- External influences—including the sleep environment (light, noise, temperature, food, bed and pillow) sleep scheduling, alcohol, nicotine and caffeine.
- Internal influences—including emotional unrest, depression, anxiety, and marital discord.
A routine that helps get your body ready for sleep is sometimes called proper sleep hygiene. In general, avoiding stimulants and engaging in relaxing behaviors before bedtime promotes better sleep. Proper sleep hygiene is important beyond just helping you feel refreshed the next day: poor sleep has been linked to cardiovascular events, such as heart attack and stroke, in addition to other serious health problems.
The following can help you establish better sleep hygiene:
- Get to bed and wake up at consistent times, even on the weekend.
- Treat your bedroom as a sanctuary only used for sleep and sexual activity (if applicable).
- Make sure the temperature of the bedroom is comfortable enough to promote sleep.
- Darken the room with blackout curtains to help promote longer sleep in the brightness of the early morning.
- Turn off electronics (phone, computer, television) and quit other stimulating activities several hours before bedtime.
- Exercise daily in the early part of the day.
- Avoid caffeine in the afternoon and evening.
- Limit alcohol intake.
- Avoid smoking and the stimulant effects of nicotine.
- If you are having trouble sleeping, get up out of bed and try a relaxing activity.
- Try strategies for coping with stress such as a warm bath or meditation.
- A cool, dark room: The temperature and darkness are signals to the pineal gland to kick up melatonin production and knock you out.
- No laptops, no TV: Ideally, the bed is used for two things and two things only. If you have any other type of stimulus, like work or a TV, you're not sending your body the right message that it's time for sleep. Need more incentive to kick Leno to the living room? People who don't have a TV in the bedroom have 50 percent more sex than those who do.
- Add white noise. Use a fan for background noise, or one of those machines that lets you pick sounds, from the rain forest to the ocean. This drowns out the couple fighting next door and the drag races outside so your subconscious stays pristine as you count sheep.
- Dress appropriately. The best clothing should be nonrestricting and nonallergenic (both the fabric and how it's washed). Your body is better at keeping itself hot than keeping itself cool, so you'll make it easier on yourself the fewer and looser clothes you wear.
- Establish a standard wake-up time, including on weekends. This helps reset your circadian rhythm and trains you to stay on schedule if your rhythm happens to wander, as during traveling.
- Get the best mattress. I believe there are four things in life you should overpay for. The first three: pillows, mattresses, and their coverings. The fourth thing? A good kitchen knife (not to be used in the bed).

More About this Book
You: Staying Young: The Owner's Manual for Extending Your Warranty
Keeping a sleep diary can help you get a handle on your sleep pattern that can uncover unhealthy patterns and practices.
This content originally appeared on doctoroz.com
- Too much caffeine intake
- Frequent bathroom breaks
- Hot flashes
- Too many distractions, such as the TV, computer and other devices
- Medications, including alcohol
- Undiagnosed sleep apnea
- Stress
- Turning off the TV, cell phone and computer off one hour before going to bed
- Making a list of the next day’s to dos before going to bed
- Keeping a daily routine, such as getting up at the same time every day and going to bed at the same time every night
- Avoiding looking at the clock
- Reduce caffeine intake and avoid it completely in the evening.
- Quit smoking.
- Eliminate alcohol within four to six hours of bedtime; although alcohol initially makes you drowsy, it disrupts sleep later in the night.
- Avoid heavy meals before bedtime that may cause heartburn (a light snack, however, may promote sound sleep).
- Use your bed only for sleeping and sex. Don't watch TV, eat, pay bills or do other such tasks in bed.
- Avoid the regular use of sleeping pills.
- Exercise regularly. Exercising in the early evening, at least three hours before bed, may improve sleep.
- Go to bed and wake up at the same time every day.
- Create a comfortable sleeping environment conducive to sleep.
- Drink less fluid before sleep.
- Initiate a relaxing routine, like soaking in a hot tub before bedtime.
Continue Learning about Healthy Sleeping
Important: This content reflects information from various individuals and organizations and may offer alternative or opposing points of view. It should not be used for medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. As always, you should consult with your healthcare provider about your specific health needs.