Many sleep problems are due to our own sleeping habits ( or lack of sleeping) that we develop over time.

Poor sleep habits are among the most common problems encountered in our society.

We stay up too late and get up too early.

We interrupt our sleep with drugs, chemicals and work, and we overstimulate ourselves with late-night activities such as computer use, television and falling asleep with the lights on.

I have outlined some essentials of good sleeping habits below.

Many of these points will seem like common sense and they are.

But it is surprising how many of these important points are ignored by many of us.

Knowing is not enough; we must apply. Willing is not enough; we must do. Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749-1832)

**Go to sleep and wake up at the same time every day.

Avoid being one of those people who allows bedtime and awakening time to drift.

The body "gets used" to falling asleep at a certain time, but only if this is relatively fixed.

Even if you are retired or not working, this is an essential component of good sleeping habits.

**Avoid napping during the day.

If you nap throughout the day, it is no wonder that you will not be able to sleep at night.

Many people get tired in the late evening and take a nap.

This is generally not a bad thing to do, provided you limit the nap to 30-45 minutes and can sleep well at night.

**Avoid alcohol 4-6 hours before bedtime.

Many people believe that alcohol helps them sleep.

While alcohol has an immediate sleep-inducing effect, a few hours later as the alcohol levels in your blood start to fall, there is a stimulant or wake-up effect.

**Avoid caffeine 4-6 hours before bedtime.

This includes caffeinated beverages such as coffee, tea and many sodas, as well as chocolate, so be careful.

**Avoid heavy, spicy, or sugary foods 4-6 hours before bedtime.

These can affect your ability to stay asleep.

**Exercise regularly, but not right before bed.

Regular exercise, particularly in the afternoon, can help deepen sleep.

Exercise instead of taking a nap in the early afternoon to deepen your sleep.

Strenuous exercise within the 2 hours before bedtime, however, can decrease your ability to fall asleep.

**Use comfortable bedding.

Uncomfortable bedding can prevent good sleep.

Evaluate whether or not this is a source of your problem, and make appropriate changes.

**Find a comfortable temperature setting for sleeping and keep the room well ventilated.

If your bedroom is too cold or too hot, it can keep you awake.

A cool (not cold) bedroom is often the most conducive to sleep.

Think of surrounding yourself with cave like conditions- cool, quiet and dark.

**Block out all distracting noise, and eliminate as much light as possible.

Exposure to light during the night causes the very important hormone called melatonin to decrease.

Studies show that if you are exposed to light at night that this hormone will decrease and it will not increase again during the night.

Melatonin is one of the most important anti-oxidant and cancer fighters that the body makes.

Our ability to make melatonin declines as we age and by age 60 we make half the melatonin that we did at age 20.

**Reserve the bed for sleep.

Don't use the bed as an office, workroom or recreation room.

Let your body "know" that the bed is associated with sleeping.

**Try a light snack before bed.

Warm milk and foods high in the amino acid tryptophan, such as bananas, may help you to sleep.

**Practice relaxation techniques before bed.

Relaxation techniques such as yoga, deep breathing, prayer and others may help relieve anxiety and reduce muscle tension.

**Don't take your worries to bed.

Leave your worries about job, school, daily life, etc., behind when you go to bed.

Some people find it useful to assign a "worry period" during the evening or late afternoon to deal with these issues.

**Establish a pre-sleep ritual.

We provide children with this very comforting behavior and forget about it for ourselves as adults.

Pre-sleep rituals, such as a warm bath or a few minutes of reading, can help you sleep.

**Get into your favorite sleeping position.

If you don't fall asleep within 15-30 minutes, get up, go into another room, and read until sleepy.

It is much better to read since it imitates rapid eye movement and brings on sleep as opposed to using a computer or watching television.

**Most people wake up one or two times a night for various reasons.

If you find that you get up in the middle of night and cannot get back to sleep within 15-20 minutes, then do not remain in the bed "trying hard" to sleep.

Get out of bed.

Leave the bedroom. But avoid turning on the lights as this will lower your melatonin level.

Change position by sitting in a reclining chair or resting on the sofa.

You will generally find that you can get back to sleep 20 minutes or so later.

Do not perform challenging or engaging activity such as office work, housework, etc.

Do not watch television.

Do not turn on the computer.

Many people fall asleep with the television on in their room.

Watching television before bedtime is a bad idea.

Television is a very engaging medium that tends to keep people up and worried about what they just watched and heard.

I recommend that you avoid watching the television in the bedroom.

What should you do when you have followed all of these recommendations and still find that you are having problems sleeping?

Gathering and analyzing information regarding the quality of your sleep can be an important tool to help you identify the factors that are disrupting your sleep.

It used to be that you could only have a sleep study done by sleeping overnight at the hospital and having a physician perform this kind of evaluation.

Advances in technology have brought about the ability to conduct your own sleep study at home and analyze it using the internet and e-mail based sleep coaching.

I will discuss this new technology called ZEO below.

Your quality of sleep is central to your quality of life and your ability to maintain a healthy weight.

Zeo is designed to help you analyze your sleep and improve it, so you can be your best every day.

It's composed of a lightweight wireless headband, a bedside display, a set of online analytical tools, and an email-based personalized coaching program.

HOW IT WORKS:

1. sleep with Zeo- the Zeo headband tracks your sleep wirelessly throughout the night.

2. Monitor your sleep- view sleep data on your display at your bedside or via online tools.

3. Take control of your sleep.

The more you know, the better you sleep.

Receive personalized e-mail based coaching with tips and recommendations.