How much sleep do we need?

Most adults need between seven and eight hours' sleep each night, although we all have different sleeping patterns. Some people find they can manage with just three hours of sleep, which I seriously find impossible to believe. I've noticed that this generally happens to people who use their brains most of the time. Don't get me wrong but when your brain is constantly working, it's difficult to get sleep. So the minute you stop and concentrate on your sleep patterns, you are more likely to fall off into a deep slumber!

It's also a fact that the amount we sleep reduces as we age. Strange but true! Most elderly people find themselves falling short of their quota of sleep, especially if they've dozed off in the afternoon.

Insomnia
There are some who believe that the GH level in our bodies determine certain factors that include the sleep patterns. Although the research for this goes on still, there are many who don't have a great growth hormonal level, and fall prey to Insomnia.

Remedies
Although there are many home remedies for this, an exalted condition of not being able to sleep well can be treated medically.

You might want to consider these tips as well.

* The notion of early to bed and early to rise. What this really does is make your habits fall into a pattern of things and train your body as it were to fall into a slumber. You might have noticed that practicing these habits becomes especially painful when you need to go out for a party. if yu haven't experienced these so far, well then you may do so now!

* Even if you are not feeling sleepy, you may want to change into your nightwear. Sometimes making your body ready to go to sleep, like making yourself geared up for the gym helps you fall asleep rather fast. The reason being that nightwear is generally rather comfortable and you don't really realize how sleepy you are until you change.

* Don't restrict your self to making sure that you have enough silence to lull you to sleep. A shift in paradigm may make things worse especially if you get used to the right atmosphere around you.

* Like I mentioned earlier, people who use their brain too much are more likely to face problems in sleep patterns than those who don't. What I really meant is that if you keep exercising your mental faculties to such an extent that they get overworked, you might end up sleeping only for a few hours. Good to moderate amounts of exercise gets you into using your physical self as well, ultimately giving you a good night's sleep. There are may fitness freaks and exercise enthusiasts who prefer to work out in the night for some great sleep.

* Drinking a cup of warm milk with turmeric can induce some good sleep. Calcium is anyway known to be best absorbed in the night. With turmeric as an anti-septic, all the wear and tear occurred in your body throughout the day can help you get into instant sleep. It's not a good idea to try drinking coffee, caffeine helps you use all your senses as it acts as a stimulant. It is no wonders that students use this technique to get themselves make the most of their last minute study.

* Its best if you have an empty stomach before you retire for the night. The three hour gap before sleeping, if religiously followed can help you and your body gain the much-needed rest at a faster pace. Since the body is not involved in digesting heavy chunks of food, it's quite likely that you get into deep sleep at a faster rate.

* Trying relaxation techniques before going to bed. Yoga is one great idea of lulling you to sleep. If you still can't sleep, popping in some Ashwagandha, , an ayurvedic sleep inducers. For Yoga enthusiasts, the chanting of the word 'OM' helps too!