Q.  Like many of my 40 something friends, I have difficulty sleeping.  Sometimes I drop off fines, sleep through and wake refreshed but mostly not.  I don’t want to take sleeping drugs. A.  Many of us suffer insomnia, either long-term, for short ‘acute’ periods, or occasionally.   The key chemical involved in sleep is a hormone called melatonin, which is – like all hormones – profoundly affected by everything else in our lives.  Melatonin is switched on by darkness and off by light.  It is also affected by stress, illness and hormonal flurries such as menopause.  So it’s a volatile little beast but there is a raft of non-drug measures, which should help.

This month, the Sleep Council is offering a free booklet called ‘Get a Good Night’s Sleep’, which offers seven practical steps.  All the basic information is there, from using blackout lining on blinds and curtains and banning technology from your bedroom to using earplugs if your partner snores, avoiding caffeinated drinks (including tea, chocolate and colas) from midday and taking exercise.  Additionally, there are some interesting recent findings.

Swap to low-blue light bulbs at home.  Most indoor bulbs, particularly fluorescent ones, contain a high proportion of blue light, which tends to suppress the rise of melatonin in the evening, making us feel less sleepy.  Reducing blue light in bulbs and increasing red and yellow wavelengths, can potentially help.  You can also find amber glasses that reduce blue light exposure from screens.  (However, you could try adjusting the brightness, contrast and colour settings first.)  Low Blue Energy Saving Lamps, £19.95, Low Blue Lamps, £9.95, Low Blue Lights Glasses (SGN203 Sports Eyewear) £29.99, from www.ronfellshop.com

Don’t turn on blue light if you get up in the night.  If you can’t find the loo, put a red bulb on the way, so you don’t switch off melatonin.

Try a turkey sandwich before bed.  The amino acid tryptophan, found in turkey, chicken and steak, helps you sleep better by increasing levels of a hormone called serotonin, which turns into melatonin. But tryptophan needs some high glycaemic carbohydrate to help it access the brain and get to work, thus the bread.

Alternatively, consider the food supplement Zenbev, derived from tryptophan-rich pumpkin seeds, which has been shown to help sleep. Zenbev needs the dark to metabolise into melatonin so you still need a totally dark bedroom.  Do heed the dosage instructions.  Zenbev, £25.99 for 250 g, in lemon flavour, from Victoria Health - buy here

Montmorency cherry juice contains natural melatonin, and has been shown to help sleep.  Sip diluted CherryActive Concentrate, £15.95 for 473 ml, or try CherryActive capsules at night (as I do), £12.95, from Victoria Health - buy here

Download your free Get A Good Night’s Sleep guide and Sleep Well App, with a questionnaire, sleep solutions, relaxation exercise plus music, from the Sleep Council, www.sleepcouncil.org.uk, or call 0800-018 7923.

 

HOW FIT IS YOUR SKIN?

You could try gorgeous Mama Mio skincare for FREE plus receive a personalised report on how to love the skin you’re in!  Simply fill in the Skin Fitness test by visiting www.fitskinforlife.com/you, and Mama Mio will send the first 1000 readers to complete the questionnaire a Try Me Trio of High Protein Face Care, worth £23, plus your Skin Fitness report with lots of tips to keep your complexion glowing.

 

A FRESHER MOUTH FOR 2013

Here’s a nifty New Year health resolution. Use a tongue scraper regularly to remove the bugs that cluster there, causing bad breath and gum disease.  Our tester says:  ‘The DenTek Tongue Cleaner has a curved plastic surface, which you run gently over your tongue to remove any yukky stuff.  My tongue looks much better and my mouth feels much fresher.” Find the tongue cleaners at www.amazon.co.uk - buy here

 

WATER, WATER, EVERYWHERE...

My colleague Victoria and her family are such converts to the Virgin Pure Water Bar that I am about to order one too.   She reports: ‘I don’t like hard London water, bottled water is expensive, and filter jugs can become bacteria magnets. I don’t have room for big filtration devices under the sink but the Virgin Pure Water Bar is a counter-top unit, like a big coffee maker, which can be up to 20 metres from the mains.  It filters for chlorine and particles such as rust and dirt but leaves useful minerals, and zaps bacteria and viruses with an internal UV lamp. It does double duty as a kettle, giving (child-locked) boiling water for drinking and cooking. Running costs are about 65p daily, but you save on heating kettles and pans of water. There are energy-saving modes for nighttime and holidays.  Filters last six months and UV lamps 12, which are replaced by a technician on your monthly subscription. Our family drinks much more water now, so it is really worth the investment.’

In red, black, silver, green and cream, the T6 WaterBar Pack cost £239, while the faster-flowing T7 is £299, plus £11.95 monthly subscription, from www.virgin-pure.com or 0845-051 7919.