L SING SLEEP

Australians have “bad” bedtime habits, meaning almostl none of f us are getting enough sleep. Dr Michael Mosley explores solutions to this growing health crisis

Forget Ozempic for weight loss, or puzzles and brain trainer games for your memory – there’s one very simple act that can reduce your risk of obesity or dementia, and it’s as simple as switching off the lights and shutting your eyes. A deep sleep is so important for our bodies that it can reduce the risk of dementia and stop us from overeating – but for many Australians falling asleep is a lot harder than it sounds.

Lying awake in bed as the hours tick on can feel very lonely – but it’s estimated 40 per cent of the population are getting inadequate sleep every night.

Australia is facing a “sleep crisis” according to British medical journalist, author and documentary maker Dr Michael Mosley, and it’s affecting everyone from the young to the elderly.

Our sleeping habits are “bad across the board”, and are being triggered by our increasingly online world, social media, stress and junk food.

Sure, the feeling of exhaustion when you wake up is awful, but there are long term impacts on the body and mind that are far more serious – potentially leading to dementia and heart disease.

“We know (a lack of sleep) impacts pretty well every system in your body,” Mosley says.

“It’s bad for your memory because a lot of memory storage goes on during deep sleep.

“It contributes to obesity, type two diabetes, heart disease, impotence, all of them are strongly linked to lack of sleep.”

Priyanka Vandersman once thought her insomnia was her “superpower”, enabling her to work and study for her PHD, but when she became a mum, she quickly realised it was in fact one of her biggest problems.

“I had a very sort of crazy busy lifestyle, either doing my nursing degree or working as a nurse doing night duty while undertaking a research degree,” she says.

“It was really good because between 10pm and 3am I’d be knocking out a portion of my research after work.

“But it started to be a real problem when I got to a full-time Monday to Friday working model and had my daughter. The challenges of motherhood were there but it gets really, really intensified when the background is lack of sleep constantly for days on end.”

Tossing and turning for three or more hours before falling asleep for just a few hours each

SCENTED CANDLES, WARM BATHS, PINK NOISE ARE ALL VERY NICE, BUT EXTREMELY UNLIKELY TO MAKE A SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE