Healthy Sleep Habits
Adjusting to Sleeping in a Nursing Home
Seniors adjusting to a nursing home may find their usual sleep habits disrupted. But what seems like a minor inconvenience, can actually lead to bigger health issues. Especially if left unchecked. The NIH describes, “Some of the consequences of poor sleep, such as irritability, poor concentration and memory, slower reaction time, decreased performance may all…
Read MoreStudent Sleep Health Week
September 14 – 20, 2020 is Student Sleep Health Week. This event was Organized by the American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM) to raise awareness of the importance of sleep health for students of all ages. According to AASM, 4 out of 10 parents acknowledged that remote learning affected their children’s bedtime and/or waketime consistency.…
Read MoreStop Hitting the Snooze Button – It’s Making You Tired
Sometimes the “rise” part of “rise and shine” feels like just too much effort. Your alarm goes off and you’re not ready to start the day, so you hit snooze. The temptation of a few more minutes of dosing off under a comfy blanket is just too much to pass up. But what you don’t…
Read MoreCaffeine: A Band-Aid Solution for Sleep Problems
It’s tempting to rely on a cup of coffee to wake you up each morning. 90% of American adults consume a caffeinated beverage almost daily (National Institutes of Health). And the Sleep Foundation even refers to caffeine as the most popular drug in the world. But this reliance isn’t necessarily healthy. In fact, you’re masking…
Read MoreWhich Sleep Position is Best?
Each person has a different sleep position that works best for them. Listen to the signs your body may be giving you to tell you that you’re sleeping wrong. Are you achey in the morning? Waking your partner up from your snoring? These are signs that you have a sleep position that should be corrected.…
Read MoreThe Myth of Catching Up on Lost Sleep
Sleep impacts every aspect of daily life, from your relationships with others to your nutrition, from your physical health to your career development. Yet in this day and age, society has glorified a lack of sleep as a “hard work ethic” and public health is facing the negative effects. In 1942, less than 8% of…
Read MoreSleep is Essential for Healthcare Workers’ Health
Healthcare providers are considered to be among the most sleep deprived career groups. The job’s hours, the nature of the work being high-stress, and more contribute to poor sleep health within this group. However, these are the people that are caring for the lives of others. It is vital that healthcare workers feel supported to…
Read MoreA Guide to Sleep Health for Seniors
As we get older, our sleep needs change over time. Older adults may produce and secrete less melatonin, the hormone that promotes sleep (American Academy of Sleep Medicine). Insomnia is also something that affects almost half of adults 60 and older (American Academy of Sleep Medicine). These changes may negatively affect a senior’s overall health…
Read MoreHow Sleep Affects Athletic Performance
Sleep drastically impacts everyone’s health. However, athletes especially need to be aware of how poor sleep could alter their mental and physical performance. The American College of Sports Medicine reports that in a study of 11 male subjects who completed a 30-min self-paced treadmill test, distance covered was decreased after sleep deprivation. Overall speed and…
Read MoreHow an Atypical Work Schedule Impacts Your Health
According to the Sleep Foundation, nearly one-quarter of all workers have shifts that are not during the daytime, and more than two-thirds of these workers have problems with sleepiness and/or difficulty sleeping. This is a large portion of our population whose health is directly impacted just by what time they go to work. “One-third of…
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