How to fall asleep fast? How long should you sleep? And do certain foods and how they are consumed affect the quality of our sleep? These are important questions that go through all of our minds, mainly because life is very fast, there are so many things to do and you want to finish them all. The answer to this question consists of many components.

How to fall asleep fast? Because sleeping is not a privilege but a basic need

When was the last time you cuddled up in some afternoon nap and at the end of it you got a comment like “wow what a treat”? Although naps are seen as a privilege if you haven’t slept enough during the night it is a necessity.

Yes, you heard right – sleep is a physiological need. This is what physiologists have been saying over the years. During sleep, a variety of processes take place in our body, building tissues and processing the information we acquired during the day.

Thus, a chronic lack of hours of sleep may lead to a variety of problems such as: maintaining concentration, mood, fatigue, weakness, and even maintaining a normal weight.

If so, sufficient and high-quality sleep should be one of the parameters that are taken into account when approaching the construction of a strategy of building a healthy lifestyle that also includes an emphasis on nutrition.

How much sleep do we need?

The need for sleep varies mainly between different ages. While children aged 6-13 need 9-11 hours of sleep, adults (26-64) need 7-9 hours of sleep at night.

How many of us manage to reach these numbers? Not much, and sometimes it’s not because they didn’t go to bed on time but because we just couldn’t fall asleep. Many of us just can’t fall asleep, there may be a medical reason you can’t fall asleep fast enough. It is important to conduct all the tests and be thorough.

5 tips that will help you fall asleep quickly

1. Avoiding screens about two hours before bed. To most of us this sounds like an impossible task, but an important one. If two hours is too much for you, it’s okay to start gradually. At least don’t go into the bedroom with the screen on. Leave the social media activity and watching movies in the living room. Go to bed free of screens.
2. Darken the bedroom (including lights from cell phone chargers).
3. Avoid vigorous physical activity about an hour before bedtime. Do not avoid physical activity in general (physical activity causes the release of stimulating substances in the body, so it is better to avoid strenuous activity before going to bed)
4. Avoid drinking coffee and stimulant drinks about an hour before bed. It’s true, not all of us are stimulated by drinking coffee. This is a genetic trait by the way. Those of us who have more enzymes that break down caffeine will feel less awake after drinking coffee. And yet, this information is reserved for those of us who took genetic testing to discover it.
5. Avoiding especially large meals about an hour before bedtime. Meals rich in fat such as beef, or multi-course meals are best done earlier. If you happened to go out to a restaurant in the evening, less terrible.

foods that can help you fall asleep faster

It is important to note, this is not a magic solution and if there is a sleep problem it must be treated. This issue is not consensus, and still worth trying.

Foods rich in the amino acid tryptophan alongside foods containing carbohydrates will help the body produce a substance called serotonin and it is this that can help us relax and even fall asleep a little easier.

Foods that contain tryptophan

1. Oatmeal
2. Natural peanut butter
3. Legumes of all kinds
4. Milk and its products
5. Cherries and kiwi
6. honey
7. soybeans and tofu
8. Almonds, pumpkin seeds, sesame seeds
9. Different types of whole grains

Of course, also try to combine between the different foods and get a great meal, Enjoy!