As sleep is associated with the body’s healing and restoring abilities, it is crucial for keeping our heart safe. Improving sleep quality is crucial to improving our heart health.
If you have been struggling to get quality shut-eye time without success for a while, seeking medical help is recommended. Lack of sleep can be either a cause and a consequence of another medical condition. With a professional’s help, you will be able to check and treat any underlying medical causes that prevent you from getting a peaceful night’s sleep. In the case of primary insomnia (lack of sleep without an underlying cause), you may benefit from prescribed medications to help transit to a better sleep routine.
However, medications for sleep may have their limitations, such as dependency, and reduced effect over time. Therefore, lifestyle changes at home are essential to improve sleep quality and quantity in the long-term. Below are some good lifestyle choices and sleep hygiene habits that are good for our slumber, which also means they are good for our heart:
1.Observe Symptoms Of Possible Sleep Disorders
Underlying sleep disorders like sleep apnea or daytime sleepiness can be the cause of poor sleep quality. Look into symptoms such as waking up tired even after sleeping for eight hours, snoring, struggling to stay awake in a meeting or while driving, and waking up from sleep multiple times a night. If you observe these symptoms, it is important to consult your GP or healthcare provider to identify the medical causes and address them effectively.
2.Improve Sleep Environment
A sleep-inducing environment contributes to a good night’s sleep. Electronics, extra lights, unwanted noise, late-night TV are among the public enemies of sleep. Bedroom should be sufficiently dark and at a comfortable temperature. Changing to fresh bed linens and pillow covers regularly can also help you sleep better. Also, you should only go to the bedroom to sleep when you are tired. Using the bedroom to work or lying in bed to watch TV can make the brain disassociate the sleep environment with sleep, making it harder for you to fall asleep when you want to.
3.Have A Consistent Pre-Sleep Routine
Going to bed and waking up at the same time sets the body clock, helping you to fall and stay asleep better. Pre-sleep routine also includes activities to prime the body and brain for sleep, such as changing from work clothes to loose and comfortable sleepwear. Other helpful habits are reading a book for 30 minutes, listening to relaxing music, and taking a bath before bedtime.
Some people report having a glass of wine before bedtime helps them sleep better. This is not proven by research. Alcohol has sedative quality and may help you fall asleep faster, but it is believed to disrupt sleep quality later in the night. Caffeine is another sleep disruptor to avoid. If you want to fall asleep by 10pm, stop having coffee by 2pm the same day.
4.Exercise More
Regular exercise and physical activities during the day not only keeps our heart strong but also helps you fall asleep and stay asleep. 20-30 minutes of physical activity is recommended daily to boost sleep quality. However, avoid strenuous exercise late in the evening as it can take time for the body to switch to the relaxing state it needs before falling into sleep mode.
Heart patients can also exercise by performing relaxing activities such as light stretching, yoga, meditation or deep breathing. Check out our recommended exercises for adults with cardiovascular conditions here.
Plus1Health has a sleep record, which is compact and exquisite, easy to carry, and can monitor sleep quality, record abnormal situations, automatically generate sleep reports and analyses.
Here are two free heart rate monitor apps—”Heart Rate” and ”AFibCheck”, it is simple and convenient to operate,which can be downloaded and used after searching in the mobile app store.
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