• Avoid stimulants. Alcohol, caffeine and nicotine can all interfere with sleep. Stop drinking coffee at a reasonable time in the afternoon and avoid consuming alcohol in the evenings. Manage your meals by keeping to a consistent schedule and not overeating. 
• Get Moving. Incorporate exercise into your daily wellness routine. Being physically active during the day will help you fall asleep more easily at night. Be consistent with this as well: while you may want to vary your workouts to keep things interesting, try to maintain the same time to work out each day.
• Proper light. Regular exposure to 40Hz gamma light therapy can make falling asleep easier and may reduce sleep-wake cycle disturbances in cognitively healthy people as well as those with dementia. Get outside and enjoy daylight during your waking hours—this will ease day and night reversal problems.

While many unknown answers remain, ongoing research is helping us better understand the relationship between sleep and Alzheimer’s disease. Not everyone who is a bad sleeper will develop dementia. But we know that too little sleep can lead to other diseases such as heart disease, diabetes, and depression—all three are known risk factors for Alzheimer’s.

It’s amazing what a good night’s sleep does to set you off on the right foot for your day. Now it turns out that a good night’s sleep may also be a key indicator of preventative wellness and brain health.

Learn how music, light, exercise, and meditation can elevate your brain health.