How Can Good Sleep Hygiene Help You Fall Asleep Faster?
Sometimes, getting a good night’s sleep is easier said than done, even when we feel exhausted and ready for bed. In fact, according to Mental Health UK, almost 1 in 5 people aren’t getting enough sleep.
However, good sleep hygiene could hold the key to improving your sleep. From establishing a soothing bedtime routine to taking the technology out of your bedroom, there are many small tweaks that can make a big difference to your sleep pattern.
In this article, we’ll talk through what sleep hygiene is and how you can use it to deal with insomnia and catch up on sleep.
Medically reviewed in October 2025.
What is sleep hygiene?
To break it down in its simplest terms, sleep hygiene refers to the routines or behaviours you can practise to fall asleep faster or improve the quality of your sleep. Examples of good sleep hygiene include eating the right foods before bed, reducing your screen time at night, and limiting your caffeine intake.
Good sleep hygiene isn’t just a one-off either. To maximise its effectiveness, you need to be following the same advice every night, allowing your body to get into a healthy routine.
However, it’s important to note that these changes are not a miracle cure for all sleeping problems. Instead, think of them as a way to increase your chances of falling asleep and having a better night’s rest. If you do have long-lasting sleep issues or insomnia, then it’s best to talk to your GP about the best course of treatment.
How does poor sleep hygiene impact your body?
Sleep is a basic human need, giving your body and brain a chance to rest and repair. When poor sleep hygiene gets in the way, it can have a real impact on both your physical and mental health.
For example, poor sleep can take a toll on your physical health, leading to:
A higher risk of long-term health problems like heart disease, high blood pressure, and diabetes.
A weakened immune system, making it harder to fight off illnesses like the flu or a common cold.
It can also have a negative impact on your mental wellbeing, causing you to feel:
More irritable or low in energy.
Like your mind is ‘fuzzy’, making it difficult to concentrate or make decisions.
Remember, if you’re experiencing any of these symptoms, it’s a good idea to talk to your GP. While good sleep hygiene can make a big difference, a healthcare professional can offer wider insight into how to fix your insomnia and recommend the best treatment plan for you.
7 sleep hygiene tips to help you get a good night’s sleep
While certain medical studies talk up the five principles of good sleep health (prioritise, personalise, value, trust, and protect your sleep), it can be a little tricky to put those into practise. That’s why we’ve pulled together this sleep hygiene checklist to help you enjoy a good night’s sleep:
1. Establish a consistent bedtime routine
We are very much creatures of habit, and establishing regular routines is a great sleep hygiene tip to get our brains and bodies accustomed to falling asleep and waking up at the same time every day.
It’s not as straightforward as it sounds, however. Where people might be going wrong is with the bedtime routine itself. This is the time when you need to be winding down and, essentially, telling your body that it should be preparing for sleep.
In terms of that sleep hygiene checklist, repeating the following actions at the same time every night gives a signal to your brain and body that it’s almost time to sleep:
- Putting on your pyjamas.
- Brushing your teeth.
- Taking off your makeup.
- Preparing breakfast or lunch for the next day.
- Laying out your clothes for the following morning.
You should also avoid using technology 30 minutes to an hour before going to bed. Studies have shown that using devices before bedtime directly impacts the amount and quality of your sleep. So, be sure to un-plug from phones, laptops, tablets, and television as you wind down for bed.
2. Turn your bedroom into a sleep sanctuary
Following on from the sleep hygiene advice around bedtimes, you also need to ensure your bedroom is an environment that actually encourages sleep.
From a practical perspective, you’ll want to ensure that your bed is as comfortable as can be. That means finding a mattress that will help your posture, soft blankets to wrap yourself up in, and the right pillows to rest your head on.
And then, you’ll want to remove any technology from the room, which will help when creating the perfect bedtime routine. As previously mentioned, studies found that using electronic devices during bedtime, such as televisions or phones, which directly impacts the quality of your sleep.
There are also studies that analysed how multi-functional bedrooms might affect good sleep hygiene. The results suggested that people much prefer to use their bedrooms for just sleep, rather than also working, reading, or watching television, and their sleep improved as a result.
3. Review your healthy habits
While the majority of advice is concerned with what you do at night, your daily behaviours and habits could also be contributing to poor sleep hygiene.
For example, consuming too much caffeine can make it much more difficult to drift off to sleep, so try to avoid drinking coffee, black tea, or energy drinks after noon. There’s also a direct correlation between drinking alcohol and sleep disruption. As such, if you reduce your alcohol intake, you’re not only following good sleep hygiene, but you also lower the risk of cancer, heart disease, liver disease, and strokes.
These daily habits also play a huge role in how you age. Take our healthy ageing quiz to take a closer look at your current lifestyle choices and read tips for how to potentially improve on those daily habits.
4. Don’t get too focused on sleep tracking
Smartwatches and fitness trackers have given us more data about our sleep than ever before. And while this can be useful for spotting patterns or seeing how a new habit affects your rest, it’s also easy to become a bit obsessed or overwhelmed with the numbers.
In fact, this has led to a new term: orthosomnia, which is an unhealthy focus on achieving ‘perfect’ sleep based on data from your tracker. This can actually increase anxiety around bedtime, making it harder to drift off. Remember, the goal of good sleeping habits is to feel rested and refreshed, not to get a perfect score on an app.
5. Try mindfulness to help clear your mind to sleep
Sometimes, even when your body is tired, your mind just won’t switch off. For example, worries about work, family, or finances can make it incredibly difficult to relax, no matter how comfortable your bedroom is.
This is where practicing mindfulness can help. Simple exercises, like focusing on the sensation of your breath or doing a gentle body scan, can help quieten a racing mind. Another helpful technique from Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) is to write down your worries in a journal about an hour before bed. This can help you ‘park’ your concerns until the morning, clearing your mind to sleep.
6. Eat the right foods before bed
There are certain foods that help you fall asleep, which include specific nutrients or ingredients that promote a more restful sleep. For example, cherries contain melatonin which helps control your sleep cycle, while the magnesium in bananas helps relax your muscles and calm your body.
On the other hand, there are also foods that can disrupt sleep and make it difficult to drop off. We’re talking about the likes of chocolate, cheese, and ice cream, which should be avoided at least two hours before bedtime.
In general, you should also try to avoid eating large meals right before bed. If your body is still busy digesting lots of food when you get into bed, it can make it much harder to drift off. Try to have your last big meal at least two to three hours before you plan to go to sleep.
7. Don’t try to force sleep
We understand how frustrating it can feel when you just can’t drop off, but trying to force yourself to sleep can sometimes have the opposite effect. The stress or anxiety of watching the clock tick closer to your set alarm time, and thinking about being tired the next day, will only disrupt sleep further.
It might sound counterintuitive, but it’s often better to get out of bed if you’re really struggling to sleep. Instead, try doing something relaxing in low light, such as listening to quiet, calming music or reading a book, until you start to feel sleepy. Then, only go back to bed when you start to feel genuinely tired.
Ready to put these sleep hygiene tips to the test? If you’ve tried these tips and are still struggling with your sleep, remember that support is available. Benenden Health members can call our 24/7 GP Helpline to speak to a qualified GP at any time, day or night.
For more tools to support your wellbeing, you can also explore the Benenden Health app. This gives you access to services like our My Expert Health coach, who can provide personalised guidance to help you achieve your health goals. For more health and wellbeing advice, head over to our Be Healthy Hub.
