Quiz

Research has shown that a few cups of coffee during the day can disrupt sleep, even until 6 hours prior to going to bed for some. A person might be able to fall asleep easily, but he will not generate an optimal quality of sleep and sleep cycles.

Smoking (nicotine) and the consumption of products containing caffeine (coffee, tea, cola, energy drinks, iced tea, chocolate) can have a stimulating effect. This can make it more difficult to fall asleep or it can wake you up more often during the night. Your sleep quality might be lower.

Because caffeine is an energy booster it is better not to use it from 4 to 6 hours before sleeping.

A changing rhythm between working week and weekend is called social jet lag. Just like people who travel long distances by plane and have to adapt to a different time zone. This disrupts the biological clock and that also happens with different week of weekend rhythm.

It is best to keep the same bedtimes. This reinforces the biological clock and makes you sleep better. This means that you can’t really ‘recuperate’ a deficit of sleep during the weekend. One night of bad sleep can be fixed though but not more than that. Sleeping in can give you a feeling of dullness.

Several studies all over the Western world show that practicing sports and physical activity enhances sleep in general. By exercising during the day, your body feels better and this enhances the capacity of the brain to relax. This increases the quality of your deeper sleep patterns. Exercising also has a boosting effect on the body and should therefore not be practiced up to 2 or 3 hours before sleep.

When suffering from chronic sleep problems naps are not recommended. They decrease sleep pressure. This makes it harder for you to sleep at bedtime or you might wake up more frequently during the night.

If you have another medical condition next to your sleeping deprivation it may be recommended to take a nap because of its healing quality.

Research in the Benelux shows that on average 47% of persons use their phone in bed, 40% watches TV, and 37%  uses the internet of which 29%  social media on other devices.

If you want to have a good sleep quality it’s mandatory not engaging in activities that you associate with being awake, such as: watching TV or reading a book. It’s best to associate your bedroom with sleeping only. Also try to avoid worrying and fretting in bed. To do so, you could organize worry times during the day. Make sure not to have disputes in your bedroom. Try to bring as much peace and relaxation into the bedroom in any possible way.

It was recorded in 1977 by Maureen Weston USA in a rocking chair contest. But staying awake for as long as that increases the risk of many health risks. That is why 1977 was the last year that ‘staying awake’ records were admitted.

Your chronobiology or circadian rhythm, in other words following your internal clock is crucial to getting healthy sleep. Our body is active with certain body functions at certain hours of a day. Living according to this rhythm, our sleep/wake rhythm sustains your health. This circadian rhythm may be better known as ‘Biological Clock’. It is an ancient ‘system’ that follows a 24-hour cycle. Not only does it regulate your sleep but your behavior, your hormones, body temperature and metabolism are also controlled by this biorhythm. It is an interesting function, so your body knows exactly when to make certain substances or when it needs food and sleep.