Two-thirds of French people say they lack sleep and one in two complains of difficulty falling asleep or waking up in the middle of the night. A real scourge due in large part to our way of life, which aggravates chronic insomnia. However, new habits are often enough to solve the problem. Here are 10 reflexes to adopt.
The French sleep an average of 6h55 per day, where 8 h are in principle necessary. According to a Ipsos pollone in two French people say they sleep poorly and 8 out of 10 say they are interrupted in their sleep each night. This lack of sleep has serious health consequences: weight gain, diabetes, cardiovascular risksdepression, weakness of immune system, or increased risk of road accidents. Before rushing to your doctor, following a few simple rules is often enough to solve insomnia problems.
1. Establish a regular life schedule
A night is in principle composed of 3 to 6 cycles of sleep 60 to 120 minutes each. When the first signs of fatigue are ignored (yawns, drowsiness, feeling of cold…), we will have to wait for the next cycle to find the desire to sleep, thus shortening our night. Sleep also needs regularity: by alternating between going to bed late during the week and sleeping in late at the weekend, we disturb our circadian rhythm, which notably regulates sleep. As far as possible, try to respect your natural rhythm (rather go to bed late and get up late or vice versa).
2. Turn off your cell phone
41% of French people check their mobile phone in the middle of the night and 7% respond to their messages, reports a Deloitte study of 2016. A very bad habit. On the one hand, the blue light emitted by the screens reduces the production of melatonin necessary for falling asleep. On the other hand, the incessant alerts (or the fear of having alerts) will clearly prevent you from sleeping peacefully. When you check your phone in the evening, choose the dark mode which emits less blue light.
3. Practice daily physical activity
Accumulate a certain amount of fatigue physical allows you to fall asleep more easily and benefit from a deeper and more restorative sleep. It also plays on the mood and allows you to “empty your head”. You don’t have to worry, however: the intensity of sport has no effect on sleep, according to a 2015 meta-analysis. Choose walks or jogging outside. Contrary to popular belief, the practice of physical activity in the evening does not prevent sleep. However, avoid sport less than an hour before bedtime, as this increases the body temperature and generates excitement.
5. Sleep in total darkness
A simple candlelight can interfere with the sleep of sensitive people, according to a 2019 study. The effect of light on sleep is so powerful that it even manages to disturb our eyes closed. Light from screens is the most harmful: a blue light has as much effect as white fluorescent light 100 times stronger. But the smartphones are not the only ones involved. 24% of French people are thus exposed to public lighting in their bedroom, according to the National Institute of Sleep and Vigilance (INSV). Be sure to turn off any light source in your room, close the shutters as soon as night falls and install, if necessary, blackout curtains.
6. Keep in touch with natural light
If the excess of artificial light is harmful in the evening, insufficient lighting during the day also causes difficulty in sleeping. However, confined to an apartment or office, we tend to be little exposed to sunlight. Sun. When you are inside, open your Windows as often as possible and choose a work space exposed to the sun. In winterforce yourself to go out in the middle of the day, when the sunlight is at its strongest.
4. Limit naps
Unless you have slept very little the previous nights, avoid dozing off during the day or in the afternoon, as you risk eating into your sleep quota for the night. To respect the natural slumber period after meals, plan a quiet activity after meals, such as crossword puzzles or reading. If, on the other hand, you tend to have truncated nights, a short nap (20 to 30 minutes) can significantly improve cognitive performance in the afternoon, according to various studies.
7. Compose your dinner well
Eating a meal that is too rich, spicy or too rich in proteins the evening risks altering sleep, digestion being an energetic process. Conversely, a dinner that is too light risks leading to hypoglycemia and of you wake up in the middle of the night. Choose slow carbohydrates, such as pasta, rice or legumes that will keep you going all night, as well as the dairy products and vegetables, which promote the production of serotonin with soothing effect. Dine preferably at least two hours before bedtime: digestion prevents the body from resting properly.
8. Do not overheat the chamber
According to the INSV, the ideal temperature for good sleep is between 16°C and 18°C. The body needs to lower its internal temperature by 0.5°C to 1°C to sleep well. In summer, however, 43% of French people say that the temperature in their room is above 21°C. And in winter, we tend to overheat apartments. Consider lowering the radiator 30 to 40 minutes before going to sleep and turning off electronic devices (tabletstelevision, computers…) who produce heat. During heat wavescreate streams ofair and ventilate the room when it is less hot.
9. Avoid sleeping pills
43% of French people have already consulted a health professional to remedy an insomnia problem. Often with a prescription. If medication can help get through a rough patch or recover from jet lag, they should never become a long-term solution. The sleeping tablets and anxiolytics like the benzodiazepines lead to habituation in less than 4 weeks, side effects, as well as a decrease in alertness during the day. We thus maintain a real dependence that becomes difficult to stop.
10. Relax before going to sleep
The stress accumulated during the day, the program for the next day to prepare, the ideas that go round and round in your head… So many concerns that increase the time it takes to fall asleep. Take some time each evening to disconnect and read a few chapters of a book or leaf through a magazine. Avoid watching movies or series, especially if they are emotional or violent content that will generate anxiety or excitement. Also beware of apps sleep aids, which require you to keep your mobile phone on all night.
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