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Heading to a new place and in search of fresh bedding? Struggling to find a pillow that doesn’t leave you with neck discomfort, regardless of your efforts? You’re in good company. Research through randomized trials shows that 15 to 20% of adults globally suffer from discomfort in their arms, backs, and necks, or experience stiffness regularly each week. While for some, it may only be a sporadic annoyance, there are those who face undefined pain nearly every day.

Even if you are merely bored with your old bed, navigating the market can be hard enough. With the current offer of endless materials, mattress configurations, even sheet prints, you may find yourself feeling overwhelmed and confused. Knowing which of these things will suit you takes some trial-and-error time until you start to feel comfortable and confident in making a decision.

In these situations, it is helpful to remind yourself how many of these items you need for optimal sleep. When it comes to pillows, the fact is that most people require only one, though it needs to be of good quality and tick a few customized boxes. However, there are scenarios in which you might need an extra pillow or two (and not for décor purposes), or even prefer to sleep without any at all. Several factors may influence this decision, and we’re just about to unpack them.

The Main Pillow

Whether or not you need more than one pillow, or whether the one you already have suits you, it all depends how you feel sleeping on it. Do you get enough rest? Do you wake up without numbness or pain? Do you feel refreshed and energized in the morning? These are some goals to strive for when it comes to your bedding. The right setting should keep your spine perfectly aligned, which means no head tilting or neck strain. To achieve this state, your pillow’s loft has to be high enough to prevent your head from sinking too deep, but low enough not to push it too far in the other direction. Typically, you will come across three categories addressing the loft: low (up to three inches high), medium (between three and five inches), and high loft (five inches and above).

The material should be not only comfortable but also hypoallergenic, in case you’re one of the people whose allergies act up around bedtime. Moreover, the density of the pillow needs to meet your needs – softer or firmer, with the surface flatter or shaped. This will determine how deep your head will sink and whether the material will conform around it for additional, corrective support. Lastly, the breathability of your pillow can mean the difference between healthy rest and disrupted, poor quality sleep, especially for those who tend to sleep hot. Excessive heat can be trapped inside the pores of high-density materials such as memory foam and cause much distress for the sleeper.

However, when your pillow doesn’t already meet all or most of the criteria just mentioned, and you wake up sweating or tired, it’s time to make a change. Figuring out exactly which features will do the trick for you starts with the way your body is positioned during the biggest portion of the night.

Sleep Positions

Which way you face during sleep classifies you as a side, stomach, or back sleeper. Each of them come with many variations that have unique benefits and downsides and therefore require different levels of support.

Side Sleeping

Side sleeping is considered the best option out of the three. The way your organs are positioned when sleeping on your side means you’ll face the smallest chances of discomfort – this state is known to prevent sleep apnea, acid reflux, and snoring. Here are the three most common ways people settle down on their side:

1. Fetal position – legs are bent in the knees and arms are in the front or under the pillow.
2. Log position – both arms and legs are stretched out and you look as if you were standing upright.
3. Yearner position – legs are stretched out, but arms are reaching forwards.

An adequate amount of support means different things between the three categories, but sleeping on your side makes the least room for issues. The only thing to be concerned about here is the loft of your pillow – side sleepers require higher profile, supportive surfaces to keep their head in line with the spine. Memory foam does a great job of keeping everything in place as it usually has excellent conforming properties – unless you can’t handle the heat, that is. In essence, any cushion that is on the thicker end, and keeps your head straight will do the trick, but make sure it’s comfortable.

Back Sleeping

This position can work well in certain circumstances, but not everybody will benefit from it. Acid reflux prevention, proper spine alignment, and even weight distribution across your body are some of the upsides that come with sleeping on your back. Unfortunately, facing upwards isn’t the best idea if you have sleep apnea or tend to snore, as back sleeping is known to worsen these conditions, directly impairing the efficiency as well as the duration of your rest.

Back sleepers take up about 13% of the total population. They commonly spend their nights in these positions:

1. Savasana – facing the ceiling, arms, and legs straightened out as if standing upright.
2. Soldier – same as Savasana except with one leg bent at the knee.
3. Starfish – legs stretched, arms above the head.

When you lay down in this manner, there are a few things to be addressed. First, your main pillow needs to have a lower medium loft and preferably some contouring properties, filling out the empty bit of space below your neck. A good option for this would be a pillow with a divot.

Stomach Sleeping

Officially the worst option out of the three, sleeping on your stomach does come with some pros – it prevents snoring and sleep apnea. Unfortunately, the list ends there, as the downsides to this way of sleeping take over. When you sleep on your stomach, your entire weight distributes around your core and presses your organs into the bed. Besides decreasing their ability to expand and impairing the way they function, this also creates a great deal of stress in your ankles and wrists as they are left to handle your body’s pull. Furthermore, stomach sleeping causes even more wrinkling and breast sag than side sleeping. The discomfort caused by this position makes stomach sleepers toss and turn noticeably more often than other types of sleepers, reducing the quality of their sleep.

Finally, this position is a bad idea if you experience back or neck pain, as your spine is likely to be curved, especially if you use a thick pillow or have a very soft bed. In fact, stomach sleepers are the only group that would benefit from sleeping without a pillow altogether. If this notion is too strange for you, using a thinner but moldable pillow would be optimal, as it would allow you to turn around as much as you need to without sacrificing your comfort.

Common Types of Pillows

By now, you’ve hopefully got a picture of what you should be looking for. To give you a bit more insight into whether a model type may suit you or not, let’s take a look at the general characteristics of the ones most commonly found on the market.

Memory foam is an overall good pick for corrective purposes. This material molds around your head and neck, filling all gaps and leaving no room for bad posture. The surface of most models is around medium firm, as it’s meant to prevent you from sinking in too deep. The flaws of memory foam stem from its high density. If you are someone who struggles with excessive heat during the night, this material would be a bad idea as it’s compact structure leaves little room for air to circulate. Additionally, if you like those pillows that feel supple and soft at first touch, the memory foam surface might feel a bit awkward and hard at first, as it takes some time before it molds around you. Overall, memory foam is a widespread favorite and recommended for people who experience neck pain or headaches.

Latex is known for its soft feel and long lifespan. Highly responsive and mold resistant, this type of cushion is also eco-friendly. According to this trial, latex is deemed most helpful for dealing with persistent headaches and arm pain upon waking. However, latex definitely doesn’t sleep the coolest of the lot and can be pricey, especially the organic models. Before you decide to give it a go, make sure you aren’t allergic.

Gel-infused pillows are made for hot sleepers. Cooling property is their main selling point, along with being hypoallergenic. Even some memory foam models are infused with gel for this reason, but that usually gives them the “average” instead of “heat-trap” status in this area.

Feather pillows have been used for quite a while. They are famous for their light weight, softness, immediate responsiveness, and admirable durability. Like all other models, though, they have their cons. For one, they aren’t very breathable, disqualifying them for hot sleepers. Further, the feathers can poke through the fabric, causing skin irritation even for people who aren’t allergic. Lastly, those whose allergies act up at nighttime, as well as those who are allergic to feathers – better look at other options.

Contour pillows curve down in the middle part (think: headrests on a massage bed, except not empty in the center) and considered suitable for side and back sleepers. They are very supportive, promote good posture, and help reduce snoring.

When One Pillow Isn’t Enough

As mentioned above, most issues with pressure points and pain can be prevented or decreased to an extent by purchasing a suitable pillow. However, there are times when an extra mile is necessary.

Every one of these positions has a pressure point or two besides the one around the neck area. Your mattress would preferably address these, but if this isn’t the case and you can’t replace it, or you simply require sturdier support, additional pillows come in handy.

Side sleepers: to decrease the stress on your hips, professionals sometimes recommend placing another, thin pillow between your knees, or getting a body pillow that can be used in a similar manner. The goal here is to keep your pelvis straight. If you experience chronic pain in the lumbar area despite doing everything right, you may also put a thin layer below the knees or ribs.

The lumbar region is the back sleepers’ main pressure point. You can elevate most of the discomfort by putting a thin pillow under your knees, prompting your back to sink more deeply into the surface of your bed and filling the awkward gap between.

For stomach sleepers, a thin cushion placed under your hips may be of additional help in reducing the pressure in your muscles and joints caused by sinking too deep into the mattress.

Pregnant sleepers often need plenty of support, too. As the stomach grows, new pains and uncomfortable stretches create much distress to the expecting mother. For this reason, doctors frequently advise using a body pillow to hug around, which will ensure the stomach is adequately supported. Fixing up extra pillows behind the back, between or under the knees is also not rare. Just try not to pile up a bunch of thin pillows on top of one another, and instead opt for one pillow per area. You may think there is no difference, as the height is the same, but that may do more harm than good. By picking one over many, you decrease the possibility of one cushion sliding out or falling off the bed.

Body Pillows

This oversized cushion, although used mainly by pregnant people, may benefit pretty much everyone who is looking for a whole-body support system in the bed. There are two common types of body pillows: the U-shaped, meant for side and back sleepers alike, and the I-shaped one indicated only for side sleepers. Not convinced? Here are some features that prove body pillows are worth a shot:

1. Relief from pain in critical points – if you put one leg over, hip stress is taken care of. Hug it with your arm and ensure the shoulders and elbows are relaxed, too.
2. Decreased tossing and turning. The U-shaped ones, in particular, are designed to lock you in place comfortably, helping you fall and stay asleep.
3. Decreased snoring. By preventing you from turning over to your back during sleep, this cushion will stop you from snoring as well.
4. Relief from neck or back pain. Having something to lean over ensures your muscles won’t need to be tense to keep you in place, minimizing chances of numbness or pain the next morning.
5. Stress relief. A body pillow is essentially a grown-up version of a teddy bear. Not only will holding onto it make you feel more safe and secure, but your brain will associate the two and start releasing oxytocin, a hormone that reduces stress.

Knee Pillows

Although we have mentioned the possibility of placing a thin layer between or under your knees, there are specialty items made precisely for this purpose. Most knee pillows are hourglass-shaped, which promises they won’t slip away during your sleep. They are meant to relieve any aches and discomfort that you may feel while sleeping on your sides, such as tension in your calves or hips. They also suit people who want to prevent the contact between their legs – a reasonable request, especially during summer or for those with skin issues.

Although placing it between their knees may not be beneficial or even practical for them, back sleepers who struggle with slow circulation can put a wedge-shaped knee pillow under their legs instead and promote healthier blood flow. Pregnant women could use the support when back or pelvis issues arise, but also as a measure to prevent such difficulties in the first place.

Lastly, people with chronic pain, injured individuals, and those with restless leg syndrome (RLS) may find comfort in using a knee pillow. As RLS causes tension and pain in one’s legs, and can make them shake for hours during sleep, some knee pillows are specially designed with straps that can be tied around the legs and decrease excessive movements. Besides aiding the person with RLS, this is also helpful if they sleep with a partner, as a precaution against being kicked during sleep.

Wedge Pillows

These cushions come with a tapered incline, intended to slightly lift up your head, legs, torso, or any other area you may need them for. They are usually on the firm end, meant to use alongside your regular pillow and not instead of it. A wedge pillow can be handy for plenty of scenarios: as back support while watching TV or resting on your sofa, as an elevated headrest to prevent acid reflux, a platform for your legs to promote blood circulation, etc.

A wedge pillow can come as a single piece or have multiple parts. Highly customizable and sturdy, these products can vary in almost every aspect and suit a broad audience of customers. Here are some reasons you may want to consider buying one for yourself:

1. Conforms closely to your body
2. Convenient and comfortable
3. Prevents varicose veins
4. Decreases snoring
5. Promotes better blood and air flow
6. Helps with acid reflux

Alcohol has become a staple in contemporary society. It’s often utilized in situations where individuals seek to unwind and escape the stresses and anxieties brought on by their professional responsibilities and other life pressures. After enduring a challenging day, the only thing they desire is to make the most of their leisure time. Unfortunately, this stress can also severely impact one’s quality of sleep, making alcohol a widely used makeshift solution for better sleep worldwide.

However, that doesn’t mean it’s a healthy or reliable one. Despite its popularity, alcohol is one of the worst things you could consume before bed, as it negatively affects almost everything about sleep. In this article, we will be focusing on snoring, as snoring can also negatively impact the sleep schedule of people in your home, and because it’s connected to one of the most common sleep disorders in the world. Together we will examine everything you need to know about alcohol’s connection to snoring, in the hopes that the knowledge will help some of you correct some lifestyle mistakes or help loved ones do the same. Let’s get into it.

How Does Alcohol Affect Sleep?

Those who drink before bed typically do it for one main reason (outside of late-night socializing): reduced sleep onset latency. Being able to fall asleep faster is a very tempting prospect, especially for people who are potentially dealing with a sleep disorder that drastically increases their sleep onset latency. And in the first week or so, it may seem oddly effective. Even after two or three drinks, you might wake up feeling rested and energized, but that positive feeling won’t last much longer. As time goes on, you’re going to have to imbibe more and more alcohol to get the same initial benefits, and as it develops into an addiction, the adverse effects become much more pronounced.

To look at alcohol’s effect on sleep, you must understand the circadian rhythm we all live by. This rhythm exists thanks to a figurative “master clock” in our brain stem, that uses photoreceptors to detect natural sunlight in our surroundings. That way, it can tell the time of day, and instruct the rest of our body to function a certain way. It governs when melatonin (the hormone of sleep) is produced, when we feel hungry, how energized we are, etc. However, it’s not difficult to disrupt this rhythm (typically through bad lifestyle habits such as overexposure to blue light or an unhealthy diet), and doing so can cause serious health problems for you in the future, especially if alcohol is responsible. Here’s a brief list of problems that can arise from drinking too much before bedtime:

1. A leaky gut syndrome is a very scary condition that can come out of a disrupted circadian rhythm. Our gut’s functions are governed by the master clock, and if you consume a lot of alcohol and throw off your rhythm, this condition can quickly develop. Unfortunately, we don’t know everything there is to know about leaky gut syndrome yet, except that it causes toxins and other unwanted substances to enter your bloodstream directly. You can probably imagine how disastrous this can be.
2. Depression is, unfortunately, a common condition and one that always seems to come hand-in-hand with alcohol abuse. What starts with a shot or two before bed can spiral down into serious mental health issues that need months (if not years) of therapy to resolve. Not to mention how depression itself can cause a disrupted circadian rhythm and encourage other self-destructive habits.
3. Sleep-wake cycle disruption is, unsurprisingly, a common result of alcohol abuse. You see, our ability to fall asleep and wake up at the right times stems from a collection of sleep-related hormones whose production causes varying states of drowsiness or alertness. Melatonin is the main hormone in charge of putting us to sleep, and its production is reduced by around 20% if you drink even a moderate amount before bedtime. Additionally, adenosine production can get increased, which can create scenarios where you sleep during times when you should be awake. These effects combine to throw off your sleep schedule entirely.
4. Compromised liver function is another potential consequence of regular and frequent alcohol use. The liver is another organ whose functioning is governed by our circadian rhythm, and the disruption of that rhythm can lead to severe issues like liver toxicity or various illnesses.

A Brief Overview of Snoring

Snoring isn’t an uncommon part of sleep for most adults, but it can create and point towards some nasty problems. It occurs when your breathing muscles relax to the point of vibrating while you breathe, which creates that hoarse, unpleasant sound. For couples, snoring can be a huge concern as the person snoring can keep their partner awake for potentially hours, and throw off their sleep schedule completely, which can create tension between the two people. Men are more prone to snoring, as are heavier individuals.

Snoring tends to increase in frequency and intensity as the person grows older, as aging naturally relaxes the breathing muscles. Your tongue falls back, and the walls of your throat vibrate as you inhale (and exhale, but to a lesser extent). Snoring can often be traced back to abnormalities in the structure of the nose and throat. These include enlarged tonsils or adenoids, deviated nasal septum or polyps. Additionally, problems like respiratory infection or allergies can heavily contribute to snoring, and you have to deal with the underlying causes to control your noise levels at night.

Unfortunately, it doesn’t end there. Snoring is linked to a variety of problematic situations and conditions that can seriously hamper your daily productivity and energy levels. If the throat closes entirely, the person goes through what is known as a mild episode of apnea. It can cause them to require medical attention in bad cases, but it doesn’t stop there. Snoring can be a big indicating factor of sleep apnea, a much more serious condition that ultimately has no cure. Those affected typically receive long-term therapy in the form of positive air pressure (PAP) treatment, which involves a hefty investment in home treatment equipment.

Usually, snoring is noticed by people in the snorer’s vicinity. However, there are ways you can deduce that you might be a noisy sleeper, and we have provided a useful list of symptoms to consult. It goes as follows:

1. Excessive daytime sleepiness, usually as a result of the fragmented sleep that often comes with snoring
2. Waking up with intense headaches
3. Noticeable weight gain in recent months
4.  Waking up without feeling rested
5. Getting up in the middle of the night, typically confused and disoriented
6. Pauses during breathing while asleep (usually spotted by someone else, but waking up gasping is a surefire way to tell)
7. Being unable to remember crucial things or concentrate on crucial tasks

Snoring is typically dealt with through a combination of lifestyle changes and direct intervention, depending on the intensity and the patient’s medical history. If deemed absolutely necessary, surgical interventions will take place, although this is typically not warranted. Should the patient be diagnosed with sleep apnea, PAP machines will be used to provide adequate treatment, even at home.

When it comes to lifestyle changes, the main thing to note is that snoring is more common while sleeping on one’s back. Sleep position training is often recommended to help transition the patient into a side sleeping routine. Make sure to have a thorough, detailed conversation with your doctor about the pros and cons of every treatment option available to you, especially if you’re running on a very tight budget.

How Alcohol Affects Snoring

With all the prerequisite information taken care of, we can dive into the meat of the topic. Alcohol serves as a sedative, which leads people to use it as an improvised sleeping aid when they struggle to doze off. However, it also relaxes your jaw and throat muscles considerably, which can cause your tongue to fall into your throat and directly lead to intense, loud snoring. If your partner or a family member don’t wake you up, chances are that your brain will.

You see, alcohol abuse before bed can create episodes of apnea, even if you don’t otherwise have the associated sleep disorder. When this happens, your breathing stops for a moment, and your brain responds to this crisis by startling you out of sleep, usually with a loud gasp. Waking up this way even once can result in fragmented sleep, an unpleasant scenario that leaves you without much-needed time in REM sleep. Since REM sleep is where your cognitive abilities are sharpened, alcohol can cause you to feel very disoriented and unfocused the following day, simply by waking you up once or twice through snoring.

Alcohol also has a nasty habit of dehydrating you (and your mouth). When the tissues in your mouth and throat are dry, the vibrations rattle far louder than usual. This makes it far more likely that you (or someone in your vicinity) will wake up in the middle of the night. If you share your bed, that could result in at least a few angry glares and complaints.

How to Deal With Snoring

An article about snoring wouldn’t be complete without a section listing solutions and tips for those of you that have to deal with snoring regularly. From an annoyance to a serious medical concern, snoring affects enough people (even if indirectly) that we feel it’s necessary to spread awareness about notable ways you can deal with this situation. Here’s a brief list to help you cope:

1. As should be pretty obvious by now, avoiding alcohol before bed at all costs is an effective way to reduce the intensity and frequency of your snoring. It most likely won’t remove the issue entirely, however. Keep in mind that you can still enjoy a glass or two in the afternoon, as long as your last drink is more than four hours away from your scheduled bedtime. Drink responsibly.
2. Limit your alcohol consumption in general — two glasses per day for men, one for women. Women metabolize alcohol much faster and are thus especially susceptible to its effects.
3. Eat a meal while you enjoy your drinks, and drink a glass of water or two for good measure. These will help you shake off the effects of alcohol faster, and severely reduce the chances of going through an intense snoring session, as long as you don’t drink directly before bed.
4. Seek out a mouthpiece that prevents snoring. These tend to work by stopping your tongue from falling back in the first place, leaving your airways more open for calm, peaceful breathing.
5. If possible, try to sleep on your side at all times. While you obviously can’t fully control your position throughout the night, make it a point to lie on your side again if you wake up during the night.
6. If you share your bed with a partner, consider buying them a set of earplugs or a similar noise reduction gadget. It’s a nice gesture, especially if you have a habit of waking them up. Fortunately, you can get quality earplugs for around $20 or less, so it’s not a huge investment.

Most folks would agree that enjoying a lovely day at the beach ranks high on their list of enjoyable activities. Whether you’re lounging in the sun, taking a dip in the ocean, playing a game of beach volleyball, or engaging in any other beach-related activity, there’s a familiar sensation of tiredness and lethargy that tends to follow. The reasons for this fatigue are obvious if you’ve been physically active, but what causes this feeling of weariness even when you’ve spent the day just relaxing?

And it’s not just the beach. Have you ever listened to a lecture or did something that was supposed to be interesting but you kept catching yourself about to nod off, and the only thing you could concentrate on was not to fall asleep. Maybe it was the middle of winter, and a warm room had that effect of putting you to sleep.

We are sure you found yourself in any of those situations at some point, but you don’t need to worry, as it is entirely normal and science has several explanations to why it happens. Read on to learn more about different causes, and what to do to prevent excessive sleepiness from happening.

What is Homeostasis?

Have you ever wondered how your body always stays around 98.6 degrees Fahrenheit (37 degrees Celsius) even though the outside temperature is drastically different, especially during the winter and summer months? It does so by having multiple thermostats that track your status throughout your whole body. They then send information to your brain, which regulates different processes and keeps your temperature in relatively narrow limits.

Homeostasis is a term that describes a tendency to maintain a stable internal environment within certain parameters, despite external changing conditions. It doesn’t just refer to the temperature regulation, but to all processes in our bodies. For instance, maintaining optimal pH levels in the stomach for better digestion, or maintaining ion concentration, hormone levels, fluid retention, and pretty much everything you can think of. Homeostasis is essential for proper body functioning, and when it’s disrupted, it means that something is seriously wrong and needs to be treated right away. 

Homeostasis maintenance includes many negative feedback loops. They work by perceiving cues, and then sending information to the central nervous system, that then regulates processes that should bring a trigger back to its set point. For instance, when you work out, your muscles produce more heat, and your body temperature naturally rises. Thermostats in your body perceive this change and set information to the part of your brain that should regulate it. Its name is hypothalamus, and it has many essential roles in proper body functioning. The hypothalamus sends a signal to peripheral blood vessels to dilate to promote heat loss and for sweat glands to activate. Both processes are aimed at bringing the temperature down to its set point, and when it happens, a negative feedback loop will stop.

Why Does Heat Make You Feel Tired?

Science has detected several different reasons to why you feel tired after being exposed to heat. They are all tightly connected with homeostasis and the body’s tendency to retain balance. Let’s dig into each cause to gain a better understanding of this phenomenon, and learn what you can do to prevent it from happening.

1. Heat rises your body temperature.

Your body is a well-oiled system. It gets constant cues from the environment, which are then used to synchronize all processes happening inside you. We’ve mentioned how your body fights to cool down during physical activity, and a similar thing happens when you are hot. Your blood vessels get dilated, allowing more blood to flow near the skin’s surface. This way, warm blood can cool off as it travels near the surface, and it’s also a reason some people appear redder when they are feeling hot. In addition to vasodilatation, sweat glands activate and produce sweat that cools down the skin as it evaporates. This all means that your body needs to put in some extra work to fight excess heat and keep your temperature at optimal levels. That means more energy spent due to increased metabolic and heart rate, which makes you tired in return. And that’s just from being too hot if you combine it with some physical activity, the effects are even stronger. People who carry some extra weight may feel mostly affected by warm temperatures, as larger body means that there is more work to be done to keep everything in balance.

Warm weather also causes a drop in blood pressure. There is less oxygen coming to your brain, which can make you sleepy. Again, your body has to spend extra energy to pump more blood, which can lead to tiredness. You can combat a drop in blood pressure by drinking plenty of water and eating enough salt. You can try crossing your legs while sitting, which has proven to have a quick effect on raising blood pressure.

2. Heat makes you dehydrated.

Most people are always slightly dehydrated as faster lifestyles make us forget to drink water sometimes. When you spend some time in the sun, you lose a considerable amount of fluids through sweating, and your body also uses more water through metabolic processes. These things cause dehydration if you aren’t drinking enough liquid, which usually happens when we are spending time outdoors. 

Besides fluids, you are also losing electrolytes, and if this gets to an extreme, you can get sick, or even die. However, mild dehydration makes you feel sluggish. When there is less fluid, and your electrolyte balance is off, your body needs to work extra hard to maintain everything. Your blood gets thicker as your blood volume is down, which makes your heart pump harder. All of this extra work will make you tired, so be sure to drink plenty of liquids.

There are some common misconceptions about staying hydrated, like that you need to drink at least eight glasses of water each day, or that your urine needs to be transparent; otherwise, you are not doing it right. These are all myths, and the only thing you need to do is listen to your body. It is very well regulated, and nothing says you need to drink water like being thirsty. So forget about stressing if you are drinking 6 or 8 glasses of water each day, your body will tell you exactly how much you need. The only thing that clear urine tells you is that you will probably have to use the restroom again soon.

Summer is a time when you are going to drink more fluids, but be careful of what you drink. Cocktails, wine, and cold beer might seem like the best choice to clench your thirst, but these drinks can make you more dehydrated. Alcohol suppresses the production of vasopressin, a chemical that is essential to retaining body fluids. When there is not enough vasopressin, you will excrete more urine, which perfectly explains all the restroom visits after having a couple of beers. That’s why you should always make sure to drink responsibly, and take water in between each round.

3. Excessive sunlight exposure can harm your body.

Sun doesn’t only raise your temperature. Its ultraviolet rays can cause cell damage, pigmentation changes, sunburn, and wrinkles. Prolonged exposure to ultraviolet light drastically increases the chances of developing skin cancer, so make sure to avoid going out during the hottest parts of summer days. Also always wear sunscreen to protect yourself from these harmful effects.

With more time spent in the sun, your body will have more work to do repairing the damage, which often leads to fatigue. For instance, when you get sunburned, your body moves more fluid to the area that has been damaged in an attempt to address the issue. However, that means there is less fluid to sweat, which reduces the body’s ability to cool itself down. That makes you dehydrated, and you quickly become fatigued. 

If you spend too much time outside, especially if doing some physical activity, you might be at risk of heat exhaustion and stroke. In most cases, you just need to get away from the sun and be somewhere cooler, but if along with fatigue you start experiencing heavy sweating, dizziness, lightheadedness, headache, nausea, or unusually weak or rapid pulse, you should seek medical help right away. Heat stroke is a serious condition that requires immediate emergency treatment, as it can cause permanent damage to the brain, kidneys, heart, and muscles. Other symptoms include agitation, confusion, slurred speech, or seizures.

4. Heat can trick your brain.

Your body has an internal clock that regulates everything you do, like when is the time to eat, be active, or go to sleep. These patterns are called circadian rhythms, and they are characteristic of all living things. One of the ways to synchronize this internal clock with the environment is through our senses. Our brain perceives different stimuli, like temperature and light, and regulates processes in our body accordingly.

Melatonin is a hormone responsible for regulating our sleep and wake cycles. Its production usually starts in the evening, due to the natural drop in temperature and decrease of light. These are the signals that when our brain recognizes, it starts secreting melatonin, and we become sleepy. Levels of this hormone are high through the night to maintain sound sleep, and then significantly drop in the morning, when we are supposed to be wide awake and active.

When we are outside in the bright light, it can restart our inner clock. Melatonin production is suppressed in these conditions, and we don’t feel sleepy at all. However, fatigue can kick in when we get back home and enter an environment where there isn’t much bright light, and the temperature is much cooler. That can trick our brain into thinking that it’s night, and it can start producing melatonin, making us feel sleepy and tired in return.

Behavioral Links Between Heat and Sleepiness

Excessive heat doesn’t only have physiological effects on your body; there are also some connections your brain has made with feeling warm and certain behaviors you usually do in these conditions. For instance, we typically associate being cozy and warm under a blanket with sleepiness. That can mean that we instantly get sleepy when we feel the heat, as our brain has made that connections. You can combat this by learning new associations to heat, such as doing your favorite activities that make you excited and alerted. 

Besides obvious reasons for feeling tired during summer, there are a few ones that are often overlooked. Summertime can bring a lot of stress into our life as kids are on a break, so there is no school, and they can require constant care and attention which can be exhausting. Planning family holidays, making sure that everybody is ready and packed also adds to stress, as does the general change in routine that summertime brings. When we are worried, our metabolism isn’t as efficient as usual, and our bodies also spend more energy preparing to deal with a stressful situation. All of this leads to increased feelings of fatigue and sleepiness, so if you are feeling exceptionally distraught, relaxing can help you regain your energy levels.

It’s surprising how many people forget that tiredness is mostly a sign of the lack of sleep. Many people struggle to fall and stay asleep during summer nights, as warm temperatures make it harder to relax since you are sweating and unable to get comfortable. You can try doing several things to help you sleep in these conditions:

1. Maintain a steady sleeping routine. That way, your brain will know when to rest, and it should make it easier to fall asleep. Keeping a consistent schedule should also allow you to getter deeper restorative sleep.
2. Choose the coldest place in your house for sleeping. It should also be dark and quiet to remove distractions and make falling asleep easier. You should keep an open door or window, to allow proper air circulation, and you can even use fans for this. 
3. Make sure you are drinking enough water throughout the day, as your body is better at regulating temperature when it is fully hydrated. You should drink a glass of water before going to bed, but don’t overdo it as you don’t want to wake up in the middle of the night to run to the bathroom.
4. Eat a balanced diet with plenty of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and lean protein. Avoid having large and spicy meals before bedtime, as well as chocolate and caffeinated drinks, as they can keep you up and make it harder to fall asleep. 
5. Stay active but avoid exercising too close to bedtime to give your body enough time to cool down properly. 
6. Consider getting a mattress with good temperature neutrality, such as innerspring or latex.
7. Wear loose clothes made from natural materials like cotton or rayon. These are highly breathable; they absorb sweat and allow your body to breathe. Your bedding should also match. You can even consider sleeping naked, as it has various benefits, including excellent thermoregulation.
8. Take a cold shower before bed as that will help cool your body down. You can also keep a bowl with water or a damp towel next to your bed if you wake up feeling hot.

How to Avoid Heat Fatigue

If you feel exceptionally sleepy during summertime, but you want to be more energized to fully enjoy different activities, we have some tips on how to do that. They should prevent fatigue and other consequences that are linked with spending too much time in the sun.

1. Limit your exposure to direct sunlight. Try to stay inside during the hottest parts of the day, and when going out, stay in the shade as much as possible. That way you can enjoy the benefits of time spent outdoors without getting too hot, sunburned, and you’ll lose less liquid. It is essential to prepare before going out. Be sure to always put on sunscreen to any exposed area of your body. Wear hats, sunglasses, and highly breathable long sleeves to prevent sun damage.
2. Stay hydrated. The best way to combat dehydration is to drink plenty of water. Always bring a bottle with you and know where your nearest drinking fountains are. Eat a lot of fruits and vegetables as they also have high water content. Remember that drinks that contain alcohol act as diuretics, and they will increase your dehydration levels. 
3. Always have a salty snack nearby. When you sweat, you are also losing salt and other electrolytes beside water. You should increase your salt intake, and bring a salty snack like nuts, pretzels, or baked potato chips with you when you go outside.
4. Know when to take a break and get away from the sun. If you are partaking in physical activity, know your limits. When you feel like it’s too much, step aside, rest for a bit, and don’t let your body go into overdrive.

As the allergy season approaches, many are already bracing themselves that they’ll spend most of the time sneezing and wiping their nose. Tissues will become their best friend. For others, though, this is a sign of worry. In recent years, the number of people who suffer from some sleep disorder that prevents them from getting proper rest and disrupts their daily functioning has increased. If you add seasonal allergies to this, it can be a troublesome period during which you pray that it goes away as soon as possible. 

It is no surprise that people started to wonder “If it’s possible to experience allergy attack and discomfort during the night when you’re sick,  can you sneeze in your sleep? More importantly, can it disrupt your sleep?” 

In this article, we will talk about the phenomenon of sneezing, how it occurs, and if it is possible to sneeze during the night.
 

Can you Sneeze in your sleep 

 While you physically can sneeze at night,  a process called REM atonia suppresses impulses for sneezing while sleeping.  The neurotransmitters which are usually in charge to detect some allergens or foreign particles, that can trigger sneezing, are asleep during the process of REM atonia

Although this topic needs to be studied more in the future, sleep researchers say that there might be some possibilities to sneeze during sleep based on the knowledge of how our body and brain work.

However, many of them also agree that there is not enough research to provide a firm answer. One researcher who has been involved in many studies said that he hasn’t experienced that someone sneezed during sleep, but he hasn’t provoked them either. He also states that the reason we are often provoked to sneeze is due to external factors when we are active during the day, but we are not exposed to most of them while sleeping.  

Even though this may be true, some experts say that we should sneeze during sleep more because lying on our stomach, back, or side can cause our mucous membranes to swell, but our body has an interesting trick to keep us asleep. .
 

How Does REM Atonia Affect Sneezing? 

Our circadian clock oversees sleep, and it’s controlled by sunlight. When the sun is down, hormone melatonin is released and makes us feel drowsy. Once the sun is up again, people feel more alert as melatonin wears off. 

During the night, our sleep is composed of five stages that are a part of our circadian rhythm. Four of them are non-REM stages that make 75 percent of our rest, and one is REM sleep that makes 25 percent.  

• In the first stage, our body enters light sleep. As the name explains enough, during this stage you can easily wake-up, but your eye movement slows down, and the activity of the muscles is reduced.
• In the second stage, the waves of the brain and eye movement slow down. This stage prepares our bodies for deep sleep, so the heart rate and the body temperature are much lower.
• In the third stage, the delta waves (slow-moving waves of the brain) are in dynamic with rapid waves that combined cause body to enter deep sleep making a transition between sleep that is non-REM and REM. During this stage parasomnias like bedwetting and sleepwalking are most likely to happen.
• When our body gets into the fourth stage, our body is in slow-wave sleep.
• The fifth stage is the REM stage where REM atonia and dreams occur while we sleep.  

REM atonia, as we mentioned before, leads to certain neurotransmitters shutting down. Because of that, the neurons that cause the action of sneezing are not triggered even if our nasal cavity is exposed to irritating particles. 

It can lead you to think “Okay during the fifth stage it is understandable that we don’t sneeze, but what about the other four stages of sleep?”  Good question. It is the part where science might be too complicated to comprehend. In stages that are non-REM, the cerebral cortex and thalamus activate each other to hold back reactions like sneezing. But if a stimulus is strong enough to trigger the sneezing, then the person who was sleeping will wake up and sneeze. Even though we cannot unconsciously sneeze in sleep, we might wake up in non rem sleep and sneeze due to something that triggered our sneeze reflex. 
 

How to Stop the Sneezing Reflex While Sleeping? 

There are some measures of precaution that you can take to ensure you won’t wake up due to the urge to sneeze: 

• Vacuum the bedroom often to remove allergens and other dust particles.
• Make sure you clean your pillow and pillowcases regularly to prevent exposure to dust mites.
• Do not place your clothes on your bed due to particles of pollen that cling to fabric. 
• If you own a pet and your pet sleeps with you, you should wash bedding set at least once a week. 

Interesting Sneezing Myths 

Sneezing with eyes open – Some people believed that if you sneeze with open eyes, they will pop out. Don’t worry that won’t happen. We automatically shut our eyes, and the pressure that builds up as we sneeze is not enough to make our eyes pop out. 

The heart will stop if you sneeze – Former president of the American University of Cardiology, Dr. Conti, believed that due to the sensation of sneezing your heart stops for a few seconds, but later on, it was discovered that the heart could change the rhythm of beating, but it does not stop because of a sneeze. 

Sneezing is a sign that somebody is thinking of you – If this is true then celebrities can’t stop sneezing. Although we don’t know the origin of this myth, Japanese people made their version of it. They believe that sneezing one time means someone is gossiping about you, two times means it’s something bad, and three times means that somebody is in love with you. 

Sneezing of a baby – It is so adorable when a baby sneezes, but in some countries like in Britain, people once believed that every time a baby sneezes it means it is under a spell of a fairy. If a Maori baby sneezes, it means good news and prosperity, while in Tonga it is a sign of bad luck. 

Sneezing will reveal Gods plan – In Ancient Rome, Greece, and Egypt, people believed that if you sneeze God will reveal your future, good or bad. 

A strong sneeze will lead to a fatal event – In Europe, during the Middle Ages, people believed that life is tied to one’s breath. If a sneeze was too loud and a large amount of breath was ejected, it was a bad sign that something fatal would happen.  

“Bless you” – One thousand five hundred years ago people held a belief that when a person sneezes it, the soul leaves the body for a short period of time leaving your body to be occupied by the Devil. So, the term “bless you” was like a protection for the soul of the sneezer.   

Similarly, during the great plague in the 13th century, the pope would encourage people to bless the sneezer as it would protect him/her from the terrorizing plague.  

Cat sneeze determines the luck of one’s marriage – In Italy, it was believed that if the bride hears a cat sneezing on the day of her wedding, it means that her marriage would be filled with happiness, but if the cat sneezes three times, her family will catch a cold. 

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REM sleep behavior disorder (RBD) is an uncommon sleep condition found in less than 1% of the population. However, a recent study by Oregon Health and Sciences University has discovered that this disorder is significantly more common among veterans.

Typically, the REM phase is when most of our dreaming occurs, and during that time, our muscles are paralyzed so that we don’t act out our dreams. This is called muscle atonia, and it is often missing in people who have RBD, which results in nocturnal movements during REM sleep. As a result, a person can injure themselves or their partners during sleep.

According to the new findings published in the journal SLEEP, military veterans with traumatic brain injury (TBI) or post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) are much more likely to suffer from RBD.

Researchers kept 394 veterans for an overnight sleep study at the VA Portland Health Care System to analyze their sleep performance. Muscle activity was closely monitored to diagnose RBD.

Even though the condition affects less than 1% of the general population, the number goes to 9% among veterans. And when we look at individuals with PTSD, the number jumps to 21%.

These results are troubling because RBD is often connected with other neurodegenerative conditions such as Parkinson’s disease. Both conditions affect similar brain regions, and many people with RBD develop Parkinson’s disease later on.

And although researchers do not know whether veterans with PTSD will develop Parkinson’s disease, it is essential to find an answer to this question, and possibly slow down neurodegeneration and development of the disease.

The exact mechanism behind the role of PTSD in developing RBD is not known, but scientists suspect it has to do with chronic stress. The concussions the veterans might have been exposed to could accelerate neurodegenerative processes.

The team will continue to keep track of each participant with RBD to look for the early signs of Parkinson’s disease. Unfortunately, there is no cure for this condition, but there are some treatment options that aim to ease symptoms.

That means that when a person is diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease, it is usually too late to reverse the symptoms, which is why it is vital to look for early signs of neurodegeneration, and RBD seems to fit the description. That could allow doctors to intervene early, slow down the degradation of neurons, and possibly prevent the disease from developing.

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Samantha was naturally inclined to worry. She usually concentrated on the downside and was constantly vigilant for any possible issues. Consequently, she frequently found it challenging to fall asleep, often spending hours turning in bed before she could finally fall asleep.

One day, Samantha stumbled upon an article about the benefits of optimism for sleep. She was intrigued by the idea that a positive outlook could actually help her get better rest. She decided to give it a try and started incorporating more positive thinking into her daily routine.

At first, it was hard. Samantha had to consciously reframe negative thoughts and find the good in difficult situations. But gradually, she started to notice a difference. She felt more relaxed and less anxious, and her sleep improved as well. She found herself falling asleep faster and waking up feeling more rested.

Samantha was thrilled with the results and started sharing her newfound optimism with others. She encouraged her friends and family to focus on the positive, even in challenging times. And as more people adopted this mindset, she noticed a ripple effect. People were kinder, more compassionate, and more resilient.

In the end, Samantha realized that optimism wasn’t just good for her sleep – it was good for her overall well-being. And she was grateful to have discovered this life-changing philosophy.

Research study explains benefits of optimism

If “Always look on the bright side of life” is your motto, we have some good news for you. Optimism and better health outcomes go hand in hand, and many scientists have hypothesized that it may be due to more efficient restorative processes. Sleep is a time when our bodies and minds repair all the damages, and therefore our nightly rest is one of the most important restorative processes.

Researchers at the University of Illinois wanted to see how optimism affected sleep, and whether we could see an increase in quality and duration in optimistic people.

The team followed 3548 participants aged 32-51 who participated in the Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults (CARDIA) study. In two instances, five years apart, participants filled a survey to help researchers asses their optimism levels.

All participants also filled a Pittsburg Sleep Quality Index and Epworth Sleepiness Scale to assess their quality of sleep during the prior month. The survey helped gain insight into how many hours participants had each night, as well as difficulty falling asleep, nighttime awakenings, and more insomnia symptoms.

Data showed that participants with higher optimism scores also experienced adequate sleep, resting six to nine hours every night. And additionally, they were 74% less likely to exhibit symptoms of insomnia and experience daytime sleepiness.

Failing to get adequate sleep regularly increases the risk of developing many conditions like cardiovascular diseases, high blood pressure, diabetes, and many more. And when you think about the fact that 1 in 3 people in the US doesn’t get enough sleep, you understand how dangerous the situation is.

That is why experts are trying everything they can to help people experience better nightly rest. And although optimism seems to work, achieving it isn’t something you can simply do.

Describing the exact mechanisms that allow optimism to affect sleep won’t be easy. Researchers suggest that it probably has something to do with optimistic people developing healthy ways to cope with stress. That allows them to process stressful events more efficiently and get adequate rest.

The team published their findings in the Behavioral Medicine journal. Their results were in line with the team’s prior studies, which showed optimists to have better heart health.

Although there was a significant positive correlation between optimism and sleep quality, the authors suggest that we should interpret these results with caution. There are more studies needed to draw definite conclusions and find out the mechanisms behind this link. In the meantime, positive thinking doesn’t hurt anybody, so maybe it is time we try to change how we perceive life.

Few things are as crucial as sleep for a newborn. On average, infants dedicate 16 hours daily to sleep, which is vital for their physical and mental growth. Therefore, any sleep issues in the initial stages of life must be addressed immediately.

It is vital to learn what is causing these sleep disturbances. And according to a new study by the Murdoch Children’s Research Hospital, persistent severe problems in babies can be linked to poor maternal prepartum and postpartum physical and mental health.

A team of researchers led by Dr. Fallon Cook followed 1460 women at 15 weeks gestation, and when their babies were 3, 6, 9, and 12 months old.

Experiencing sleep problems during the first year is common, and based on the results of their research, the team divided infant sleep problems into five categories:

• Those who had a few issues (24.7%)
• Persistent moderate problems (27.3%)
• Increased problems at 6 months (10.8%)
• Increased problems at 9 months (17.8%)
• Persistent severe issues (19.4%)

Persistent severe sleep problems in infants were correlated with mental health in mothers during pregnancy and after childbirth. Infants with the mothers who had prepartum and postpartum feelings of anxiety and depression, lower overall perception of health, as well as increased intimate partner violence (IPV) during the first year after birth, were much more likely to have persistent sleep impairments

These findings suggest that there are more things affecting infant sleep than parenting style, with mothers’ well-being during and after pregnancy being one of the most significant factors.

According to the authors, these results are significant as they could be used to predict sleep problems in babies and possibly intervene before they occur. Additionally, parents of infants with sleep problems often fell exhausted, depressed, and anxious and have feelings of self-doubt when it comes to parenting.

And what these findings say is that some infants may be predisposed to sleep problems because of the impaired prepartum maternal mental health, despite how hard parents try to help their newborns sleep.

What we should focus on is identifying and addressing the mental and physical health of women during pregnancy and after childbirth. Parents should seek professional help from their GPs or child health nurse if they are feeling anxious, depressed, and fatigued. Reaching out to family, friends, and local parenting groups can also help.

Being a new parent is stressful enough without infant sleep problems, but when they occur, it can become unbearable. It is crucial to address these issues as soon as they present themselves and take care of your mental and physical health. You can check our science-based sleep tips for babies, for more info on tackling sleep problems in infants.

At a young age, sleep ranks among the crucial necessities. It plays a key role in both physical and mental growth, alongside contributing significantly to emotional health. If you’re under the impression that issues like depression, anxiety, and behavioral challenges are exclusive to adults, you’re greatly mistaken.

An increase in the prevalence of these conditions in children shows that the situation is very serious, and we might have to look for triggers at the early stage of development.

A new study from the University of Birmingham investigates a link between sleep problems at an early age, and how they affect later emotional development. The results show that infants with poor sleep quality have a higher chance of developing depression, anxiety, or behavioral problems as toddlers.

Although it is well known how sleep disturbances can impact mood, irritability, and behavioral difficulties during the daytime, this study investigates how poor sleep affects behavioral and emotional health later in childhood.

Researchers from the University of Birmingham collaborated with the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare to find out the impact of night awakenings, prolonged period of falling asleep, and short sleep duration on emotional state and behavioral problems in toddlers at 24 months.

The team used the results from sleep questionnaires from a study where parents reported sleep quality of their children at 3, 8, 18, and 24 months. They gathered the information from almost 1700 parents. Later, those results were compared with an additional questionnaire on emotional and behavioral state at 24 months, filled by 950 parents.

The results showed frequent night awakenings at three months of age to be strongly linked to the inability to control emotions and behavior, and overall emotional problems in toddlers. Additionally, both short sleep and longer sleep onset were correlated to behavioral problems at 24 months, such as temper tantrums.

According to these findings, it is easy to conclude the enormous importance of sleep quality on mental health and the development of healthy coping mechanisms at a later age. These sleep disturbances could have different origins, form genetics to environmental factors. Of course, detecting poor sleep at a young age is vital for healthy development.

Authors highlight the importance of more research in this area, as well as developing novel interventions for infants with sleep problems, as it could be particularly beneficial for healthy emotional state and behavioral control in children.

Stress pops up like a sneaky cat, hiding around every corner of our daily lives. Try as you might, you just can’t shake it off completely. Getting the hang of taming stress and anxiety is super important for keeping your health in tip-top shape. If you’re keen on knocking stress down a peg or two, stick around. You’re about to discover some neat tricks that’ll help keep your cool, making a huge difference in your well-being!

According to a new study from the University of California, Berkley, sleep is an effective way to get your emotions in order. In fact, they claim that losing a night of sleep can lead to a 30% rise in anxiety levels the following day.

We all know that sleep is vital for our well-being, as lack of proper rest often leaves us irritable, prone to mood swings, and unable to concentrate or perform mentally. And according to UC Berkley researchers, a specific phase of sleep is responsible for resetting our anxious brains.

When we fall asleep, we experience a couple of light sleep phases at the beginning, following by deep sleep, and then finally rapid eye movement (REM) stage. It seems that deep sleep is particularly important for reducing stress and anxiety, as neural oscillations are deeply synchronized, and blood pressure and heart rate drop. That gives a perfect opportunity to reorganize connections in the brain and repair damage.

Study authors point that sleep is a natural remedy for anxiety disorders that are on the rise in the US, with over 40 million Americans suffering from them. What’s concerning is that we see a trend of prevalence increase in children and teens. But when you account for the fact that most children and teenagers aren’t getting enough sleep regularly, it all makes sense.

Using a series of experiments, researchers from UC Barkley scanned the brains of 18 young adults, while they watched disturbing video clips. The investigators wanted to see if there was any difference if the participants viewed stirring videos after a sleepless or a night full of sleep. They used polysomnography and functional MRI for measuring brain and other activity, and each session was followed by a questionnaire to assess the level of anxiety in participants.

As expected, subjects who slept less had an increased anxiety response to viewing those disturbing videos. Brain scans showed complete inhibition of the prefrontal cortex, which generally keeps stress and anxiety in check. Additionally, emotional centers in the brain were overactive.

More importantly, after a night full of sleep, anxiety levels dropped significantly. And there was a positive correlation with deep sleep, meaning that participants who experienced more deep sleep had lower anxiety levels.

These findings show that deep sleep is essential for both the prevention and mediation of stress and anxiety.

Researchers managed to replicate their results in another similar study with 30 participants, where participants who got the most deep sleep also experienced the lowest anxiety levels the following day.

Additionally, researchers conducted an online study following 280 subjects for four days and tracking their anxiety levels. The results were similar to previous studies. But interestingly, even the slightest changes in deep sleep affected the anxiety levels.

All these findings support the argument that sleep recommendations should be a part of managing anxiety disorders. More importantly, sleep could be an excellent natural prevention for developing these conditions in the first place.

Cardiovascular ailments encompass disorders related to the heart and blood vessels, and they stand as the leading cause of mortality globally, claiming the lives of nearly 18 million individuals annually, as reported by the World Health Organization.

When we talk about cardiovascular health prevention, exercise and diet get most of the spotlight. And although we do know that proper rest is also essential for our cardiovascular system, most recommendations focus solely on how long we sleep. A new study published in The Journal of the American College of Cardiology proposes that sleep patterns are a more significant risk factor for cardiovascular health than sleep duration. There are more factors determining sleep quality, and focusing only on sleep duration may not be the best solution when it comes to heart diseases.

Our internal clocks are responsible for keeping metabolism, heart rate, blood pressure, and sleep patterns running smoothly. So what exactly happens when the irregular sleep disturbs our internal clocks? Researchers from Brigham and Woman’s Hospital measured that exact effect.

The investigators examined data from the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (MESA). The study included 1992 participants with diverse ethnic backgrounds and no history of cardiovascular diseases at the beginning. All the subjects were aged 45-84 years, and they were required to wear a wrist activity tracker for seven days. The device recorded their sleep activities and patterns.

After the initial measurements, participants were followed for five years on average. During that period, 111 subjects experienced a cardiovascular event, including strokes, heart attacks, and other adverse incidents.

Researchers then divided participants into four groups depending on their sleep patterns. When it comes to sleep duration, the most irregular group had more than two-hour difference on a night to night basis, while the most regular one had less than an hour. The investigators also considered consistency, and they compared subjects with the most consistent schedules against those whose bedtimes varied each night significantly.

The results showed that cardiovascular events were most common in people with the most irregular sleep patterns. In fact, they estimate that only 8 in 1000 people with regular sleep patterns would have a cardiovascular event over one year, while that number rises to 20 in people with an irregular sleep schedule.

These results show that sleep consistency is another important indicator of sleep quality, besides sleep duration. The authors expressed an interest in researching this topic even further. They want to know whether an intervention such as a more regular sleep schedule could decrease a person’s risk of a cardiovascular event. Until then, findings from this study confirm how important it is to maintain good sleeping hygiene.