Do this every morning to get better sleep at night

Lifestyle coach Luke Coutinho took to Instagram to share one habit you must practise, every morning

This daily habit will help you in getting a good night's sleep (Source: Pixabay)

Having a sound sleep every night is essential as it allows your body to recharge and recover, aiding your mental and physical functioning the next day. However, owing to our hectic schedules, erratic lifestyle habits, and overconsumption of digital media, sleep often evades us. This, in turn, can become a risk factor for several illnesses, including chronic disorders such as diabetes, hypertension and cardiovascular disease, among others. As such, it’s important you follow certain habits to help aid your sleep cycle.

While what you do a few hours prior to hitting the bed is crucial, it’s equally significant to do your mornings right, too! Explaining the same, lifestyle coach Luke Coutinho took to Instagram to share one habit you must practise, every morning. “Upon waking up, connect with natural light. Get the early morning sunshine even if it’s for 10 minutes,” he wrote on Instagram.

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A post shared by Luke Coutinho – YouCare (@luke_coutinho)

He elucidated that sunlight helps reset the circadian rhythms in the morning and the infrared from the sun improves melatonin at a sub-cellular level for a deeper sleep at night. “Sleep deep…sleep is medicine,” Luke added.

If you miss out on basking in some sunlight in the morning, he suggested catching up on the same during the evening hours. “Even the evening sun has the infra-red benefits…use it if you missed the morning,” he said.

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Another key factor to keep in mind is the link between vitamin D and sleep. “Vitamin D supplementation is proven to improve insomnia and sleep regulation. Likewise, the lack of adequate vitamin D in the body can cause sleep difficulties, shorter sleep duration, and nocturnal awakenings,” Dr Dilp Gude, Senior Consultant Physician, Yashoda Hospitals, Hyderabad, said, adding that soaking in sunlight activates the pineal gland and improves the circadian rhythm by adequate secretion of melatonin.

He suggested “15 to 30 minutes of mid-day sun exposure or longer during mornings and evening almost every day of the week” to help get enough vitamin D.

But, “those with skin lesions, cancers, signs of photoaging such as accelerated wrinkles, dryness, sagging and a dull, leathery look and pigment changes known as ‘age spots, should avoid sun exposure”, Dr Gude said.

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