The lack of sleep is linked to several medical as well as non-medical problems such as vehicle accidents, industrial disasters and poor performance. Medical problems include heart problems, low sex drive, and depression. It can also affect your cognitive abilities and your ability to make decisions. Lack of sleep is also associated with weight gain and obesity.

So it is very important that you get necessary sleep. In this article, we list bad habits that might ruin your sleep. The article also lists some advice that can help you correct these bad habits.

• Working too long

The most common factor preventing you from getting adequate sleep is too heavy. It is often linked to the fact that working longer hours means an early start in the morning and a late return home. This problem is particularly severe for those who have to travel long distances to reach their offices. And the lack of sleep can affect your capacity and your ability to work in your office. A 2014 study published in the Psychological Science Journal indicated that getting about five hours of sleep could lead to memory problems. Lack of sleep also affects your ability to deal with stress. The University of ArkansasResearch has found that lack of sleep can make someone react more emotionally when faced with stress. In short, lack of sleep affects your cognitive abilities and how you deal with stress at work. These are two of the most important factors that make you a good employee.

It would be foolish to suggest that you stop working to get a good night’s sleep. However, you can better manage your daily routine by using time more efficiently. In the office, try to avoid distractions and be as productive as possible.

• Using devices before bed

You probably would have heard that countless times. It’s not just reading stressful emails and chatting late into the night that affects the quality and quantity of sleep. Using devices in bed before bedtime is also psychologically and physiologically arousing. A study by the Lighting Research Center(LRC) at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute has found that readings from the devices cause melatonin suppression. The melatonin hormone is produced by the pineal gland at night and in the dark. It tells your body it’s time to fall asleep. However, exposure to night light, and particularly short-wavelength light emitted by the devices’ display, can slow or even stop melatonin production and disrupt sleep. The suppression of melatonin production disrupts the body’s natural cycle that regulates waking and sleeping time, increasing the risk of diabetes and obesity, and when this is repeated over years, as with night workers, it increases the risk of more serious diseases, such as diabetes breast cancer.

• alcohol before bed

People often tend to consume alcohol before bed, it’s widely believed to help you get a good night’s sleep. Although it acts as a sedative and helps you fall asleep quickly, in the long run, drinking alcohol can reduce the quality of sleep you are able to get. The studies have shown that alcohol impairs REM sleep. REM sleep with rapid eye movements occurs about 90 minutes after you fall asleep. During this sleep phase you dream. It should be restful. Disruption of the REM can lead to daytime sleepiness, poor concentration, and trouble sleeping that leaves you feeling tired and tired despite spending hours in bed. The solution to this problem is very simple. Reduce the frequency and amount of alcohol you drink before bed. In fact, I would advise you to refrain from drinking altogether. Alcohol consumption is linked to liver disease, heart problems and nerve damage.

• Save while you sleep

Often people tend to save sleep time on weekdays by reducing sleep duration and redeem it on weekends by sleeping longer. In terms of quantity, it’s possible to compensate for an hour skipped here and there, but it’s not the same. A researcher from Weill Cornell Medical College has found that people who are sleep-deprived on weekdays are 72 percent more likely to be obese and more likely to be insulin-resistant, meaning they are more likely to develop type 2 diabetes. The lack of sleep from day to day also affects the overall functioning of your body and can make you feel more tired and fatigued. The varied and irregular sleep patterns can also disrupt the circadian rhythm that regulates the sleep cycle. The better alternative is a 30-minute nap during the day to make up for the lack of sleep at night.

• Constant insomnia

The quantity of sleep is nothing without quality. Even if you wake up a lot at night, getting nine hours of sleep isn’t enough. Because of this type of sleep, you don’t get adequate rest. The goal should be to get deep and restful sleep that will effect repair at the cellular level and heal your body from fatigue. As discussed earlier in this article, the key is REM sleep, which you don’t get if you wake up too frequently while you sleep. The study by sleep expert Professor Derk-Jan Dijk from the University of Surreyfound that not getting proper sleep for a week can have serious effects on your genes. According to the study, insufficient sleep can affect more than 700 genes, including genes related to the “body clock” cycle, metabolism, and immune and stress responses. Effects on these genes can lead to obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and impaired alertness and cognition. To ensure your sleep is not disturbed, put your phone in sleep mode. If your sleep is affected by light or noise that you can’t rule out, buy a decent sleep mask and earplugs.

• Don’t train

We know that sometimes it’s very difficult to squeeze a workout into an already packed schedule. However, this also helps you in another area. Besides fighting obesity and improving your cardiovascular health, regular exercise can also serve as a natural remedy for sleep-related issues. The increasing evidence from several studies has confirmed sleep as a good alternative to treat insomnia and sleep-related problems. A study published in Mental Health and Physical Activityfound that every 150 minutes of moderate exercise for a week can improve participants’ sleep quality by 65 percent. Another study published in September 2012 by Journal of Physiotherapy claimed that exercise can reduce sleep latency and medication in patients with sleep-related problems. This study has substantiated the use of sleep as an alternative or adjunct to existing therapies for sleep problems.

So you need to squeeze an exercise routine into your daily routine. If you’re extremely pressed for time and don’t have time to visit a local gym or run in the park, you can do a series of bodyweight exercises like push-ups, pull-ups, squats, and crunches followed by a short jump rope. It takes no more than 15 minutes.

• Constantly high stress

If there is one specific condition related to the sleep problems then it is stress. This is a two-way equation. It can be said that high stress disrupts the natural sleep process. Conversely, you can argue that lack of sleep impairs your mind’s ability to handle and relieve stress. A study by the American Psychological Association found that around 43 percent of the participants in the study had reported that stress caused them to lie awake at night. It was also found that those who sleep less than eight hours a night have higher stress levels than those who sleep at least eight hours a night. And 21 percent of participants said stress affects their sleep quality.

You can fix this problem by meditating before bed or in the evening after work. Along with relieving anxiety and stress, meditation can help improve sleep quality. The study, published in JAMA Internal Medicine , explained that regular meditation can lead to a reduction in insomnia, fatigue and depression.

• caffeine addiction

Okay, I understand some of you love your coffee. And who doesn’t like a warm cup of coffee and a good book on a mild evening? However, the studies have shown that it can negatively affect your sleep. Even if you take it hours before bedtime, it can interfere with your sleep because caffeine stays in your body hours after you consume it. It reaches a peak level in your blood within 30 to 60 minutes and it takes your body about 3 to 5 hours to eliminate half of the total content by itself. Coffee is one of the most powerful stimulants in the world. Because of this, it keeps you awake throughout the day. The caffeine that keeps you awake and alert acts as an adenosine receptor blocker. Adenosine is a compound in your body that promotes sleep. And caffeine blocks the adenosine receptor so you don’t feel tired. Do yourself a favor and cut down on your evening coffee. And if you want an energy boost, do some exercise.

• night light

Electricity is considered the greatest invention because some fellas accidentally discovered fire in the Stone Age. Electricity has effectively lengthened our day, allowing us to work or socialize long after the sun has set. However, the artificial light can have a negative effect on your sleep, as it affects the perception of the body over the duration of the night. The presence of light also suppresses melatonin secretion. As already mentioned, the melatonin controls the sleep and wake cycles. As a result, melatonin secretion can seriously affect sleep quality. It can also increase sleep latency.

Another way that electric light messes with sleep is through the stimulation of intrinsically light-sensitive ganglion cells in the retina, which are sensitive to light. These ganglion cells play an important role in our body’s circadian cycle. When the eyes are exposed to artificial light, the stimulation of the sleep-inducing neurons is stopped and the excitatory neurons are activated, making you feel less tired.

• Ignore pain and discomfort

The pain and physical discomfort can affect sleep duration and sleep quality. The pain or pains are directly related to two issues – stress and poor health. Both of these issues can have a detrimental effect on sleep quality. The pain interferes with the body’s ability to enter REM sleep, which, as mentioned earlier, is responsible for the body’s repair and recovery. In fact, a recent poll by the Sleep Foundationhas found that suffering from chronic pain results in an average sleep debt of 42 minutes. In the same survey, only 45 percent of patients with acute pain and 37 percent of patients with chronic pain reported good or very good sleep quality. So never go to bed with pain or pain and consult a specialist.