The Importance of a Good Night's Sleep

If you have trouble sleeping, falling asleep or are curious about this topic, this article was developed with you in mind. We will address the importance of quality sleep and a good night's sleep, covering several techniques and recommendations on how to
develop better sleep habits.

"Sleep is a gain of intellectual, emotional and physical time," says Dr. Teresa Paiva, Portugal's leading sleep specialist, in an interview for DN Life magazine.

Dr. Robert Stickgold, sleep researcher and professor in Harvard Medical School and the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, also mentions that sleep plays a role in memory, both before and after a new learning situation.

Sleep is an essential human need. Quality sleep contributes positively to physical and mental health, contributing to quality of life in general. While we sleep, we have the ability to recover and reorganize all the functions essential to cognition, memory, learning, creativity, emotional balance, and body.

Unfortunately, sleep deprivation or difficulty sleeping affects a large part of the population, which has a negative impact on their health and well-being.

Dr. Teresa Paiva indicates that it is highly dangerous for the health and well-being of an adult to sleep less than six hours a day. The recommended average should always be seven to eight hours a day.

Sleep deprivation can translate into reduced alertness, increased reaction time, emotional instability, mood swings, and changes in appetite. It can also lead to more serious conditions, including increased risk of stroke, heart disease, diabetes, and hypertension, as well as psychological conditions, such as increased irritability or the development of anxiety or depression.

Now that we understand the importance of sleep quality and how it can negatively affect health, it is important to analyze what factors affect it and how we can introduce small habits and actions in our daily lives. The goal is to improve the quality of sleep and contribute to increased health and well-being.

1. Improve our habits and routines
First, it is important to analyze our habits and behaviors that may be hindering a good night's rest.

The introduction of new and small habits to daily life can have a significant impact on the quality of sleep. Examples of small behaviors that we can adopt and that will help you sleep better are: doing regular physical activity in the morning; having a schedule for waking up and going to bed; avoiding dependence on alcohol, tobacco and coffee; improving eating habits; avoiding heavy meals at dinner time; and reducing the time
watching TV or on the cell phone.

Nowadays, it may seem impossible, but it is also very important to learn not to take the worries of work and daily life into the house, in order to reduce stress and enhance moments of relaxation and leisure with the family or alone moments.

2. Importance of being comfortable to sleep well
To sleep well it is important to feel comfortable. The bedroom environment and bed are crucial factors that will significantly impact comfort and sleep quality.

While many people do not easily understand the direct link between environment and sleep quality, it exists! And it is critical to create a comfortable environment to enhance sleep. In general, it is recommended to sleep in a dark, quiet space with an adequate temperature. However, all these factors must be measured and tested on a case-bycase basis, because each individual will have different tastes and needs.

There are many variables that must be considered to create a comfortable sleep environment, and we must take into consideration that it is a subjective process and that it will have a different response from person to person, according to their habits and preferences. It's not surprising that some people have trouble falling asleep when they move or are on vacation, for the simple fact that they don't feel as comfortable and
even safe, because that's not their "habitat".

We address some of the factors that we consider most important:

LIGHT
We often hear that exposure to light in the morning helps us to wake up easily. However, at night exactly the opposite process happens. Being exposed to spaces with high luminosity or being exposed to screens, such as television and cell phones, moments or hours before going to sleep can hinder our ability to sleep better and fall asleep quickly. So, we should keep the room as dark as possible and cell phones away from the bed.

NOISE
This is a much discussed topic, some people sleep easily listening to relaxing music, while others need to be completely silent to fall asleep. Each person should sleep the way they feel most comfortable, but we advise that background sounds should always be at a low volume, so as not to cause the person to awaken during the night or to fall asleep more deeply.

TEMPERATURE
The ideal temperature for sleeping is another factor that varies greatly among individuals. People sleep best at the temperature at which they feel comfortable. However, extreme temperatures in sleeping environments are not recommended as they will disturb sleep.

ENVIRONMENT
In addition to light, noise and temperature, other factors that significantly influence the quality of sleep are the environment of the room and the bed.

Several studies indicate that light colors are considered by chromotherapy to be calming and contribute to a deeper sleep. They also indicate that the most suitable color for bedrooms is blue, because it is a color that has tranquilizing properties and acts on the nervous system and the entire muscular system.

The bed is one of the factors to take into consideration, since it is there that we will rest and fall asleep, so we will analyze factors such as the mattress, pillow, and bedding.

The mattress should be suitable for each body. Old and deteriorated mattresses can make it harder to sleep. The older the mattress, the less support for our body it has, so we should take into consideration the number of years we've been sleeping on the same mattress and change it if necessary.

Pillows and bedding are often a headache for all those who suffer from allergies. With that concern, all Seeds Concept products are hypoallergenic and are designed not to cause any skin irritation or swelling.

Everything is thought of and taken into consideration before the moment of production. Our mission is to help you sleep better while preserving the environment. We are committed to using high quality materials, such as 100% certified organic cotton, making the products safer for the wearer and the environment, as well as using low impact dyes, not using any toxic substances on the production line, and not using harmful materials or fake ingredients to dye the products. The raw material used gives greater comfort in the texture of the sheets, blankets, bedspreads, and pillow and comforter covers, being much more pleasant to the touch and in contact with the skin.

Seeds Concept is proud to be certified by STANDARD 100 of the OEKO-TEX® one of the world's best known labels for textiles. This is a certificate that indicates that all products are tested for harmful substances, which represents greater customer confidence and high product safety.

Whenever a textile article carries the STANDARD 100 label, it conveys confidence that every component of the article, every thread, button, and other accessory, has been tested for harmful substances and that the article is therefore harmless to human health.

In addition to the quality of the fabrics and materials used in bedding products, it is important to arrange and make the bed. Some experts argue that clutter can increase stress and prevent you from sleeping well. Therefore, lying in a tidy and comfortable bed can be the necessary remedy for a full night's rest.

3. Performing activities that promote relaxation
To sleep better, human beings must be relaxed and in a relaxed state when they go to bed. There are many activities that can help you relax, but it is through self-knowledge and experimentation with various techniques that it is possible to understand what works best for each person.

Some activities that help you get a good night's sleep are: taking a bath with warm water, reading a book, crafts, listening to quiet music, and spending time with family. We have different hobbies and tastes, so it is important to understand what is the best method to help us sleep better.

Now that we know the importance of sleep, its health benefits, and what simple techniques and changes in environment and lifestyle can and should be considered and tested for deeper sleep, we are ready to increase the time and quality of sleep