The term “sleep hygiene” makes it sound as though it would refer to how clean a person is when they hit the hay every night, but the definition of “hygiene” extends well beyond cleanliness. In fact, sleep hygiene really is a blanket term for the set of sleeping practices, habits and environmental influences that impact one’s quality of sleep. All types of hygiene are integral to ensuring that human beings remain happy and healthy, but sleep hygiene is especially important because, frankly, not everyone is getting the quality sleep that they need every night.

The following tips are best practices for getting the most quality of out your sleep routine.

Establish Healthy Personal Sleeping Habits

Part of practicing good sleep hygiene is establishing healthy personal sleeping habits, which focus primarily on the things you can do as an individual to ensure a better night’s sleep.

Establish a Bedtime Routine

Try to do the same thing every night. Whatever your usual routine consists of, trying to carry it out at a recurring time helps your body maintain a sense of consistency. Go to bed at the same time, brush your teeth, wash your face, and read a book. The more you train your body to know when to sleep, the easier it will be to fall asleep.

Exercise

It’s proven that working out during the day leads to a better night’s sleep, so while it isn’t always possible to exercise every day, some physical exertion is better than none, and it will help you sleep better at night.

Avoid Eating or Drinking Too Close to Bedtime

Eating before bed triggers stomach acids that can drum up the sort of acid reflux that keeps you up all night. Alcohol and caffeine before bed are even worse, as they both disturb sleep in their own ways, as well.

Relax Before Bed

Try to make the hour before bedtime as relaxing as possible. Do things that make you feel calm rather than things that hype you up or raise your heart rate.

Create a Healthy Sleeping Environment

The other aspect of good sleep hygiene is ensuring that your sleeping environment is appropriate for a good night’s sleep.

Get Rid of Screens

Your devices can mess with your circadian rhythms, so removing them from your sleep environment is an easy way to ensure your body knows when to sleep.

Keep Your Room Dark

Your body wants to sleep when it’s dark, so no matter when your sleeping hours are, try to make the room as black as possible.

Sleep in Cooler Temperatures

Studies have shown that humans sleep better when the evening temperature is in between 60 and 67 degrees, so keep your own bedroom cooler at night to get a better night’s rest.

Make Sure Your Bed is Comfortable

Finally, and this is an important one, a comfortable bed will help you practice good sleep hygiene as well. If you’ve had your mattress for more than eight or nine years, it may be time for you to start considering some new mattress options at Ben’s.

If you can do all of these things, you will enjoy much more quality sleep. Here at Ben’s, we can help by getting you in the most comfortable bed possible, so allow us to take our small part in ensuring better sleep hygiene by getting you into one of our most comfortable beds today!