(Even though, as you probably know firsthand, that can be really hard.)
Basically, youre making it even harder to fall asleepwithoutwhatever it is youre leaning on to doze off.
Whats a tired person to even do?
Amanda K Bailey
For starters: Dont over-rely on quick fixes that will only make your sleep situation more complicated.
Heres the deal with common sleep aidsand why, a lot of the time, theyre sneakily bullshit.
Boozeis deceptive when it comes to your precious slumber.
Alcohol causes significantly increasedsleep disruptionthroughout the night, Dr. Weingarten says.
Youll have poorer sleep quality with multipleawakeningswhether you are aware of them or notresulting in abad nights sleep.
This happens partly because sleep happens in distinct cycles.
Booze wreaks havoc on two of them, in particular, which messes with the rest of them overall.
The part that gets you high, tetrahydrocannabinol (a.k.a.
THC) is the culprit behind its not-great effects on snoozing.
THC may reduce REM sleep, Dr. Ramar saysandresearchreflects that too.
How often you get high to fall asleep is also a factor.
Long-term cannabis use may result in tolerancedecreased effectivenessand may eventually negatively impact your sleep.
So they definitely work…. (We are so, so tired.)
Melatonin does have a very mild sedative effect, which is why people take it to fall asleep.
But this effect is quite variable and often wanes over time, Dr. Weingarten cautions.
Thats important because you mightthinkyoure taking five milligrams, but that little pill can pack a much wilder wallop.
Thats not including one that hadnomelatonin in it, but did contain CBD.
(And theres been an enormous recent rise in ER visits amongchildren who accidentally took melatonin.
All told, thats probably not the relief youre looking for.
Magnesium is a mineral in the body that we normally get through eating food.
Its cute in theory, but experts caution against using magnesium regularly for sleep.
There are many stories on the internet of sleep improving with magnesium.
However, the medical literature doesnt fully corroborate that, Dr. Weingarten saysresearchexploring its effectiveness shows mixed results.
Otherwise, just know that its probablynotgoing to affect your sleep.
(You should probably also avoid it if you deal with gnarly acid refluxits pretty acidic!)
Whilesmall studiesindicate that herbal teas like chamomile could provide modest (at best!)
The bottom line
A hack.
