改善睡眠的10条戒律

改善睡眠的10条戒律

Air, water, food -- are key ingredients to human survival. In reality, there should be another word in that list: sleep.

空气、水、食物，是人类生存的关键因素。事实上，在这个列表中应该有另一个词:睡眠。

We're supposed to get between seven and 10 hours of sleep each night, depending on our age, but the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says that a third of Americans sleep fewer than seven hours a night. It's a global problem too.

我们每晚应该有7到10个小时的睡眠时间，这取决于我们的年龄，但美国疾病控制和预防中心表示，三分之一的美国人每晚的睡眠时间少于7个小时。这也是一个全球性的问题。

"Sleep problems constitute a global epidemic that threatens health and quality of life for up to 45% of the world's population," according to the World Sleep Society, a non-profit organization of sleep professionals dedicated to advancing "sleep health worldwide."

“睡眠问题是一种全球性的流行病，威胁着高达45%的世界人口的健康和生活质量，”世界睡眠协会表示。该协会是一个由睡眠专业人士组成的非盈利组织，致力于推动“世界范围内的睡眠健康”。

Yet how does anyone get to sleep today in the turmoil over the coronavirus pandemic? Workplaces and schools are shutting down, meaning hourly workers are without paychecks if they can't work and children used to free lunch are not getting fed -- never mind our concerns about elections, global stock market meltdowns or escalating border or trade wars.

然而，在冠状病毒大流行的混乱局面中，人们今天怎么能睡得着觉呢?工作场所和学校都在关闭，这意味着小时工如果不能工作就拿不到工资，习惯于免费午餐的孩子也得不到食物——更别提我们对选举、全球股市崩盘、不断升级的边境或贸易战的担忧了。

It's a lot, folks, but failing to sleep isn't going to make things better.

很多，伙计们，但是睡不着觉并不能让事情好转。

To combat that, sleep experts from the World Sleep Society have created these ten commandments of sleep hygiene for weary adults.

为了解决这个问题，世界睡眠协会的睡眠专家们为疲惫的成年人制定了以下十条睡眠卫生戒律。

Establish a regular bedtime and waking time

建立有规律的作息时间

Messing with our circadian rhythm, the internal sleep clock that tells us when it's time to sleep and rise, has been linked to hypertension, insulin resistance, diabetes and, most recently, the risk of having a heart attack or heart disease.

扰乱我们的昼夜节律，告诉我们何时该睡觉和起床的内部睡眠时钟，与高血压、胰岛素抵抗、糖尿病以及最近心脏病发作或心脏病的风险有关。

The more days you sleep irregularly, the higher the risk, a study found.

一项研究发现，睡眠不规律的天数越多，患病风险就越高。

Watch your napping

注意你的午睡

While an occasional short snooze can be healthy, the World Sleep Society's second commandment warns: "If you are in the habit of taking siestas, do not exceed 45 minutes of daytime sleep."

偶尔打个小盹可能有益健康，但世界睡眠协会的第二条诫命警告说:“如果你有午睡的习惯，白天的睡眠时间不要超过45分钟。”

One reason is because we typically enter a "deep sleep" cycle about 30 to 40 minutes into a nap. Waking up from deep sleep produces that "Where am I?" grogginess that is worse than no nap at all. A long nap can also interfere with your body clock, making it more difficult to fall asleep later that night.

一个原因是，我们通常进入一个“深度睡眠”周期大约30至40分钟进入午睡。从沉睡中醒来会产生“我在哪里?”头昏眼花，比不睡午觉更糟糕。长时间的小睡也会干扰你的生物钟，使你在那晚很难入睡。

No alcohol or cigarettes

不喝酒，不抽烟

The third commandment is to "avoid excessive alcohol ingestion four hours before bedtime, and do not smoke."

第三条诫律是“睡前4小时避免过量饮酒，不要吸烟。”

A drink traps you in the lighter stages of sleep and dramatically reduces the quality of your rest at night.

喝一杯酒会让你进入较浅的睡眠阶段，极大地降低了你晚上的休息质量。

Avoid caffeine six hours before bedtime

睡前6小时避免摄入咖啡因

Here's a no-brainer: Boycott caffeine at least six hours before your normal bedtime (some experts say nothing after 3 p.m.). And caffeine is in more than just coffee, so the World Sleep Society also warns about tea and many sodas, as well as chocolate.

这里有一个显而易见的建议:在正常就寝时间前至少6个小时拒绝咖啡因(一些专家提议下午3点后就拒绝咖啡因)。咖啡因不仅仅存在于咖啡中，所以世界睡眠协会也对茶、汽水和巧克力提出了警告。

Avoid eating certain foods

避免吃某些食物

The fifth commandment: "Avoid heavy, spicy, or sugary foods four hours before bedtime." Heavy and spicy foods may give you heartburn or other digestive issues, thus affecting your ability to get and stay asleep. As for sugar, studies show it's linked to restless, disturbed sleep and may possibly affect hormones that control cravings.

第五条戒律:“睡前4小时内避免吃油腻、辛辣或含糖的食物。”辛辣的食物可能会导致胃灼热或其他消化问题，从而影响你入睡和保持睡眠的能力。至于糖，研究表明，它与不安和睡眠紊乱有关，还可能影响控制渴望的荷尔蒙。

Exercise regularly, but not right before bed

经常锻炼，但不要在睡觉前

Surveys of vigorous exercisers by the National Sleep Foundation show they are almost twice as likely to report high-quality, regular sleep compared to non-exercisers, and sitting for long periods of time is thought to be connected to poor sleep.

美国国家睡眠基金会对精力充沛的锻炼者进行的调查显示，与不锻炼者相比，他们高质量、有规律睡眠的可能性几乎是不锻炼者的两倍，而长时间坐着被认为会导致睡眠不良。

Improve your sleep environment

改善你的睡眠环境

Having just the right sleep environment is so important that the remaining four commandments focus on how to do that.

拥有正确的睡眠环境非常重要，所以剩下的四条戒律都是关于如何做到这一点。

First, keep your bedroom well-ventilated and pick a comfortable sleep temperature setting. Science is pretty much sure that a cool temperature is best, so aim for between 60 and 67 degrees Fahrenheit (15 to 20 degrees Celsius).

首先，保持你的卧室通风良好，选择设置一个舒适的睡眠温度。科学很确定凉爽的温度是最好的，所以目标是在华氏60到67度(摄氏15到20度)之间。

Make sure you have "comfortable, inviting bedding" that fits your personal preferences. "Block out all distracting noise" -- and get rid of any light, even the blue light from your charging smartphone.

确保你有“舒适，诱人的床上用品”适合你的个人喜好，“把所有分散注意力的噪音都屏蔽掉”把所有的灯都关掉，甚至是充电智能手机上的蓝光。

While you're at it, go ahead and turn off any work alerts. Better still, just charge the thing outside your bedroom.

当你在睡觉的时候，去关掉所有的工作提醒。更妙的是，在你的卧室外面充电。

And last, but not least, "reserve your bed for sleep." As normal as it seems to work from home in bed or play games with the kids in bed, that doesn't teach your brain to view the bedroom as a place for slumber.

最后，但并非最不重要的，“把你的床留作睡觉。”虽然在家的床上工作或和孩子在床上玩游戏看起来很正常，但这并不能教会你的大脑把卧室当成睡觉的地方。

Can't do all 10 things? Pick just one, and see if you can make it happen. Little successes will build upon each other and lead to a happier (and more rested) you.

10件事不能全做吗?只选一个，看看你能不能做到。小小的成功会建立在彼此的基础上，让你更快乐(更轻松)。