Getting a goodnight’s sleep is all about the time you sleep and the sleep cycle or pattern you follow. Its significance is undeniable because it re-energizes the body and makes it fit to function efficiently another day.

 You must have read the wise words of Benjamin Franklin,

 “Early to bed and early to rise makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise.”

 It vividly emphasizes the importance and regularity of sleeping patterns or sleep cycle. Your sleeping pattern affects everything from your metabolism and weight to your brain function and mood. It boosts your immunization and athletic performance, but adequate sleep is often overlooked as a central health component.

Why Adequate Sleep is Important

Adequate sleep is as essential as taking nutritious food for a healthy lifestyle. But late-night parties and sleeping late is trending for morning larks these days. As Siebern explains, “If people who are night owls, go to bed early they do against their physiology.”

 Though disturbed or irregular sleeping patterns lead to drowsiness, weariness, and exhaustion. Many people are sleep deprived, and they are not aware of it, because sleep does not fall in everybody’s priority list.

 It’s essential to make them aware or counsel them about the significance of adequate sleeping patterns to attain optimal health.

 Life has become too fast and challenging for all; therefore, the sleep pattern is adversely affected to work or achieve more. But its importance shouldn’t be neglected because if you want a head start tomorrow, you need to sleep enough.

 It’s very well said, “You need to sleep well, to perform well.”

The Stages of Sleep

Your slumber is based on a series of 90 minutes of sleep cycles, and to attain the feeling of being fully rested, one needs to complete five or six such cycles. During this cycle, your brain moves from deep non-rapid eye movement (NRED) to rapid eye movement sleep.

 REM:

 It is characterized by the rapid saccadic movement of eyes- your eyes move back and forth rapidly under your eyelids. Most of the dreams occur during REM because neurons’ activity is quite similar to that during waking hours. REM sleep amplifies your mental and physical performance when you wake up.

 NREM:

 It’s a dreamless sleep, and the sleeper is relatively still during this phase of sleep. This is a deeper and restorative stage; the body temperature and heartbeat tend to get low, hormones are released, and the body is refreshed or re-energized during NREM.

What is the Best Time To Sleep

The ideal time frame to sleep is to synchronize your body to the rhythm of nature and align broadly with the sun’s rising and setting. Because generally, our brain and bodywork efficiently when the sun rises, and they slow down when it gets dark.

The perfect timing to sleep is between 8 pm and midnight to get adequate, restorative, and dream, luxurious sleep. The time when you sleep makes a significant difference in the quality and structure of your sleep.

According to a survey, the people who tend to sleep late at night are more prone to excessive thinking and dwelling on problems, which later leads to anxiety and depression.

Though you can sneak out for a few hours to rest during the day as well, a goodnight’s sleep is essential. If you hit the sack too late – say later than midnight, you’ll end up waking up in the afternoon thus, disturbing the natural sleep-wake cycle.

The Sleep Calculator

Sleep calculator plays a significant role in estimating the sleeping hours required for an individual. It estimates the sleeping hours essential for an individual, according to the age of a person. Because of how much sleep you need, changes throughout your lifetime.

 An infant requires up to 17 hours of sleep, whereas 8 hours of sleep is good enough for an adult. Hence, to attain the feeling of being fully rested, one needs to complete five or six 90 minutes of sleep cycles.

 According to the National Sleep Foundation, given below is the age-based sleep guidelines for all, it consists of :

• Birth – 3 months-> 14 – 17 hours
• 4 – 11 months-> 12 – 25 hours
• 1 – 2 years->11 – 14 hours
• 3 – 5 years-> 10 – 13 hours
• 6 – 13 years-> 9 – 11 hours
• 14 -17 years-> 8 – 10 hours
• 18 – 64 years-> 7 – 9 hours
• 65 years and above -> 7 – 8 hours

 The sleeping pattern of everyone varies even within the same age group, due to the different lifestyles.

 For several people, 7 hours of sleep is good enough, and for some 9 hours of sleep is required for proper functioning.

Tips For Better Sleep

Sleeping adequately affects significantly on the health and personality of an individual, and a lot of times, we want to sleep, but one can’t sleep. To improve your sleep health, the following tips can be adopted:

• Increase your exposure to sunlight; this can help you improve your body’s circadian rhythms, which affects your sleep-wake cycle.
• Waking up early and subtracting late afternoon naps completely, can help you attain early goodnight’s sleep.
• Avoid using technologies like TV, laptop, phone, or any screen time at least 30 minutes before bedtime. The light from these gadgets can stimulate your brain and make the ritual of sleeping difficult.
• Comfortable bedding with fitted sheets of comforting fabrics also helps you attain peaceful sleep.
• Reading helps your brain to relax, grab a book once you’re in bed.
• Limit or restrict caffeine consumption because it causes an average loss of 3 to 5 hours of sleep per week.

End Lines

A good night’s sleep has numerous advantages, and it’s essential for the wellbeing and health of an individual. If you’re an adult and aiming for 7 to 9 hours of sleep each night, the sleep calculator can help you figure out a schedule for your sleep-wake cycle. Enrich your routine with enough sleep in a calm and peaceful environment with comfortable bed space to have a goodnight’s sleep.

 Sleep enough to function well!