86 womensfitness.co.uk | September 2016HEALTH
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The Sleep Revolutionby Arianna Huffington
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12 September 2016The
dozing
diet
How to eat
your way
to a good
nightâs rest...DO:Eat food that
contains calcium
magnesium and B
vitamins (such as
nuts seeds leafy
greens bananas
fish beans and
poultry) as these
nutrients are
involved in
sleep regulation.DONâT:Eat spicy
food as it causes
heartburn and
bloating.itâs our mobiles for catching up
on social media or our laptops
for one (or seven) episodes of
Game of Thrones. Whatâs more
the ability to stay switche d on
is revered in todayâs society.
Phra ses like âIâll sleep when Iâm
deadâ are commonly used and
according to Arianna these
âreflect societyâs collective
delusion that sleep is simply time
lost to ot her pursuits that it can be
endlessly appropriated at will to
satisfy our increasin gly busy lives
and overst uffed to-do listsâ. The
prob lem is that weâre prioritising
work and our social life and
quality âme-timeâ is referring to
anything ot her than sleep â
despite researchall pointing to
the fact that it directly affects
the time we spend awake.MORE THAN JUST A KIP
There are many who believe that
their bodies can work with â or
have become accustomed to- mini mal hours of sleep (with
some even claiming that they
functionbetterduring the day).
But Arianna references st udies to
confirm that only one per cent of
peop le in the world possessgenes
that enable their brain and body to
run on just a few hours of sleep
without it being harmful. The
bottom line is that sleep is a
valuable time of âi ntense
neurological activityâ a rich time
of renewal memoryconsolidatio n
brain and neuroche mical
cleansing and cognitive
maintenanceâ says Arianna. And to
curb it would be putting your health
at serious risk. Sl eep depriv atio n
has beenlinked to a rang e of
life-threatening condit ions
incl uding heart attack s strokes
diabetes obesity and cancer as
well as a reduction in mental ability
and cognitive performance.
Studies have also found that it
affects our memorycapacity
decision-making and creativity
with th e performance levels of
someoneclocki ng in six hours
of sleep per day for two weeks
being equiva lent to not sleeping
for 24 hours. So while you migh t
think that youâre compromising
on sleep for the sake of getting
ahead at work youâre better off
retiring tobed earlier an d starting
afresh the nextday â because a
loss ofsleep will add to hours of
lost pr oductivity. If alarm bells are
ringing itâs time you put your sleep
first and turn off that snooze option
for your own good.
Ariannaâs
advice
Top tips to help you
get more shut-eyeGet to the bottom of sleep myths
and find your winning combo with
these top 10 tips from Arianna.- Lights out
All out. And we mean
it â itâs not just the blue
light from electronic devices that
we need to banish (at least half an
hour before bed) we also need to
consider turning down the lights to
create a âquiet dark space that will
coax us towards sleepâ. Instead of
using the bright bathroom lights for
that wind-down bath use the ones
in the hallway instead. - Set the perfect
temperature
The National Sleep
Foundation recommends 18°C
as the ideal sleeping temperature
and anything above 23°C and
below 12°C will disrupt our slumber.
Instead of relying on radiators to
mediate the temperature invest
in quality wool bedding or electric
blankets which are less likely to
affect your sinuses during the night. - Be active
Studies have found regular
physical activity to be
an effective non-pharmaceutical
way to improve sleep. Many of us
think that exercise and sleep are
mutually exclusive; that youâd have
to miss out on one to honour the
other. But the key is to make ita
habit. Rather than a long workout
try to exercise for just 20 minutesa
day. Just remember: the harder you
push your body the more calories
and sleep youâll need to recover. - Forgo caffeine
and nightcaps
Most of us know that itâs
not a good idea to have coffee after
dinner but the caffeine can havea
more prolonged effect on the body
than we think. A cup can wake us
up and revive us during the day but
if taken later in the afternoon it can
cause a disruption to our sleep
decreasing it by as much as one
hour. Having alcohol before bed can
also lead to poor sleep â even if it
helps you doze off in the first place.- Find your
sleep elixir
There is no evidence to
suggest that a hot cup of milk will
help you to sleep but if itâs a ritual
that relaxes you then by all means
do so.You can try herbal teas too.
Find a flavour that works to make
you feel calm and ready to drift off. - Ban late-
night eats
It takes us two to three
hours to digest a meal so eating
late is not ideal â especially if you
suffer from acid reflux.Your bodyâs
biological system has a daily
rhythm and eating at odd hours can
disrupt the sleep-wake cycle. - Switch off
If you lie awake worrying
about uncompleted to-do
lists you need to calm the mind by
leaving it behind.To avoid going
over the stresses of what still
needs to be done through the night
write a to-do list for the next day
and then forget about it. - Count your
blessings
âEvery day has blessings
and setbacks but itâs the setbacks
that take centre stage once our
head hits the pillowâ says Arianna.
Focus on what went well rather than
the unresolved problems. Write the
good things down if it helps. - Breathe
Arianna refers to Dr
AndrewWeilâs popular
4-7-8 method: inhale quietly through
the nose for four counts hold for
seven and exhale through the
mouth for eight. If it doesnât put you
to sleep itâll help calm you at least. - Dress right
If you donât already have
clothes that you associate
with sleep and relaxation (it doesnât
have to be PJs) itâs crucial to get
some. Itâs key youâre not in your day
clothes however comfy they are!