Good night, sleep tight

Woman-asleepA good night’s sleep means you feel great. And everyone needs to be in the land of nod so Santa can visit. As everyone gets ready for the 12 days of Christmas, the Sleep Council has been crunching the numbers for the best tips in seasonal snoozing…

2 – The amount of minutes shoppers spend trying out beds. It’s not long enough! There is no substitute for lying on mattresses as part of the selection process. You wouldn’t buy a new car without taking it for a test drive first!

7 – The number of years we recommend you keep your mattress before thinking of replacing it. After seven years a bed used regularly will have deteriorated significantly (50-70%) from its ‘as new’ condition and will be hindering rather than helping you achieve the perfect sleep environment.

7am – The best time to exercise if you want a better night’s sleep. Appalachian State University boffins found that those who worked out at 7am had a 10% reduction in blood pressure at night, slept longer and had more beneficial sleep cycles than those who exercised at 1pm or 7pm.

10 – The percentage of British adults who still go to bed with a teddy bear. Aw.

18°C – The ideal bedroom temperature for slumber.

20 – The recommended time in minutes for a daytime nap that equates to as much energy as two cups of strong coffee, but with longer lasting effects. Thirty minutes, however, is long enough to put you in a deep sleep and leave you feeling groggy when you wake.

40% – The reduction in your ability to remember new things if you pull an all-nighter. The consolidation of a memory occurs during sleep, without it your brain will struggle.

42 – The amount of extra sleep in minutes we get, according to research, when replacing an old, uncomfortable bed with a new bed. So what are you waiting for?

£583.05 – The average amount in pounds that couples spend on a new double bed. So over seven years, that’s less than 12p a night.

10,000 – The average number of house dust mites that are living in your bed. Regular mattress replacement is vital in reducing the prevalence of house dust mites which are linked to numerous allergic health problems.

10,000,000 – The number of prescriptions handed out each year for sleeping pills.

£1,600,000,000 – The cost to the UK economy in lost productivity as a result of workers being sleep deprived.

  • Miss B

    Belinda Wanis, aka Miss B, is a Belle About Town who likes to bring a little bit of style into every aspect of her life. An experienced journalist with over 20 years in the industry she turned to the web, creating Belle About Town in early 2010, to fill a gap for tech-savvy stylish women who want the best life has to offer at their fingertips. She loves a decadent cocktail bar, a beautifully cut dress, cultural getaways, quality over quantity and is partial to Asian-fusion food. A globetrotter, who has lived in Australia, the UK and Denmark, she enjoys holidaying in the sun and you can often find her on a beach in Thailand or on shopping breaks in Sydney or New York. But her first love is, of course, London!

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