Sleep healthy to stay healthy

In our increasingly hectic work life we have forgotten to remember that health is the most important. Increased work stress is leading to lots of ailments plaguing us today. This is why it is really important to ensure that we maintain a healthy balance between work and personal life.

A recent research carried out in London shows that a person who sleeps less than six hours a night is at 48% higher risk of developing heart disease. More and more people especially the younger working generation is cutting down on sleep to accommodate more work hours and exercise. Most of us ignore the link between sleep deprivation and heart diseases, in fact, the research goes on to add “ Late to bed and early to rise is a ticking time bomb for health”. Doctors also link sleep deprivation to other non-communicable diseases such as diabetes, hypertension and obesity.  In a one of its kind research carried out in the UK, the doctors tried to study the relationship between short sleep duration and obesity risk. Of the 696 studies identified from the search, 12 studies on children and 17 studies on adults met the inclusion criteria.

So what can one do to ensure a healthy sleep pattern?  If you fall in the category where you feel sleep is not so important it is time you woke up to the perils that improper sleep pattern can cause. Remember it is never too late to change and a few simple steps can help you sleep better.

• The bedroom must have a good environment to get a sound sleep. It must be dark, clean and with proper ventilation. You can also minimise noise and light when sleeping by the use of earplugs and window blinds.
• Do not eat food right before going to bed. Tea, coffee, soda, chocolate and caffeinated drinks must be avoided.
• Avoid excessive stimulation before you go to sleep. Stimulation could be in the form of exercise, watching television or recounting unhappy memories. These can aggravate sleep disorder.
• If you have a problem in falling asleep, you can try some pre-bed activities to help fall asleep. Activities such as reading a book, writing, planning for the next day, or listening to light music can really help in inducing a good sleep.
• A body always prefers to have proper routine for better functioning. Try to allocate a fixed time for falling asleep and waking up. Once the body gets used to the timings, you will never have to worry about maintaining that schedule.

There is a very interesting Irish proverb   “A good laugh and a long sleep are the best cures in the doctor’s book.” It holds so true for all of us.  Something if we were all to follow we could avoid most of the health issues that face us today!

To ensure your peace of mind while leading a healthy lifestyle we must also prepare ourselves for any health related emergencies. Health insurance helps you stay equipped should any such need arise.

Be prepared for emergencies, problems do not call before coming, so be safe and equip yourself with the right health policy to address your needs, should they arise.

 

 

Advertisement