Natural Sleep Aids

Natural sleep aids can help you sleep like a baby. Sleep is an important part of staying healthy and insomnia, which is a common sleep disorder, affects about one-third of all adults and is more common in women than men.

Insomnia is often due to stress, temperature fluctuations, and environmental noise or changes. It can also be influenced by medications, diet, and lifestyle choices if you smoke or drink alcohol or caffeine.

Natural Remedies for Natural Sleep Aids

There are easy and natural things that can be done to make adjustments and improve your sleeping habits. Prescriptions are not always necessary to get a good nights sleep.

Setting Your Body’s Sleep Clock

You can trick your body and mind into sleeping if you help it set a body sleep clock. This will mean going to bed and getting up at the same time every day. No matter if it is the weekend or there are things going on, if you are having trouble sleeping this can be one of the most effective remedies.

Besides going to bed and getting up at the same time every day, set a sleep routine. This routine is something that you do every night (or day if you regularly sleep during the day) before bed. It can be simple. Something like wash your face, then brush your teeth, and finally read a chapter of a book.

Make Some Changes to Eliminate Caffeine

If you have trouble sleeping then you should think about eliminating caffeine from your diet. Not just coffee but teas and other things you may drink or eat that contains caffeine. Most of these drinks are consumed during daytime hours but if you drink them at night prior to bed, it can do more harm than good. Keeping you awake.

You may benefit from relaxation techniques and breathing exercises that can be done while you are lying in bed. You can make these exercises part of your sleep routine. A warm bath may also help. Each day, at least several hours before your bedtime, you should get about forty-five minutes of aerobic activity. This will help your body rest at night.

Drink Something Warm

Although there is not a lot of proof that drinking a warm beverage at night can help you sleep, it does naturally soothe you. Try a nice warm glass of milk or chamomile tea. Tart cherry juice may also help you sleep as it could help with melatonin production.

Melatonin

Melatonin is one of the most effective natural sleep aids on its own or when it is combined with other natural products. Melatonin is a hormone produced in the pineal gland in the center of your brain. It regulates the body's daily rhythms, including your sleep-wake cycle. Melatonin levels in the blood should be the highest just before your natural bed time. This is why taking a melatonin supplement just before you go to bed helps your body fall into a natural sleep.

There have been scientific studies to show that melatonin can decrease the amount of time it takes for you to go to sleep. It also can increase the amount of time you stay asleep. Melatonin is often recommended as a treatment for jet lag, helping travelers adjust their sleep-wake cycles.

Valerian

An herbal extract, Valerian has long been a leading natural supplement used for managing insomnia due to anxiety. Valerian’s effectiveness increases over time. It has been determined that after taking it for a period of four weeks the levels in the body help it to be most effective.