It’s important to note that sleep duration is important, but arguably more important is quality. Cycling in, and out of your sleep cycles efficiently, and waking up feeling refreshed. There are many strategies to improve sleep quality:

1. Early morning light exposure-

Early morning light exposure is critical for setting your circadian rhythm. This is the rhythm that decides when certain hormones get secreted throughout the day. Getting exposure to sunlight in the morning boosts serotonin, which will increase melatonin later in the evening because serotonin is a pre curser to melatonin.

2. Cold temperature-
At night, we undergo a process called thermoregulation. This process is described as a drop in core body temperature at night. Everywhere in the world, the temperature drops at night. Today with our air conditioning units, we can make the temperature whatever we want. Unfortunately, most of the time it’s not good for our sleep. The ideal sleeping temperature is about 65 degrees. This is going to defer on the individual, but the data shows that we sleep better during cooler temperatures. You can probably attest to this, when you sleep hot, you don’t sleep well.

3. Sleep in a dark environment
We are evolved to sleep in a dark environment, so dark that you can’t see your hand in front of your face. In your room, you want to make sure that no light is getting through. Many of us have some sort of light shinning through our windows. A great remedy for this is blackout curtains. These curtains block out all of the light coming through, so you can get good quality sleep. The amount of lux in a street light is 5, compared to the lux in the stars, which is .001, and the moon, which is .3. We have always slept under the stars, and moon, but it’s much different light. When you have any artificial light at night, it suppresses melatonin production. In this research: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7065627/, it shows how light at night will disrupt melatonin, particularly blue light.

4. Nutrition-
Certain nutrients like potassium, calcium, vitamin c, and magnesium have been proven to increase sleep quality. This study: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7767325/, shows how vitamin c is associated with longer sleep duration. Some great sources of vitamin c are green leafy vegetables, berries, and the highest source that we know about is camu camu berry from the amazon. Containing 40x the vitamin c of an orange. The next is calcium. A study published in European neurology suggested that disturbances in REM sleep are likely linked to a calcium deficiency. Some great sources of calcium are green leafy vegetables, sea veggies, and sardines. The next is potassium. A study published in the journal of sleep found that potassium helps you stay sleep. Some great sources are avocados, green leafy vegetables, and a sea veggie called dulse. Magnesium is a critical nutrient for sleep in some many ways. Magnesium is critical for muscle relaxation. It is also responsible for more serotonin, which will create more melatonin. It also decreases stress hormones, making it easier to fall asleep. Some great sources are again, green leafy vegetables, and chocolate. If you see anything green, that is also an indication of magnesium.

5. Exercise
Exercise is a great way for improved sleep. It helps you feel more physically exerted, which will make it easier to fall asleep. Also, when you exercise in the morning, it will help reset your cortisol. So, when you increase cortisol in the morning, it will be lower at night, so you can secrete more melatonin. Just make sure you don’t exercise no more than 3-4 hours before bedtime. If you do, your core body temperature will be hotter, and possibly have more inflammation.