During the winter months, many people complain about feeling tired all the time. They sleep 8 hours, but still feel tired or like something’s off. There are things that happen to your body during the cold winter months that can cause you to feel tired, affecting the quality of your sleep.
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The amount of light that we get during the cold winter months has a big impact on our lives. Many of us go to work in the morning when it’s dark outside and then come back when it’s dark again, which could be quite depressing to some people. Some people suffer from the winter blues because of this reason. Light directly impacts the pituitary gland, which produces many hormones that travel through the body. The pituitary gland secretes melatonin, which regulates the body’s sleep-wake cycles. Lack of light could cause the body to produce excess melatonin, which is what’s causing you to feel tired or sluggish.
The cold air also impacts your sleeping and during the winter it’s difficult to keep the temperature just right, especially when the temperature keeps falling throughout the night. When the air is too cold, what most of us do is raise the thermostat. The cold air affects melatonin production, which can cause your sleep to be disrupted. When you raise the thermostat and the air is too dry, this affects the mucus membranes, and it makes you more susceptible to bacteria and viruses, which can lead to illness, such as the cold and flu.
Your eating patterns could also interrupt your sleep. We tend to eat more during the winter and we pile on soups and heavy meals in the evening. When this happens, your body has to work harder to digest that food and this too can keep you up at night. Experts recommend that you have diner at least 4 to 5 hours before bedtime to allow full digestion of food. Regular exercise could actually help you sleep better.
Sleep is important for your overall health, so it’s important to try to get the best quality of sleep you can. Things like getting the perfect bedroom temperature, getting exercise and even getting some sunshine could really improve the way you feel and help you sleep better.
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