Sleep is so important for our health- in more ways than you might know. Here's how to sleep better.

I intended to start this article with,?"We spend a third of our lives asleep,"?because the National Sleep Foundation recommends between 7 and 9 hours of sleep per night for healthy adults. But?a recent poll I took here on LinkedIn ?shows that only holds true for about 25% of those who responded! More than half get 5-7 hours nightly, while the rest average less than five hours (with some trying to catch up on the weekends).

That's disheartening to hear, because research indicates that every hour we lose of sleep on a nightly basis-- our collective "sleep debt"-- can't be fully countered by catnaps or sleeping in on Saturday morning. We need that full 7-9 every night to complete our sleep cycles and adequately rest and repair our minds and bodies for the next day.

Think of it like car maintenance-- it's no good waiting 20,000 miles and then doing five oil changes. The damage is cumulative; it's already done.

When you sleep:

-- Your heart beat slows and your blood pressure lowers. Without that rest, both stay elevated, working your heart for too long a period of time.

-- Your glucose also drops during the deepest cycles of sleep. The "wear and tear" of keeping these levels elevated means your body has a harder time regulating blood sugar, which puts you at greater risk for diabetes.

-- Your immune system gets to work identifying and fighting off germs and viruses. Skip on sleep, and you're more likely to get sick.

-- Your brain is incredibly busy, sorting through memories and transferring them from short- to long-term. It's also "washing" away the stress and anxieties of your day. When you deprive your brain of this ability to "work" undistracted, you may find yourself edgy, less able to focus or regulate moods, more likely to make bad choices, and generally sluggish in thought and movement. This happens quite quickly!?Just a few nights of not enough sleep, or poor quality sleep, can affect you as though you didn't sleep at all last night.?Over time, it puts you at greater risk of Alzheimer's and dementia.

Drowsiness is involved in approximately 21% of fatal crashes every year , based on analysis of data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

In addition, many people become conditioned to less sleep over time. That doesn't mean that they are better able to cope with fewer hours of shuteye, but rather that they no longer realize that sleep deprivation is adversely affecting them, or to what extent.

If you are trying to lose weight, build muscle mass or increase speed/stamina, proper sleep is just as vital to success as nutrition and exercise.?An?analysis done in 2020 ?found that adults who slept fewer than 7 hours per night were 41% more likely to experience obesity.?

It's during sleep that the body repairs microtears formed during exercise, making muscles stronger and more capable of increased demands (whether that's weight, speed or endurance). It also cleans away the waste byproducts of physical exertion for a "clean slate" your next workout.

Sleep helps regulate the hormones that control appetite, affecting your cravings and ability to make good food choices. And when you're well rested, you're simply more likely to want to do a workout, and have the energy to make it an effective one.

So, how can we do better with getting those 7 to 9 hours of quality, restorative sleep?

? First, you really need to?take a sleep audit.?Look at your day and figure out where you can shift things around to accommodate a?realistic?sleep schedule-- and then stick to it. Naps and sleeping in can affect your circadian rhythm, or internal clock, so it will be harder to fall asleep at the appointed time.

? Try to exercise and spend time outdoors every day, during daylight hours, even if just for a little while.

? Prep your body for sleep with routine.?Going from a warm bath to a cool room primes your body for bedtime! Some people might do well with meditation, soothing music, light stretches, prayer, etc.

? Avoid stimulation in the hour before bed:?blue-light emitting devices, rigorous exercise, heavy foods, or reading anything that's going to make your blood pressure rise. Depending on your tolerance, you might need to forego caffeine much earlier in the process.

? Also?avoid alcohol.?It might help you fall asleep, but people tend to wake back up as the alcohol wears off-- disrupting deep sleep.

? Consider banning screens from the bedroom entirely, putting your phone into Do Not Disturb mode (you can bypass this mode for certain people in case of emergency!), or keeping your phone on the other side of the room so you're less likely to notice it during the night.

? If you have difficulty shutting off your thoughts at night, try a "brain dump."?Write down everything that's on your mind so tomorrow you can form it into to-do list. Regardless of the length of that list, it can help relieve anxiety around things left undone-- and you'll be surprised at how many problems your brain can work out for you while you slumber.

Sleep well!