6 Holistic Tips to Improve Your Sleep Quality
Human Health
6 Holistic Tips to Improve Your Sleep Quality
Author: Emily Grochowski, Certified Functional & Integrative Registered Dietitian Nutritionist
Chasing a good night's sleep? You could continue counting sheep… or make a few simple adjustments to your eating, bedtime, and lifestyle habits. Read on for our recommended best practices to catch the best zzz's of your life.
What are the benefits of good sleep?
Of all the foundational factors required for basic human health, not to mention optimal wellness — getting regular, high-quality sleep reigns supreme.
An abundance of research strongly supports the importance of a good night's rest on almost every aspect of our health — from cognition and mood to our immune system response, insulin sensitivity¹, weight management, and more.
Imagine maintaining your goals of running 2-3 times per week; balancing the right amount of calories for a strong, healthy body with ease; having more energy to tend to your needs for social and emotional connection. It all starts well before our heads even hit the pillow.
So how can we set ourselves up for a good night's sleep?
Reading the news on your phone for an hour before bed? Eating late into the night? While it’s totally fine to do these things from time to time, if you want high-quality REM sleep, it’s best to develop some holistic healthy habits. Small tweaks to what you're putting in your body, sleep hygiene, and exercise habits will go a long way towards improving your sleep quality.
1. Hydrating for good sleep
According to a recent study by Penn State, adults who sleep 6 hours or less each night are up to 59% more likely to be dehydrated compared to those who get a full 8 hours of sleep.²
In order to stay well hydrated throughout the day, aim for mostly unsweetened beverages and be mindful of any caffeine and alcohol intake, as well as time of consumption (as a rule of thumb, avoid caffeinated beverages after noon each day).
Try adding sugar-free electrolytes, sleep-supportive magnesium powder, or mixable greens into your water, smoothies, or other drinks. You can even play with switching out your usual afternoon cup of coffee for hot tea, or happy hour cocktail for a mocktail.
All of these small swaps help your body stay hydrated enough to carry out the many processes it does while you’re both awake and asleep.
2. Nutrition's impact on sleep quality
Ever wake up in the middle of the night, and slowly realize your belly is rumbling?
Aim for regular meal times and a colorful plate to keep your body satiated at all hours. Whole foods, lean proteins, and vegetables and fruits are great options for a good night's rest. Conversely, try to limit highly-processed oils, carbohydrates, and sugars.
3. Recommended sleep-supporting supplements
A personalized supplement plan can add to a healthy sleep routine. Take energizing adaptogens like ginseng, moringa, vitamin D, creatine, and many B-complex containing vitamins earlier in the day to boost and sustain energy levels long before it’s time to wind down for the night.
In the evening, minerals like magnesium glycinate, adaptogens like ashwagandha, herbs like passionflower, and amino acids like l-theanine and GABA tend to support the body’s rest and digest state and thus may help you fall and stay asleep.
Topical lotions, such as those containing magnesium or melatonin, and essential oils can also be an excellent way to nourish your body and prepare it for sleep.
4. Bedtime routine
Make it a ritual, your bedroom a sanctuary — you deserve it! Prepare your body for sleep by aiming for the same bedtime each night. Create a routine with intentional, relaxing activities: breath-focused meditation, a half hour of gentle yoga movements, an epsom salt soak with essential oils like lavender, bergamot or sage added to the water.
Look forward to a regular wake up time so you can help train your body’s circadian rhythms. Additionally, keep your room cool, quiet, and dark to set yourself up for a deep, replenishing sleep.
5. Move with your circadian rhythms
Your central circadian clock, located in your brain, tells you when it is time for sleep.³
Prioritize getting full spectrum light exposure in the morning and limiting light (especially blue light from screens) a few hours before bed to help regulate your circadian clock daily.
6. Exercise for better sleep
Moderately intense physical activity has been shown to support sleep quality and quantity.⁴
Try yoga, swimming, walking long distances, cardio workouts — anything to get your body temperature up and heart pumping.
Vigorous activity can also be helpful, and some people find that scheduling more intense workouts earlier in the day seem to be more supportive of getting a good night’s sleep.
When in doubt
If you maintain a good sleep routine, but still can’t get the type of rest you need, work with your healthcare provider to support the right balance of thyroid, melatonin, estrogen, testosterone, and other hormones and neurotransmitters.
A good night’s rest is always within reach.
Emily Grochowski (MSN, RDN, CD (WA), CLT, CFIN) is a Certified Functional & Integrative Registered Dietitian Nutritionist at the Institute of Complementary Medicine.
Sources:
1 Ionut, V., Liu, H., Woolcott, O., Stefanovski, D., Irimia-Dobrescu, A., Lee, D., & Bergman, R. N. (2012). Brain regulation of glucose disposal: Effects of diabetes and hypoglycemia. *American Journal of Physiology-Endocrinology and Metabolism*, 303(5), E535–E542. https://doi.org/10.1152/ajpendo.00254.2012
2 Jordyn Nguyen. The Vital Connection Between Sleep and Hydration. Team RWD. https://teamrwb.org/nutrition/connection-between-sleep-and-hydration
3 National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute. Your Sleep and Wake Cycle. NIH. https://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/
4 Abbas, N. A., & Bhushan, B. (2023). Impact of occupational activities on sleep quality and sleep disorders: A systematic review. Cureus, 15(3), Article e30365. https://doi.org/10.7759/cureus.30365
