Sleep: An Important Part of Our Daily Life

Sleep Sleep is a very important part of our daily life. A sound sleep makes a whole world of difference as it helps the body to recover from the stress and strain of the day. Thus, it can safely be said that it is not just a pit-stop for the body from top-to-toe to rest and repair itself. It helps to revitalize the will and sharpen the mind. After an adequate rest of between seven to eight hours, you spring out of bed and are ready to take on the world. On the other hand, getting up groggy and lethargic means you have probably overslept or had a bad night. Therefore, you should try to sleep before midnight, preferably from 10p.m. to 6a.m. This is the time most of us feel drowsy as the body mechanism starts to slow down. Follow a regular sleep pattern, that is, go to bed and wake up at the same time every day as far as possible. The mind sends sleep signals when you are ready for bed. Hence, ignoring such signals and trying to beat sleep will only leave you struggling to fall asleep. Dim or switch off all the lights in the room as artificial lights supposedly kill the release of melatonin, which aids the sleep process. You should not try to stay up to do computer work past midnight. The body will not have sufficient time to renew and heal itself and you might wake up feeling tired, constipated and depressed the next morning. The number of sleep hours varies from person to person. Some people can do with four hours while others need eight hours of sleep. Babies need more hours of sleep while teenagers and working adults need less hours of sleep. As one ages, like the older people, one will have the tendency to sleep less. In general, the maximum number of sleep hours is eight hours. There are certain food that helps you to relax the brain and nerves and make sleep easy. They include food like rice, wholegrain pasta, vegetables, oats and chocolate, all of which contain tryptophan, the amino acid that produces serotonin to help you nod off. A glass of milk or