Getting too little or poor quality sleep doesn’t just leave you tired and less able to function the next day. If it’s ongoing, it can seriously affect your physical and mental well-being. It’s been linked to everything from weight gain (lack of sleep can disturb the balance between your appetite-regulating hormones, leptin and ghrelin) and prematurely aged skin (sleep helps in the production of collagen), to high blood pressure, insulin resistance, cardiovascular disease, digestive problems, impaired blood sugar and immunity, not to mention impaired memory and thinking, and depression.
“Most of us need seven to eight hours a night, however some people need only five or six hours (short-sleepers), and others need more than seven or eight hours (long sleepers),” says Michelle Baker, a Durban clinical psychologist with a special interest in sleep. But it’s been estimated that a third of us or more suffer from insomnia. It’s hardly surprising with our levels of stress today, given the fallout from the likes of the Covid-19 pandemic, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and global warming.
If you lie awake often and it’s affecting how you function, it’s important to see a health professional for a proper assessment – don’t just self-medicate. “If you think you have insomnia, first seek help with Cognitive Behavioural Therapy for Insomnia (CBT-I) before using sleeping tablets,” says Baker.
But simple sleep basics can help you sleep better.
1. Prepare for sleep
Avoid caffeine (coffee, colas) from early afternoon, limit alcohol to one glass a few nights a week (it can relax you, but has been linked to poor sleep quality), go to bed around the same time, and have a relaxing routine, like a warm shower or bath first. Incorporating essential oils (usually derived by crushing and steam-distilling parts of plants) may help.
“Studies have shown that aromas can create a physiological response that causes our body to produce hormones – including melatonin, the hormone that promotes restful sleep,” says Amy Galper, founder of the New York Institute of Aromatherapy.
Lavender has been used traditionally for years for its calming effects, and in a systematic review in the Asian Pacific Journal of Tropical Medicine (August 2015), the linalool it contains showed sedative effects, while the linalyl acetate showed “marked narcotic actions”. Other essential oils widely regarded as sleep-enhancing include bergamot, chamomile and clary sage oil.
You could try a few drops in your bathwater (or use a bath product infused with the oil), or on your pillow, or spritz it on as a pillow spray. Clinically, the jury remains out on the effectiveness of sprays in improving sleep, but sleep hygiene experts stress the importance of routine, and a familiar scent may help tell your brain it’s time to wind down. Try The Body Shop's Spa of the World French Lavendar Pillow Mist or Home Fragrance Oil.
2. Keep your bedroom dark
The blue light that electronic gadgets emit can affect your alertness, hormone production and sleep cycles, telling your brain it’s time to wake, not sleep, and suppressing your body’s release of melatonin. For the hour or two before sleep, put away your cellphone or tablet in a drawer, suggests Baker. At the least, dim their brightness (if they have a night mode), or try one of the apps available to reduce blue light emission.
3. Keep your cool
A National Sleep Foundation poll found one of the most important factors for good sleep is a cool room, and the best bedroom temperature is about 16 to 18ºC. If you don’t have aircon, use a fan. Have light blankets you can easily pull up or push down, wear loose sleepwear, and consider moisture-wicking bedding if you tend to sweat. Warmer temperatures can cause discomfort and restlessness, making it harder to fall asleep, and a higher body temperature has been associated with a drop in restorative slow-wave sleep.
4. Consider natural sleeping aids
Today there are many supplements formulated from herbs marketed to support sleep, increasingly made with no sugar, artificial colours, flavours or preservatives. They range from oils applied to the skin, to tablets and capsules you ingest. MyEarth Frankincense oil, for example, is said to promote a feeling of calmness (and help prevent wrinkles) when applied to skin, or can be added to a diffuser. And Taylor Mammon Hydro Rescue Night Moisturiser is made with rosehip, evening primrose oil and CBD (cannabidiol from cannabis or hemp plants). In a study in The Permante Journal in 2019, researchers concluded that CBD may help with sleep in the short term, but the effects may not be sustained, and data on the long-term use of CBD is limited.
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When it comes to capsules available to promote restful sleep, many contain valerian (valeriana officinalis) root extract – including GNC Herbal Plus Standardized Valerian Root Capsules, Clicks Herbal Tranquiliser Tablets, Clicks Herbal Sedative Tablets, and Clicks Herbal Calm Tablets. In a systematic review in the Journal of Evidence-Based Integrative Medicine in 2020, researchers concluded that “valerian could be a safe and effective herb to promote sleep and prevent associated disorders”. However, “due to the presence of multiple active constituents and relatively unstable nature of some of the active constituents, it may be necessary to revise the quality control processes, including standardisation methods and shelf life”.
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