26th Oct 2011 Newsletter

Sleep, How much do I need?

Everyone sleeps, but sleep needs vary from age to age.

Newborns need up to 18 hours a night
1-3 year olds need 12-18hrs a night
3-5 year olds need 9-13hrs a night
Adolescents need 9-11hrs a night
Adults including elderly 7-8hrs a night
Pregnancy up to 8 or more a night

 
Deep Sleep is when your body best repairs itself –  You may find when you are sick or injured, you need to sleep more.

Many factors including High stress levels, can decrease your amount of, and quality of sleep –
This can result in – aching muscles, headache, ADHD symptoms, Impaired cognitive function, impaired moral judgement, confusion, memory loss, depression, increased blood pressure, increased stress levels, just to name a few.

Tips to get a good nights Sleep
Have a routine – go to bed and wake up at the same time (roughly) daily
Relax before bed (read a relaxing book) don’t watch exciting television (it increases your stress levels)
Have a dark room
Have a quiet room
Have a cool room
Decrease caffeine consumption after midday
Reduce Alcohol consumption before bed
Exercise daily

Enjoy your sleep and look forward to it!