Sleep… you literally can’t live without it. Not getting enough quality sleep has been linked to many diseases, including cancer. The cost to the economy is estimated at over four hundred billion dollars annually.

A study completed in 2014 by the National Sleep Foundation found that 45% of Americans said “insufficient sleep affected their daily activities at least once in the past seven days” (Sleepfoundation.org). Another study, published in 2016, suggests that over a third of the population in the United States is not getting a sufficient amount of sleep on a nightly basis, according to the Center for Disease Control. With numbers this high, chances are you can relate to this. Sleep is difficult thing to come by; whether it’s your job or family, or both, life is busy and there just doesn’t seem to be enough hours in the day to get everything done. We all know we need sleep, but some nights it’s impossible to squeeze in those 7-8 hours. But sleep is something we should be making priority. Researchers have found that not getting enough sleep on a regular basis is associated with many diseases such as diabetes and heart disease and may result in a shorter life expectancy overall. So, how can you get a quality and quantity night of shuteye? Some recommendations by the National Sleep Foundation include skipping the powernaps, exercising daily, and evaluating your bed to make sure it’s sleep worthy. Another suggestion is sticking to a sleep schedule. We are creatures of habit and making sure that you stick to the same sleep schedule on the weekends that you do during the week, will regulate your body’s clock to help you fall asleep quicker. Improving your sleep health is a worthy and necessary endeavor to live your best life.