The Most Important Health Decision of Your Life

No, it isn't Cheerios or Life cereal in the morning!  It is definitely not whether to eat protein or carbohydrates.  The most important health decision of your life is one you make every single day, mostly without thinking much about it.  And although I care about oral health, we're not talking about whether to floss!

This essential of all decisions is...drum roll...how much sleep you will get.  Yes, very few things have as much impact on your life as your sleep.  Our bodies need down time, and so do our minds.  How we go about planning and preparing for this essential of all times means the difference between health and illness for most people.

Sufficient sleep has been linked to weight loss, lowering stress, reducing inflammation, increasing memory and attention, and many more things that are easy to miss when we are burning the candle at both ends.  Yes, if we find ourselves lacking energy or motivation or even if we seem to get sick easily, we should plan and prepare for better sleep.

Plan (Quantity)

There are people who can't plan their sleep, like those with narcolepsy or any other sleep disorder.  Yet if you have one of these disorders, you may be all to familiar with how much sleep is a necessary part of life on Earth!  Your doctor can help you control what seems uncontrollable.

For the rest of us, planning for at least seven hours of sleep is vital to staying healthy, but this doesn't mean they have to be seven consecutive hours.  There is evidence that in the past, it was common to sleep four hours, wake in the middle of the night to snack or write letters or for romance, and then sleep three to fours hours before getting up.

But getting hours of sleep at night, and power naps if needed during the day can help you reach the seven hours.  A quick Google search can show you how much study has been done on sleep and how much benefit there is from making sure you get enough.  If you really have no control over your schedule, then you can at least prepare to get a better night's sleep.

Prepare (Quality)

Sleep is important enough to prepare for!  Cramming in another episode of Walking Dead while munching Chex Mix is only great preparation if you want a long wakeful night of zombies and eating brains!  One thing that may be ruining your sleep quality is using technology within an hour before bed.  The screen from your phone or iPad may be preventing your brain from preparing for sleep, lowering your sleep quality.  Taking time to plan the next day, thinking about the day we just had, stretching and breathing exercises all can help us get better sleep.  And don't forget to brush your teeth before bed, the most important time to do it!