Light and your Sleep

Today is November 26th, during this time of year in our area the days get both progressively shorter and colder. Both the cold weather and the limited amount of daylight can have significant impacts on restful sleep. So, during this time of year you must be mindful of the following mistakes you may already be making as you attempt to go to sleep.

• Keeping the house too hot --> The optimal temperature range for sleeping is 68-72 degrees F
  
• Keeping the house too cold-->Your body temperature drops during sleep, there is no need to make the room extra cold
  
• Lack of light throughout the day--> do not allow less daylight to alter your sleep patterns
  
• Dietary changes--> as the weather gets colder do not allow yourself to cheat more on your dietary habits
• Lack of exercise--> it may be cold outside, but do not let that prevent you from exercising, as this helps you to fall asleep at night 
• Over-sleeping on weekends --> you alter your sleep patterns when you oversleep, so do not sleep until noon
• Dry air--> Dry air can dry out your nostrils, thus leading to snoring, and THUS less sleep
• Cold and flu season--> People tend to get sick during the winter, and that stuffed up nose will prevent you from getting restful sleep

In regards to light   

"Artificial light striking the retina between dusk and dawn exerts other physiological effects through sightless vision. It inhibits sleep-promoting neurons and activates arousal-promoting orexin neurons in the hypothalamus, and suppresses the nightly release of the soporific hormone melatonin. " Dr. Charels Czeisler.

 
Orexin is a neurotransmitter, a chemical released between the neurons in your brain which evokes a specific responses in your behavior. This specific chemical regulates your arousal, wakefulness and appetite. The reason that this chemical is so important to mention, is because if you watch tv, use your tablet or your phone immediately before going to sleep,  then you will cause your brain to release this chemical. Once this chemical is released, you are effectively preventing yourself from going to sleep. Even though you may be able to eventually fall asleep after this chemical is released within your brain, your sleep will be less restorative due to its presence. 

I like to think of Orexin as Will Smith in this image and Geoffery as you trying to sleep

I believe, based upon my own experiences, it is safe to say that we all have had nights in which it takes a long time to finally fall asleep. In addition, I think that most people, if they think back to what they were doing immediately before the attempted to sleep, were probably in the vicinity of an electronic device that would trigger their brain to inhibit the release of chemicals that are conducive to sleep.

For those of you on twitter, if you have any comments or questions that pertain to this specific article, or any of our past articles, or if you just want to share your sleep issues with us, go on twitter and #sleepmatters. We would love to hear from you, just do not do it before you go to sleep. Happy Thanksgiving!