Saturday, April 11, 2009

Sleep Longer


“The early Bird gets the worm,” as the saying goes, and many think sleeping late is lazy or inactive. But for some, a good weekend means sleeping the day away. That may not be so lazy after all! Studies show that getting plenty of sleep is an important part or staying healthy.
The Fact Behind Snoozing
  • Human beings spend an average 1/3 of their lives sleep.
  • You burn more calories sleeping than watching television
  • The five stages of sleep are: rapping, light sleep, transformation between light sleep to deep sleep, deep sleep, and REM (Rapid Eye Movement).
  • Four year olds dream for an average three to four hours at night. This gradually decreases as they grow older to only 100 -120 minutes every night.
  • Whether you can remember them or not, every one dreams.
  • Snoring is not a sign of a deep sleep. It actually indicates a breathing obstruction and signals low quality sleep.
  • Coffee, cigarettes, and alcohol can damage the quality of sleep.

Before electricity, people could not choose their bedtime. After the sun went down, you turned in too, since lamps, radios, and television did not yet exist.

Technology has made life easier, but at the same time, it has stolen people’s sleep. In the early 1900’s people slept an average 9 hours a night, but it has decreased to 7 hours or less.
Don’t underestimate the importance of getting your Zs! Lack of sleep affects your stamina and memory. Being tired also slows down your mental processes and causes headaches. Studies show that surgeons make 20% more mistakes when they lack sleep.
Staying late also raises your risk of diabetes and heart attack since it increases your blood sugar level. Not only that, insufficient sleep affects your hormones, metabolism, and nervous system with affect similar to aging. Basically, the less you sleep, the faster you age. That must be why they call it beauty sleep!
So, early risers, watch out! Researcher conducted by University of Westmisnister shows that those who wake up before sunrise have a tendency to be more tense and temperamental compared to those who get up a bit later in the day. Beside that, early risers also have difficulty concentrating to colds, headaches, and muscle aches.
“I feel fine on my 5 hours a day,” you might say. Don’t be sure you may not realize the problems it is causing!
So, how long do you actually need to sleep? Eight hours in the minimal, but some experts even recommend nine to ten hours. For many people, however, sticking to the earlier bedtime is difficult. A variety of reasons, from work to late night TV, keep people up. To wake up at six a.m., you should be in bed by ten. That means you may have to skip movies TV programs. Are you willing to that?
Teenagers often make up for their lack of sleep during the weekend by sleeping into the afternoon. However, the older you get, the more difficult it is to compensate for lack of sleep at odd hours of the day.
Now that you realize the importance of having adequate pillow time, forcing yourself to sleep longer is not an easy thing to do. Your body becomes accustomed to the amount of sleep you’re getting. The only way is to set a regular bed time and try your best to stick to it.
This will be difficult at first and you may find yourself counting sheep. Swallowing sleeping pills is not a healthy solution. But there are a variety of relaxation techniques that may help drinking a cup of warm chamomile tea or milk, taking a warm shower, or exercising before bedtime.
Your bedroom plays a big part in getting you to la-la-land. First, make sure you have good air circulation in your room. Keep the temperature cool. Your bed is also very important, since you are going to spend around 100 days a year in it. A sturdy bed frame, a firm mattress, and clean soft sheets will make you comfortable.
On average, people fall asleep 15 minutes after the lights are switched off. However, soft music may speed the process along. Calm classical melodies are perfect choice, with no vocal or jarring beats to distract you.
Still unconvinced? Try getting to sleep an hour earlier every day for a week and you will feel the change. Einstein slept for 11 hour a night what he accomplished?

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