Effects of sleep on health
Sleep is necessary for good health and wellbeing. It is important for your brain function, emotional wellbeing and physical health.
Importance of sleep
Getting enough quality sleep helps support healthy brain function and maintains your physical health. For children and teenagers, sleep is important for their growth and development.
The amount of sleep you need will depend on your age. Most adults need about 7 to 9 hours of sleep each night. Babies and toddlers will need about 11 to 17 hours of sleep.
Not getting enough sleep can affect how you think, behave and get on with other people. Ongoing poor sleep can affect your mental health and increase your risk of some health conditions such as:
- heart disease
- stroke
- diabetes
- dementia.
Poor sleep can also lead to weight gain due to an increased appetite, especially for calorie-dense food.
Causes of poor sleep
Poor sleep can be linked to several conditions, such as:
- chronic or persistent pain
- anxiety
- depression
- grinding or clenching your teeth (bruxism)
- restless legs syndrome — a cramp or creeping feeling in the legs in the evening or at night
- menopausal symptoms such as hot flushes
- sleep apnoea — when you have pauses in your breathing during the night
- insomnia — trouble getting to or staying asleep
- circadian rhythm disorders (for example, jet lag and shift work sleep disorder).
Sleepwalking and snoring are also common sleep problems.
Self care for good sleep
Maintain a regular sleep pattern by going to bed and getting up at around the same time each day, including on the weekends.
- Your body has a natural clock, which will make you sleepy when you are ready for bed. Try not to ignore this.
- Going to bed too early may cause you to have disturbed sleep.
- Getting up at the same time every day helps to keep your body clock synchronised with what is going on outside.
- If you can stick to a fairly regular sleeping and waking time, your body will get used to it.
Take time to relax and unwind before going to bed. This will help destress and send signals to your body and mind that it is time to prepare for sleep.
Worrying about or planning the next day's activity is a natural thing to do, but it can affect your sleep. Try writing down your thoughts to help put them aside, or practice mindfulness activities such as:
- meditation
- listening to relaxation music
- calming breathing for a few minutes.
Other tips for your bedtime routine
Lighting
Avoid bright lights and using electronic devices before bedtime. This includes:
- TV
- smartphones
- tablets
- computers.
Bright lights and the blue light emitted from devices can reduce your body's levels of the sleep-promoting hormone melatonin.
Alcohol
Do not use alcohol to help you sleep. Due to its sedative effects, alcohol may help you fall asleep quicker, but it has some bad effects. It causes:
- disturbed and poor-quality sleep
- you to go to the toilet more
- you to wake up early.
It also worsens snoring and sleep apnoea.
Smoking
Avoid nicotine (such as in cigarettes and vapes) before sleep as it is a stimulant and can make it harder to get the quality sleep you need. Quitting smoking altogether has many other health benefits.
Eating and drinking
Avoid eating and drinking late. It is best to allow 2 to 3 hours between having your last main meal of the day and going to bed. If you have a long time between dinner and bed, you may find that eating a small, light snack, such as a piece of fruit or some yoghurt, before going to bed helps you to sleep better.
Try to limit fluids before bedtime so that you do not have to get up to go to the toilet during the night.
Make your bedroom as restful as possible. Remove distractions like TVs and electronic devices from your room.
Keep the bedroom quiet and dark, at a comfortable temperature. This is different for everyone but generally falls within the range of 15 to 20°C.
Try to avoid activities like studying or watching TV in bed to keep it associated with sleeping. Your brain makes connections between places (bedroom) and events (sleeping). You need to reinforce these.
If you have an uncomfortable pillow, bedding, mattress or pyjamas, changing them could help you sleep better. You spend around 8 hours in bed each night — you do not want to be uncomfortable.
Light is important for your body to produce melatonin, a hormone that helps make you feel sleepy. Sunlight early in the day is particularly helpful in synchronising your body clock.
Being active
Keep physically active. Moderate to vigorous intensity activity is best, but even light activity can help you sleep better at night.
Try to avoid vigorous physical activity before going to bed. This stimulates your body and may make it difficult to fall asleep.
Caffeine
Avoid caffeine from early afternoon. Even if you find caffeine does not stop you from falling asleep, it can reduce your sleep quality. Caffeine is found in coffee, tea, cola-type soft drinks and energy drinks.
Napping
Try not to nap in the late afternoon or evening. Napping regularly and longer than 30 minutes can reduce your body's need to fall asleep and stay asleep. If you usually have a daytime nap and it does not affect your nighttime sleep, you can keep doing this.
If you regularly work night shifts, you may find it hard to get enough sleep during the day. In this case:
- limit bright light at the end of your shift and before bed — try wearing dark sunglasses to reduce the sunlight on your commute home
- keep to the same daily routine if you can
- use ear plugs and eye masks to reduce noise and light in your bedroom
- keep your bedroom cool and dark — use blackout curtains or put boards over the windows in your bedroom to block out sunlight
- avoid caffeinated drinks and food, and avoid alcohol close to bedtime
- having short naps can help. A 15-minute nap just before a shift can promote alertness. After a nap, walk around for 5 minutes to wake up properly before driving or resuming other activities.
Shift work — Sleep Health Foundation
Getting help for poor sleep
Try a free online tool such as Small Steps. It includes a short quiz that helps you explore the things you can do and should avoid doing that can lead to better quality sleep.
Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) for insomnia is a short course of treatment. CBT is a type of talking therapy, or kōrero. It identifies thoughts, feelings and behaviours that cause poor sleep, and tells you how to change them. You can access this treatment from:
- a trained counsellor
- a psychologist
- a sleep therapist
- your healthcare provider
- an online course, such as Just a Thought
- an app, such as CBT-i Coach.
Prescription medicines may cause you to be alert or sleepy. You should follow the instructions that come with them.
Do not vary the time of day that you take your medicine.
Do not rely on sleeping tablets to help you sleep. Sleeping tablets have a role when something is temporarily causing you to have trouble getting to sleep, but they are only a temporary fix. Some tablets may cause you to be a bit sleepy in the daytime, and when you stop taking them, you may get a rebound and find it harder to fall asleep.
When to see a healthcare provider
See your healthcare provider if you:
- have ongoing trouble sleeping after trying the self care options above
- wake a lot during the night
- consistently feel very tired during the day
- have trouble staying awake during the daytime
- snore severely.