Your sleep health is important
你的睡眠健康很重要

It’s all about getting quality sleep rather than just the hours in bed.
拥有好的睡眠质量比睡眠时长更重要。

Stimulants like coffee, tea and energy drinks don’t help as they can interfere with people’s ‘circadian rhythm’, which is your natural sleep cycle.
咖啡、茶和功能饮料这类刺激饮品对睡眠质量并无帮助，因为他们会扰乱你的“生理节律”，也就是你的自然睡眠周期。

The same is true for alarm clocks and poor lighting.
闹钟与不良照明也一样会影响你的睡眠。

If you don’t get enough sleep each night, your body will begin to develop ‘sleep debt’ and you’ll feel exhausted, which can have an affect on your overall well-being and health.
如果你每天没有足够的睡眠，你的身体就会开始产生“睡眠债”，你也会感觉到筋疲力尽。这会影响你的整体幸福感和健康。

Why do we need sleep?
为什么我们需要睡觉？

When we are awake, a chemical called adenosine builds up in the bloodstream.
当我们清醒时，血液循环中会产生一种叫做腺苷的化学物质。

It is only when we are asleep that the body is able to break this chemical down and if you don’t get enough sleep your body won’t have enough time to break down the chemical.
只有当你处于睡眠状态时，身体才能够分解这种化学物质，但如果你的睡眠不充足，你的身体就不能有足够的时间来分解它。

The result is a slow down in your reactions, feeling generally tired and wanting to have a nap.
这就会导致你的反应变慢、感到疲倦、想要睡一觉。

How to improve your sleep
如何提高你的睡眠质量

For those who aren’t getting enough hours in bed, it is all about setting a sleep schedule and sticking to it.
对于那些睡眠不足的人来说，他们需要建立一个睡眠时间表，并且坚持下去。

Sometimes that means heading to bed 15 minutes earlier, while other times it might mean adjusting electronics so they aren’t waking you up in the middle of the night.
有时可能是提前15分钟躺上床，而其他一些时候可能是调整你的闹钟，别让它在半夜叫醒你。

If you are struggling to sleep, there are several factors that could be causing this – including poor diet, poor sleeping arrangements and even the temperature of your bedroom.
如果你难以入睡，这可能是由于这些原因所导致：饮食欠佳、睡眠安排不合适，甚至卧室的温度也会影响你的睡眠。

Ditch the alcohol and caffeine, and make sure you exercise daily.
丢掉酒精和咖啡因，确保自己每天都运动。

英文来源：Metro

译者：游凡渺（中国日报网)