5 All-Natural Sleep Remedies That Actually Work

According to the American Sleep Association, one in every three adults experiences occasional insomnia, while another one in 10 has chronic insomnia. While most of us crave a good night’s sleep for the short-term benefit of feeling more alert, we also realize that sleep is crucial to our health. During those nightly hours of shut-eye, our bodies experience a prolonged period of repair and renewal that can improve everything from treatment of chronic conditions to weight management.

Each person varies in their exact sleep requirements, but for most people, getting at least seven hours a night is needed for both a healthy body and a healthy mind. When we don’t sleep enough—or our quality of sleep is not optimal—our health can suffer. In fact, research has shown that regular bouts of poor sleep can shorten your expectancy and increase the risk of serious health problems like obesity, diabetes and heart disease.

But the good news is that you can take steps toward a good night’s sleep that are easy and painless. There are effective natural sleep aids that can help improve the quality and duration of your sleep, and they won’t leave you with all the unwanted side effects of conventional sleep medications. Here are the five most powerful all-natural sleep aids:

Exercise

Even though sleep is pretty much the opposite of physical exertion, exercise conducted at the right time of day (i.e., not too close to bedtime) is one of the best things you can do to get a good night’s rest. Exercise helps regulate the body’s natural circadian rhythm, which promotes sleep. According to the National Sleep Foundation, exercise can also improve insomnia by lowering symptoms of anxiety and depression, two conditions linked to sleep disruption. Daily physical activity also helps reduce cortisol, the body’s primary stress hormone.

For some people, working out too close to bedtime can be counterproductive to falling asleep, so aim for a minimum of 30 minutes of daily exercise in the morning or afternoon.

Magnesium

Magnesium is crucial to our health for so many reasons, including its sleep-promoting and stress-reducing abilities. It’s not surprising then that a magnesium deficiency can result in poor sleep. Research has shown that supplementing with magnesium even helps insomnia, which can be defined as a persistent problem falling and staying asleep. Taking around 400 milligrams of magnesium before bed is ideal to promote a good night’s rest. You can also add more magnesium-rich foods like spinach, pumpkin seeds, and almonds to your diet.

Natural Sunlight

Did you know that a lack of exposure to sunlight may be interfering with your sleep quality? Light exposure is crucial to our circadian rhythms (aka our internal clocks), which control vital biological processes including sleep. Scientific research reveals that a lack of light in the workplace results in poorer overall sleep quality, as well as sleep disturbances, which can then have further negative effects on health.

In general, we can all benefit from daily natural light exposure—whether we exercise outdoors, eat our lunch outside, or take a walk around our office building—but if you work in an office or live in a home that blocks out light during the day, it’s especially important that you increase your exposure to sunlight.

Tryptophan foods

Tryptophan (also called L-tryptophan) is an essential amino acid the body uses to produce sleep-regulating brain transmitters known as serotonin and melatonin. Tryptophan appears to have natural sedative effects when consumed, so it can also help with achieving better sleep.

With that in mind, people associate Thanksgiving dinner with feeling sleepy for good reason; the meal’s main star, turkey, is rich in tryptophan. Other foods that have this important amino acid include chicken, yogurt, spirulina, nuts (like cashews and walnuts), and seeds (including pumpkin and sunflower).

Essential Oils

Essential oils are extracted directly from the bark, flower, fruit, leaf, seed, or root of a plant or tree. These oils are known for having a wide variety of health benefits, including sleep improvement. Many people toss and turn as a result of not doing enough to destress and relax before hitting the hay, but when it comes to encouraging a good night’s sleep, just smelling certain essential oils can help you wind down and rest better. In an aromatherapy essential oil diffuser, try using lavender, rose, and/or Roman chamomile oils to help you calm down and enter a deep, restorative sleep.

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