How important is sleep for well-being?

On March 14, World Sleep Day is celebrated, an annual event that takes place close to the spring equinox (March 21). The day was promoted by the World Society Sleep and the Italian Association of Sleep Medicine (AIMS) in 2008 to raise awareness about sleep disorders.

Why is it important to sleep well?

Sleep is a vital part of physical, cognitive, and emotional health. Treccani defines sleep as “a state and period of physical-psychic rest in humans and animals, characterized by the total or partial suspension of consciousness and will and accompanied by significant functional changes of fundamental importance in restoring the organism.”

In other words, sleep is a fundamental and crucial biological process for global health and human performance. During sleep, the body rests and regenerates while the brain processes the information acquired during the day. Sleeping well can be a positive factor because it improves attention, cognitive performance and memory. It also reduces stressWhat is stress? From a clinical perspective, stress is a phy... More and promotes good mood. Good sleep keeps blood pressure and heart rate stable, protecting the heart. The immune system also functions better.

Can we “learn how to sleep”?

The concept of “sleep health” is related to a global view of sleep, adapted to individual, social, and environmental needs to promote mental and physical well-being. Within it, in fact, are included different elements such as duration, timing, awakenings, and sleepiness. LearningIl termine apprendimento - con i sinonimi imparare, assimila... More how to sleep well means achieving subjective satisfaction, appropriate timing, sufficient duration, and alertness during waking hours.

Certainly, not everything depends on us: the noisy environments of large cities represent a broader social problem that urgently needs to be addressed. However, we can immediately learn something to improve the quality of our sleep, starting tonight.

 

 

Sleep–wake hormones and chronotypes: owls and larks

The main hormone that regulates sleep is melatoninMelatonin is a hormone naturally produced by the pineal glan... More, produced by the pineal gland, because it regulates the circadian rhythm, that is, the mechanism that synchronizes the light/dark cycle and the sleep–wake rhythm. Its production is influenced by environmental light: it increases whenever light decreases in the evening hours. It is activated starting around 9 p.m., gradually increases until it reaches its peak around 2 a.m., and then slowly decreases in the early hours of dawn, around 6 a.m. Based on the time at which it is produced, two types of individuals, or chronotypes, are distinguished:

• evening chronotypes (owls), individuals who are active and perform well in the evening, go to bed late, and then have difficulty waking up in the morning
• morning chronotypes (larks), individuals who feel sleepy early but are able to wake up early in the morning.

Supplements and nutrition for sleep quality

Melatonin is already produced intrinsically by the body, but with advancing age it decreases, leading to a reduction in sleep quality and quantity. In this case, melatonin-based supplements may be administered, especially among those who have sleep problems (such as insomnia or jet lag) or who work at night.

Beyond supplements, melatonin can also be taken in through certain plant-based foods, such as whole rice, corn, and oats. Legumes such as lentils and beans, vegetables such as tomatoes and radishes, and fruits such as cherries, red grapes, and walnuts also allow for its integration. Unlike supplements, which should be used for a limited time, the consumption of these foods is moderate and can help raise melatonin levels in the body.

How many hours do we need to sleep well?

There is no single correct answer to this question. The guidelines of the National Sleep Foundation (NSF) recommend sleeping between 7 and 9 hours per night. However, sleep needs vary from individual to individual, also depending on age. As we age, the number of hours of sleep decreases compared to when we are young. In fact, the NSF has indicated appropriate sleep durations divided by age:

• Newborns: 14–17 hours per night
• Toddlers (1–2 years): 11–14 hours per night
• Children (3–5): 10–13 hours
• Children (6–13): 9–11 hours
• Adolescents (14–17): 8–9 hours per night
• Adults (18–64): 7–9 hours
• Over 65: 7–8 hours.

Irregular sleep is synonymous with poor health and can increase the risk of obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease. Social habits often cause sleep deprivation. The most common pattern is “social jet lag” (SJL), that is, when social responsibilities lead people to go to sleep later on non-working days and instead reduce sleep duration on weekdays, hoping to recover accumulated sleep debt on free days (usually weekends).

Educating for well-being: tips to improve your sleep

To make sleep the best ally of the human brain and manage to sleep well, we can follow these 6 tips:

1. Move your body, as it stimulates not only cognitive processes but also the production of melatonin
2. Eat in a balanced way: avoid eating too much or too little before going to sleep. It is recommended to eat at least 3 hours before bedtime
3. Avoid alcohol and caffeine
4. Pay attention to the environment, as it can affect sleep quality. A quiet, dark, and cool environment is recommended
5. Start a “sleep ritual”, that is, a comforting ritual to help fall asleep, like when we were children with a bedtime story
6. Relax before going to sleep, through meditation or a few deep breaths.

The Self-Blessing Technique

Before going to sleep, let’s dedicate some time to ourselves. Sleep well-being and its benefits can be applied by following the “Self-Blessing Technique”, part of the Pedagogy for the Third Millennium, based on the discovery that the brain areas responsible for managing memories and those responsible for envisioning the future are almost the same. The “Self-Blessing Technique” consists of reviewing the scenes, actions, and events of the day that worked well as if they were frames of a film, and then clearing the mind to create images and actions that will be encountered the following day. The Technique is valuable for cultivating self-determination, especially during periods of stress.