IF YOU MENTION to a friend or family member that you’re having trouble sleeping, there’s a high chance you’ll be bombarded with a large variety of tips and advice.
From how much sleep you ‘should’ be getting to the importance of winding down before bed, it can be hard to distinguish the sleep myths from the facts. But when all you want is to have a decent rest, it’s important to be able to tell the difference between the two.
To bust the myths and cement the facts, we spoke to sleep specialist Breege Leddy. We gave Breege five statements about sleep, and she told us whether each one was a myth or a fact and why.
We’ve also included a slider rating for each myth or fact. Before you read the answer, rate your level of belief in the statement – and then see how you compare to other readers
As well as sharing her advice for improving your sleep, here’s what Breege had to say…
Answer: Myth
We’ve all heard of the ‘golden’ eight hours of sleep, but it turns out that there’s no such thing, says Breege. “The average adult needs anywhere between six and ten hours’ sleep. It just so happens that eight is in the middle of that. Everybody’s needs are different.”
So how do we know how many hours of sleep we should be aiming for? According to Breege, “we need to to focus on getting good quality, good consolidated sleep on a regular basis. The ‘perfect’ amount is the amount of that sleep that we get on a regular basis in order to wake up feeling relatively refreshed and to be highly functioning during the day. That’s the number of hours you need.”
Answer: Fact
The thought of having a set nighttime routine may seem like a luxury, but it’s a habit that’s highly important, says Breege: “We have to prepare our bodies and our mind for sleep. We need to wind down.”
However, it doesn’t have to be complicated. “It’s all about complete relaxation,” she says. “All work activities stop, all smart devices shut down and you just do whatever you want to do to relax. You’re sending the signals to the body that it needs to start preparing for sleep. Also, during this time it’s a good idea to dim down the lights to send the signal to the body that it needs to start producing melatonin, which is the sleep hormone.”
Answer: Fact
Sleep disturbances are common in about 25% of women during menopause, says Breege. “They’re particularly common in women who experience vasomotor symptoms like hot flashes,” she explains. “Because of these biochemical effects in the brain these vasomotor symptoms, like the hot flashes, can cause a disturbance in sleep and can feed into a mood disturbance.”
Waking up due to these hot flashes can almost become “a learned behaviour”, says Breege. To help keep cool at night, it’s recommended that you keep your room temperature at around 18 degrees Celsius, and to opt for breathable, cotton pyjamas.
Answer: Myth
If you’re a fan of ‘catching up’ on sleep at the weekend, you might be surprised to learn that “we never need to make up for lost sleep,” according to Breege. “We can’t bank our sleep, we can’t hold it in reserve. These lie-ins can actually push out the circadian rhythm, which is the very strict body clock that we have.
“If you have a two, three or four hour lie-in at the weekend, you push your body clock out by those four hours. And now what can happen is you can experience what is called social jet lag, which has exactly the same effect as normal jet lag. With jet lag, for every hour of the timezone that you travel, it takes the body a day to recover.” This means that if you have a four hour lie-in at the weekend, it’s going to take you about four days to get that body clock back into a normal pattern, explains Breege.
The body likes a really stable body clock. So you’re better off get up at the same time every single day, seven days a week. The rule of thumb is to maybe give yourself an extra hour at the weekend, but that’s it.
Answer: Fact
If you’ve ever had a few bad nights’ sleep in a row, you’ll likely understand just how much it can affect your mood and your energy throughout the day. While each person’s sleep routine is personal to them, Breege says it’s important for everyone to look beyond the hours they spend asleep.
“We can become too focused on just the sleep period,” she says. “Human physiology and health rely on daily circadian rhythms, and that’s a 24 hour cycle. These rhythms directly influence so many physiological functions, for example, temperature regulation, metabolism and release of hormones.”
Alongside the impact on your health, sleep is “absolutely crucial” in helping to stabilize your mood. “Mood disturbances and sleep disturbances go hand in hand,” says Breege. “How our sleep looks can tell an awful lot about how our overall headspace is. There’s so much we can tell by someone by just looking at their sleep.”
If you consider yourself to be a ‘bad sleeper’, you needn’t worry that this will always be the case, says Breege. “All bad sleep can can be made good by having the correct habits, and doing the right behaviours.”
If you are struggling to achieve a good night’s sleep, try to implement a good sleep routine and seek advice from your local pharmacist.
Nytol One-A-Night is a clinically proven night-time sleep aid to help people suffering from temporary sleep disturbance and can be taken for up to seven nights to help get your sleep pattern back on track.
Nytol One-A-Night 50mg tablets contain diphenhydramine hydrochloride. An aid to the relief of temporary sleep disturbances in adults. For further information, ask your doctor or pharmacist. Always read the leaflet.
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