yes to both questions, then it is time for a new mattress. Your old mattress is past its shelf life, though many people think that it is a costly investment leading online retailers like Wakefit offer high-quality mattress at reasonable prices making it worth the money.

Good quality sleep should be your priority if you want to lead a healthy life. Follow the above tips to get better sleep