• For some lucky people, sleep comes as soon as their head hits the pillow. For most of us, it's much harder. According to National Sleep Foundation polls, more and more Americans are getting less than eight hours of sleep per night every year. Chronic sleep deprivation has effects from mild to disastrous.

1. Several studies, including one published in the journal Sleep in 2005, indicate that sleeping less than 8 hours a night leads to obesity.^[1]
2. A Harvard study found that the less people sleep, the more likely they are to suffer from a major illness.^[2]
3. People who sleep less than 5 hours a night are 60 percent more likely to get high blood pressure, a Columbia study found.^[3] According to a British study, they are also twice as likely to get heart disease.^[4]
4. People who sleep less than 6 hours a night increase by 50% their chance of getting a virus.^[5]
5. A Princeton study found lack of sleep leads the body to slow down production of brain cells.^[6]

1. Use your bedroom only for sleep and sex, says the Better Sleep Council.^[1] Otherwise, WebMD says, your brain will associate bed with too many wakeful activities, preventing you from sleeping.^[2]
2. Turn your clock so you can't see the time, says Dr. Robert Fayle.^[3] If you keep checking the time, it will make sleep more difficult.
3. Dr. William Dement recommends you keep light dim.^[4] Bright light will suppress melatonin, the hormone that promotes sleep.
   • Using your computer before bed will also suppress melatonin, a study in The Journal of Applied Physiology found.^[5]
   • Television suppresses melatonin production in children, a study at the University of Florence showed.^[6]
   • Dr. Eva Schernhammer says melatonin protects the body against cancer.^[7]
4. Intrusive sound will keep you awake, says Dr. Mark Rosekind.^[8]
   • If noises from outside keep you awake, try wearing earplugs.
   • White noise machines or fans can also protect against startling outside noise.
5. Your room should be cool, not warm, says Dr. Daniel McNally.^[9]
   • Your body temperature reaches its lowest point right about the time you go to sleep; an environment that prevents your body temperature from dropping will keep you awake.
   • The temperature should be between 54 and 75 degrees, says the National Sleep Foundation.^[10]
6. Your bed must be comfortable, says the National Sleep Foundation. An uncomfortable bed or pillow is a recipe for a night with little sleep.

• Things you do throughout the day can affect your body's ability to sleep at night. Follow the schedule below to optimize your ability to sleep.

1. Get up at the same time every morning, says the BBC. If you don't, you'll throw off your circadian rhythms and have trouble sleeping at night.^[1]
2. Get fifteen minutes of sunlight as soon as you wake up, says Dr. Dement.^[1] This will help set your internal body clock.

1. Don't consume any more caffeine until morning, advises the Mayo Clinic.^[1]
   • The half-life of caffeine - the time it takes for half the caffeine in your body to be eliminated - is six hours for most people^[2], eight to eleven hours for women using birth control pills^[3], and nine to ten hours for pregnant women.^[4]
   • If you are on the Pill or pregnant, you may need to cut off your caffeine intake even earlier in the day.
   • Many pain relievers and other medications contain caffeine, notes WebMD. Check before taking any medication.
2. No more naps until the following day. Any nap you take before this should be no longer than 25 minutes, says WebMD.^[5]
   • A mid-afternoon nap three times a week lowers heart attack risk by over one-third, a Greek study found.^[6]
3. Get exercise. Dr. David G. Danskin notes that exercising in the late afternoon is especially sleep-promoting.^[7]

1. 
2. Avoid alcohol. Though you may fall asleep more quickly after drinking, Dr. Karl Doghramji says it will disrupt sleep later in the sleep cycle, making users wake up frequently during the night.^[1]
3. If you're eating a heavy meal, finish it now, says Dr. Danskin; any later and your body will keep you awake while it digests the meal.^[1]

1. Don't exercise for the rest of the day, says Dr. Dement - it will keep you awake!^[1]
2. Avoid drinking any beverages, says the Bridgeport Hospital Heart Institute.^[1] You'll be less likely to wake during the night in order to urinate.

1. Don't have that late-night cigarette! Avoid nicotine before bed, says The National Sleep Foundation.^[1] It's also a stimulant.
   • Nicotine's half life is about two hours, according to Dr. Jack E. Henningfield.^[2]
2. Stop watching TV and using the Internet for the evening. A Japanese study found people who use electronic media for the hours preceding sleep are less well-rested in the morning.^[3]

1. Take a hot bath. Dr. Patricia Murphy and Dr. Scott Campbell have found that the body temperature drop after the bath will make you sleepy.^[1]
2. Dr. Dement recommends a light snack before bed with tryptophan-containing foods such as milk or turkey.^[1]

1. Begin a relaxing bedtime ritual, like reading or gentle stretching, the American Association of Family Physicians recommends.^[1] If you do the same thing before bed every night, it will cue your brain and body that it is time to sleep.
2. Make sure to go to bed at the same time every night, says the BBC, or you will throw your internal body clock off kilter.^[1]

• If you've done all the above and still can't sleep, try the steps below.

1. If you can't fall asleep in the first 20 minutes, get up and read a boring book, says Dr. Dement.^[1]

The BBC recommends jigsaw puzzles.

1. • Use a small reading light so as not to lower your melatonin levels!
   • 
2. Don't hit the snooze alarm! Dr. McNally says it will just lead to bad sleep the following night and continue the insomnia cycle.^[2]

• If you still can't sleep, talk to your doctor about taking sleep medications. Do not take them before speaking to your doctor, as you may have other issues that would make sleep medications a bad idea!

1. Ambien and Sonata are better if you have trouble falling asleep, says WebMD.^[1]
2. The best pill to take if you wake up frequently during the night is Lunesta, says WebMD.^[2]
3. Ambien users are warned by the manufacturer not to take it if they plan to sleep less than 8 hours.^[3]
4. None of these drugs should be combined with alcohol.^[4] There are several documented cases of bizarre behavior after users combined Ambien and alcohol.
5. The National Sleep Foundation recommends against taking over-the-counter sleep medications, as they can have a severe "hangover" effect.^[5]
6. According to the CDC, prescription sleeping pills can cause nausea, dizziness, vomiting, confusion, headache, and dry mouth.^[6]

• ABC News: Sweet Dreams: The Science of Sleep (2007)
• National Sleep Foundation: Sleep in America Polls
• The Washington Post: Scientists Finding Out What Losing Sleep Does to a Body (2005)
• The New York Times: Research Ties Lack of Sleep to Risk for Hypertension (2006)
• BBC News: Bad sleeping 'doubles heart risk' (2005)
• BBC News: No sleep means no new brain cells (2007)
• The Better Sleep Council: Ten Tips for Better Sleep
• WebMD: How to Sleep Better
• Science: Forty Winks: Science and Sleep (2006)
• Dr. William Dement: How to Sleep Well (1999)
• National Sleep Foundation: The Sleep Environment
• WebMD: How to Sleep Like an Olympic Athlete
• ABC TV: Catalyst: Light Pollution (2003)
• New Scientist: Television watching may hasten puberty (2004)
• WebMD: Nighttime Computer Users May Lose Sleep (2003)
• BBC: Sleep Advice and Tips
• MayoClinic.com: Caffeine: How much is too much? (2007)
• National Sleep Foundation: Caffeine
• Institut für Klinische Pharmakologie: Time course of inhibition of caffeine elimination... (1991)
• Biomedica Biochimica Acta.: Determination of caffeine and metamizole elimination... (1985)
• WebMD: Caffeine and Headaches
• BBC News: Afternoon nap 'is good for heart' (2007)
• Kansas State University Counseling Services: How to Get a Good Night's Sleep (1997)
• Ask Dr. Dement: Does exercise help one sleep better at night? (2002)
• Bridgeport Hospital Heart Institute: Sleep Tight - It's Good For Your Heart (2005)
• National Sleep Foundation: Healthy Sleep Tips
• Lifehacker: Mind Hacks: Get a Better Night's Sleep Without Electronic Media (2007)
• The Daily Mail: Sleepy? Spend less time on the internet or watching TV, say scientists (2007)
• Sleep Well: Trouble Sleeping? Chill Out (1997)
• The American Association of Family Physicians: Insomnia: How to Get a Good Night's Sleep
• Medscape Today: The Effects of Alcohol on Sleep
• WebMD: To Sleep, Perchance to Sleep Soundly (2005)
• WebMD: Drugs and Treatments - Ambien Oral
• RxList: Ambien (Zolpidem Tartrate) patient information
• Salon.com: My Ambien lover (2006)
• The New York Times: Some Sleeping Pill Users Range Far Beyond Bed (2006)
• Mary Dan Eades, M.D.: Caveat, snoozor! Ambien and the Space Cadet (2007)
• CDC Travelers' Health: Chapter 6 - Jet Lag
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