{"id":9642,"date":"2013-01-03T12:16:33","date_gmt":"2013-01-03T17:16:33","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/therapytoronto.ca\/news\/?p=9642"},"modified":"2013-01-07T17:09:47","modified_gmt":"2013-01-07T22:09:47","slug":"want-to-be-healthier-and-happier-in-2013-try-getting-more-sleep","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/therapytoronto.ca\/news\/2013\/01\/want-to-be-healthier-and-happier-in-2013-try-getting-more-sleep\/","title":{"rendered":"Want to be healthier and happier in 2013? Try getting more sleep!"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>From the American Academy of Sleep Medicine media release:<\/p>\n<blockquote><p><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"alignright size-full wp-image-9619\" alt=\"sleeping_older_couple\" src=\"http:\/\/therapytoronto.ca\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/01\/sleeping_older_couple.jpg\" width=\"300\" height=\"200\" \/>One New Year&#8217;s resolution that everyone should keep this year is to <strong>make better sleep a priority in the year ahead<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>According to the American Academy of Sleep Medicine, most adults need about seven to eight hours of sleep each night to feel alert and well rested during the day. <strong>Sleeping less than seven hours per night also increases your risk of obesity, diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease and depression<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>Dr. Timothy I. Morgenthaler, of the Mayo Clinic Sleep Disorders Center and a spokesperson for the AASM, shares his top three reasons to make better sleep a priority in the New Year:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Sleep makes you healthier.<\/strong> Without good sleep, both your mental and physical health suffers greatly, putting you at increased risk for chronic disease.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Sleep makes you happier.<\/strong> It has a positive effect on your mood and overall sense of well-being and can improve relationships with others.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Sleep makes you smarter.<\/strong> Getting the right amount of sleep helps you to learn better by improving your memory, creativity and cognitive function.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Practicing good sleep hygiene can make a big difference in your life. <strong>Here are some tips to help you develop good habits that can improve your sleep:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Keep a consistent bedtime routine.<\/li>\n<li>Exercise regularly, just not right before bed.<\/li>\n<li>Avoid caffeine and alcohol before bedtime.<\/li>\n<li>Keep your bedroom dark, quiet and at a comfortable temperature.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>If you are experiencing difficulty sleeping, AASM encourages you to talk to your doctor about sleep problems or visit www.sleepeducation.com for a searchable directory of sleep centers. The American Academy of Sleep Medicine considers sleep disorders an illness that has reached epidemic proportions. Board-certified sleep medicine physicians in an AASM-accredited sleep center provide effective treatment.<\/p>\n<!-- AddThis Advanced Settings generic via filter on the_content --><!-- AddThis Share Buttons generic via filter on the_content -->","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>From the American Academy of Sleep Medicine media release: One New Year&#8217;s resolution that everyone should keep this year is to make better sleep a priority in the year ahead&#8230;. <a class=\"read-more-link\" href=\"https:\/\/therapytoronto.ca\/news\/2013\/01\/want-to-be-healthier-and-happier-in-2013-try-getting-more-sleep\/\">Read more &raquo;<\/a><!-- AddThis Advanced Settings generic via filter on get_the_excerpt --><!-- AddThis Share Buttons generic via filter on get_the_excerpt --><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[5,10],"tags":[362],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/therapytoronto.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9642"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/therapytoronto.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/therapytoronto.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/therapytoronto.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/therapytoronto.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9642"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/therapytoronto.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9642\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9645,"href":"https:\/\/therapytoronto.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9642\/revisions\/9645"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/therapytoronto.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9642"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/therapytoronto.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9642"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/therapytoronto.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9642"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}