By Norma Psillos, Nutritional Therapist

Sleep is one of the most important pillars of health, yet as we reach midlife, it often seems like an elusive dream that we are forever chasing. Hormonal changes, stress, and lifestyle factors can disrupt our sleep patterns, leaving us feeling tired, irritable, and unable to function at our best. A poor night sleep has a knock-on effect the next day on appetite, leading us to reach for the quick fix high fat high sugary snacks to improve our crushing fatigue. However, with the right nutrition, strategies and supplements that we can incorporate into our routines, and habits, it's possible to enhance sleep quality and wake up feeling more refreshed.

Here are my Top Tips to help you get better sleep and revitalise your health:

Focus on the Timing of Your Meals
Planning your meals with your body’s natural body clock in mind can be very supportive of quality sleep. Balanced meals that include healthy fats, lean protein, complex carbohydrates and fibre can support steady blood sugar levels through the day. This helps prevent spikes and drops that can interfere with your energy levels through the day and sleep at night. Our digestive system is naturally more active in the earlier part of the day so using your Circadian Clock can help improve digestive function. However, eating too large of a meal right before bed can make it harder to fall asleep.

Try to aim for dinner about 2–3 hours before bedtime, focusing on foods like and try to avoid heavy, greasy meals or caffeine close to bedtime.

Hydration is so important however you should try to have the majority of your fluid intake throughout the day so that you aren’t up in night needing the bathroom.

Incorporate Foods High in Tryptophan and Magnesium into your Diet 
Tryptophan is an amino acid that is a precursor for melatonin, a hormone that regulates your sleep-wake cycle. Eating foods rich in tryptophan can help you relax and prepare for a restful night. Foods to include turkey, cottage cheese, eggs, oats, nuts and seeds, spinach.

Magnesium is a mineral that plays a key role in relaxation and sleep. It helps calm the nervous system, supports sleep and promotes muscle relaxation. Incorporating magnesium-rich foods into your diet such as leafy greens, bananas, oats nuts & seeds, dark chocolate and avocados. You can also supplement with Cleanmarine Magnesium capsules, more about that later!

Limit Caffeine and Alcohol Intake
Caffeine and alcohol can significantly impact the quality of your sleep, especially as you enter midlife. Caffeine is a stimulant that can stay in your system for hours, and whilst many of us might rely on our morning caffeine fix to get us through the day, indulging after lunchtime can interfere with your nighttime rest.

Alcohol may initially make you feel drowsy, but it disrupts the sleep cycle, leading to lighter, more disrupted sleep. It also requires detoxification buy the liver; this action can also keep us from a restful night’s sleep. Aim to limit alcohol consumption, particularly in the hours leading up to bedtime.

Work With Your Body Clock
Your bodies natural rhythms are controlled by its internal clock your Circadian Clock. This internal biological system that regulates your sleep-wake cycle and other essential functions over a roughly 24-hour period. This "master clock" resides in your brain and it is influenced by external cues like light, temperature, and eating patterns.

Including practices such as exposure to natural daylight in the morning, 20 minutes can help to set you up for the day. Maintaining a consistent sleep schedule, even on weekends, your body clock thrives on consistency. Limiting exposure to screens and artificial light in the evening. Keeping mealtimes within daylight hours. Exercising regularly but avoid intense workouts close to bedtime as this can spike cortisol and interfere with restful sleep.

Incorporate Relaxing Evening Rituals in Your Sanctuary
Creating a relaxing bedtime routine can signal to your body that it’s time to wind down. Avoid screens, such as phones or laptops, at least an hour before bed, as blue light can interfere with sleep. Try to avoid having a TV in your bedroom, instead look at this room as a sanctuary to retreat from the world, a place to rest and recharge. Ensure your bedroom is well ventilated and we do sleep better in a cooler room.

Try to incorporate some gentle yoga or stretching before bedtime. Reading a book or journal writing can help with the wind down and calming of the body. Practicing deep breathing or meditation can support the body’s natural relaxation and be supportive of restorative sleep. If time permits a warm bath in Epsom Salts is great for unwinding in the evening.

Supplementation
For most of us we will require supplementation at some point and the quality of the supplement will definitely be important in choosing the right one for your needs.

My go to for sleep would always be a quality Cleanmarine Magnesium, taken 30 mins prior to bedtime this can be a game changer for many. Muscle relaxant and relaxes nervous system which in turn helps to support our sleep whilst also supporting energy levels the next day!

My personal recommendations would be Cleanmarine Magnesium, which is a high quality superior products, with no additives, that works really well and can be really supportive of a great night’s sleep.