Simmons Mattresses has put together an excellent brochure that gives sleep tips for couples.

Surprising Statistics

The average person tosses and turns anywhere between 40 and 60 times per night. When you factor in partner movement, each member of the couple will wake up 13% more. Additionally, these awakenings decrease the amount of deep sleep achieved by 20% on average.

Tips for couples

1: Choose a Bed Built for Two

Make sure you have a bed big enough for both of you to stretch out and sleep comfortably. Additionally, invest in a mattress that reduces the transfer of partner movement.

2: Try Stress Reducing Exercises Before Bed

Certain tension relieving exercises provide sufficient means for preparing your body to sleep.
As an example:

• Sit quietly in a comfortable position. Close your eyes and sequentially relax all of your muscles, beginning with your feet and progressing to your face.
• Breathe in easily through your nose and exhale through your mouth.
• Continue for ten to twenty minutes.

3: Exercise Regularly

Regular exercise increases heart and lung fitness while reducing stress and anxiety.

4: Keep Mentally Stimulated During the Day

Boredom is prone to cause a loss of sleep. Keep yourself mentally and physically active throughout the day to alleviate boredom.

5: Eat a Proper Diet

Your eating habits and your sleeping habits are linked together. By avoiding fried foods and foods that are known to cause indigestion, gas, or heartburn, you greatly increase your chances of experiencing a full night sleep.

6: Stop Smoking

Nicotine naturally increases your heart rate. While you’re attempting to sleep, the physical effects of nicotine can keep you awake.

7: Avoid Alcohol Near Bedtime

Although depressants such as alcohol can induce sleep, there is a great chance that the sleep will be disturbed by your bodies physical reaction to the alcohol.

8: Reduce Caffeine Intake

The same sodas that make your kids hyper will cause you to be anxious and restless while trying to go to sleep. Avoid drinking coffee, tea, or soft drinks within six hours of your normal bed time.

9: Take a Warm Bath Before Bed

Just before bed, soak in warm water. The warm water sends blood away from the brain towards the skin surfaces. This effect induces a drowsy feeling, allowing you to get to sleep easier.

10: Engage in a Nightly Ritual

Engaging in a ritual can remind your body that it needs to begin shutting down for the night. It is important that your ritual is not something done normally throughout your day. Reading is a recommended nightly ritual, as well as writing.

A google seach for “Waking up sore” returns 362,000 results! Simply stated, there are a lot of people who experience neck and back pain after waking up.

While replacing old mattresses and pillows is always a great idea, here are some natural remedies from the community that may cure your aches.

• Don’t sleep on your stomach. It flattens the natural curve in your lower back, and forces your head to stay turned to one side all night. This can distort the alignment of the spine in your neck.
• If you sleep on your side, draw your legs up towards your chest and place a pillow in between them. This takes stress off the lower back.
• If you find that you wake up sore when you sleep on your back, pinning a tennis ball to the back of your shirt before you go to sleep can train your body to make you sleep on your side.
• If you sleep on your back, placing a pillow under your knees will help maintain the lower back curve.

If new mattresses, new pillows, and these remedy’s fail to cure your aches, please consider seeing a professional.

According to a 5-year study performed by the University of Chicago, middle-aged adults who don’t receive adequate sleep are much more likely to develop high blood pressure.

The Study

Included in the study were 578 Adults, who averaged around age 40. Researchers measured the blood pressure of the adults, and recorded the duration of their sleep. Two significant conclusions were made:

1. Adults who slept less than other adults in the study were more likely to have high blood pressure.
2. Adults who slept less in the study were likely to develop higher blood pressure over time.

The problem is recursive in nature: High blood pressure yields less sleep, which leads to even higher blood pressure.

Furthermore, researchers found that for every hour of sleep missed, a 37% increase in the chance of developing high blood pressure occurred.

Medical Problems Associated with High Blood Pressure

Now that we know sleep deprivation is likely to increase blood pressure to dangerous levels, what makes high blood pressure dangerous?

About.com lists many medical problems associated with high blood pressure

Among these are:

• Blood Clots
• Stroke
• Heart Attack
• Frequent Headaches

Middle-aged adults can reduce the risk of experiencing these complications by receiving a full-night’s sleep each and every night.

Mattresses have a tendency to be passed around by family members for long periods of time. While this may seem like a good way to save money, keeping beds in “circulation” too long can easily cost more in medical bills over time.

According to the Saturday Evening Post, nearly 70% of old beds stay in circulation, handed down like heirlooms to children and other family members. This practice proves extremely harmful for children. The developing bodies of children require the support of a high quality mattress.

The Saturday Evening Post also suggests that “If the bed is no longer good enough for you, it’s not good enough for anybody else.”

Invest in a high quality set of Mattresses and Pillows, but also know when to replace them.

You want to get as much value out of your investments as possible: we all do. Sometimes we get so caught up in getting the most value for our dollar that we end up hurting ourselves in the long run. Our mattresses and pillows are no exception.

The Dangers of Waiting Too Long

When your mattresses and pillows no longer provide you adequate comfort and support, you may begin to gradually develop back and neck pain. Over the past few years, the cost of having back and neck pain has increased severely. According to Newsweek, Americans spent $85.9 billion in 2005 for neck and back pain relief. Additionally, the University of Washington and the Oregon Health & Science University report that having back pain is likely to increase your annual medical costs by 30%.

So we see that in the long run, holding on to your mattresses and pillows for too long can actually be more expensive than simply replacing the mattresses and pillows at the correct time.

When pillows and mattresses should be replaced

Mattresses

How long your mattress last depends on a few variables.

• Age
• Weight
• Frequency of use
• Sleeping Habits

And others.

However, the normal lifespan of a mattress is 5 to 7 years, according to the Better Sleep Council. The Council states that a mattress that has been in use for 5-7 years is no longer providing you with the best support and comfort. However, the Better Sleep Council suggests visiting a local mattress store more often than that to test out the new technological advances. 87% of people who adhere by these guidelines are satisfied with their quality of sleep.

Pillows

Most experts agree that pillows should be replaced at least every two years. After this amount of time, the weight of you sleeping on them can make them bumpy and uncomfortable. A rule of thumb for seeing if your pillow needs replacing is to fold it in half. If it stays folded, it’s time for a new one.

Get the most out of your investment in a high quality mattress by replacing it at the right time.

You stay up late finishing the kid’s school projects, adjusting the proposal due the next morning, paying bills: the necessary evils of life. You know that not getting enough sleep is detrimental to your health, but the consequences of going to sleep when faced with a deadline seem to pale in comparison.

However, studies from the Harvard Medical Institute give us reason to reevaluate the consequences of chronic sleep deprivation. The studies show that people who average six hours of sleep per night during the weekdays and attempt to compensate by sleeping extra on the weekends are likely to have attention spans and reaction times 10 times worse than someone who had been up for 24 hours straight. Short term gains achieved by ignoring sleep always translate into long term losses if not corrected immediately. If you average six hours of sleep per night or less, just by getting a few more hours of sleep each night, you can increase your worth ethic, alertness, and efficiency by up to 90%.

Additionally, USAToday describes the mental effects of chronic sleep deprivation as being on par with alcohol when it comes to driving an automobile. Combine this information with Medical News Today’s study that shows 70% of college students and 30% of employed women fail to receive adequate sleep, and then imagine having that many drunk drivers on the road.

View More Statistics concerning automobile accidents and sleep deprivation

Skipping out on sleep may seem worth it at the time, but most likely the long-term consequences of sleep deprivation will highly outweigh the short-term gains.

Studies dating from 2003 have demonstrated the positive correlation between exercise and reduced cancer risks among women. However, a recently published 10 year study headed by the National Cancer Institute shows that sleep deprivation is extremely likely to nullify the cancer reducing benefits of exercise.

Dr. James McClain, lead researcher at the Institute, stated
“Current findings suggest that sleep duration modifies the relationship between physical activity and all-site cancer risk among young and middle-aged women”

The study of 6,000 women concluded that women who exercised normally had significantly lower cancer risks. Furthermore, the women who exercised normally AND averaged at least 7 hours of sleep had a significant advantage over the women who had stringent exercise routines but failed to get an adequate amount of sleep.

Getting a good night’s sleep is an essential tool in maintaining your health.

Get your 8 tonight and have a healthier tomorrow!