Improving sleep quality: ten rules that actually work

Why quality beats length

Eight hours in bed with three awakenings and little deep sleep restore less than seven hours in one stretch. Sleep quality means: fall asleep in under 20 minutes, wake up briefly at most once, sleep at least 85 percent of the time in bed and be rested in the morning with or without an alarm. These four things can be influenced far more with behavior and environment than with any supplement.

The ten rules

First, a fixed wake-up time, seven days a week, with at most one hour of deviation; it is the anchor of the inner clock. Second, morning light, ten minutes outside within the first hour. Third, caffeine only until early afternoon; the half-life is five hours, a coffee at 4 pm still works at half strength at 9 pm. Fourth, no alcohol as a sleep aid: it shortens the time to fall asleep but destroys deep and REM sleep and wakes you in the second half of the night. Fifth, dinner three hours before bed, light, with protein and vegetables. Sixth, a cool bedroom at 17 to 19 degrees Celsius, dark with curtains or a mask, quiet with earplugs if needed. Seventh, screens off or dimmed from 9 pm; the light is only part of it, the content keeps you awake. Eighth, movement during the day, but no hard training in the last two hours. Ninth, an evening ritual, 30 minutes the same: dim the lights, read, stretch, tea, notes. Tenth, the bed only for sleeping: whoever lies awake after 20 minutes gets up, reads in dim light and returns only when tired.

The order

Not all ten at once. Week one: wake-up time and morning light. Week two: caffeine and alcohol. Week three: bedroom and dinner. Week four: ritual and screens. Whoever does not sleep better after four weeks keeps a sleep diary for two weeks and takes it to the doctor.

What to drop

Sleeping pills as a permanent solution: they produce sleep that is not deep sleep and cause dependence. Catching up at the weekend: it shifts the clock and makes Monday worse. Waiting for sleep in bed: it conditions the bed to wakefulness. And sleep trackers as judges: whoever checks the score in the morning sleeps worse.

When nothing helps

Whoever sleeps badly on at least three nights a week for over three months has insomnia. The most effective treatment is cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia, CBT-I, with sleep restriction, stimulus control and work on thoughts. In studies it works better and more durably than medication and is also offered digitally.