Make the most of your natural ‘sleep hormone’ and sleep better…
Sleep. We all need it. However, it turns out that despite the fact sleeping is such a natural and necessary activity, many of us struggle to do enough of it. Professor Vicki Culpin, clinical psychologist and expert in sleep informs us that “Never before have significant percentages of working adults been so sleep deprived” in her book ‘The Business of Sleep’ published in 2018*. Data collected by Aviva confirms this bleak picture, with half of UK adults confessing they don’t get enough sleep and a third reporting to suffer with Insomnia**.
The good news is that there is a simple way to help improve the duration and quality of your sleep – by making the most of your naturally occurring ‘sleep hormone’, melatonin. Your body is ingenious, with this built-in mechanism enabling you to get the right amount of sleep. However, with technology increasingly facilitating the intrusion of the outside world into our homes, and even our bedrooms, many of us fail to allow this natural process to work to its full potential – and suffer from poor sleep as a result.
This infographic explains how melatonin production is intrinsically linked with levels of natural and artificial light, and what you can do fully harness the benefits of this naturally occurring hormone.
The key to boosting your melatonin levels, and in doing so naturally improving your sleep, lies in understanding how light impacts upon its production. Making small changes to your routine and bedroom set up can make a huge difference. So, give it a go, spread the word and combat the sleep deprivation epidemic sweeping the UK.
Sweet dreams!
*‘The business of sleep – How sleeping better can transform your career’ by Professor Vicky Culpin published 8th March 2018.
**Aviva: https://www.aviva.com/newsroom/news-releases/2017/10/Sleepless-cities-revealed-as-one-in-three-adults-suffer-from-insomnia/
