Pregnancy can change almost every part of your daily routine, and sleep is no exception. As your body adapts and your baby grows, you may feel more tired, sleep less deeply and wake more often during the night.1 Getting enough good-quality sleep is important for both you and your developing baby, so understanding what to expect can make these changes a little easier to manage.
First trimester: tired, but not always sleeping well - During the first trimester, rising progesterone levels can leave you feeling unusually sleepy and low on energy.
When we think about healthy aging, nutritious food and regular exercise usually come to mind. But there’s another everyday habit that deserves a place on that list: sleep. Research increasingly suggests that sleep is connected not only with how rested we feel, but also with brain health, metabolism, immune function and how our bodies age over time.
Sleep may influence how your body ages - Your chronological age tells you how many birthdays you’ve had, but your biological age reflects how your body is functioning at a cellular and organ level.
Ever been kept awake by the sound of heavy breathing or snoring next to you? You’re not alone, and there’s actually a simple explanation behind it.
It’s All About Airflow - Whether you’re awake or asleep, the sound of breathing comes down to air vibrating as it moves through your breathing tube. Think of it a bit like a musical instrument. The narrower the passage and the faster the air moves through it, the louder the sound becomes.
There is a lot of advice out there about nursery colours and nappy bags, but one of the most useful things you can do before your baby arrives is prepare your sleep expectations. Newborns simply do not know the difference between day and night yet, and that means your own sleep is about to change dramatically. The good news is that a little planning now can make those early weeks far more manageable.
Expect Your Sleep to Change - Babies take about three months to develop a proper day and night sleep cycle.
If your alarm goes off while the rest of the street is still dark, you already know that early starts come with a unique set of challenges. Waking at 4am or 5am isn’t just about losing a few hours of shut-eye. It can throw your whole body clock out of whack, leaving you groggy on the job and wired when you finally get a chance to wind down. The good news is that with a few deliberate habits, you can protect your sleep and feel more like yourself, even on the earliest of mornings.
Why Early Starts Are Hard on Your Body - Your body runs on a circadian rhythm…
Ask any tradie what recovery looks like, and you’ll hear about stretching, hydration, maybe a sports massage if they’re feeling fancy. Sleep rarely makes the list, yet it’s the one recovery tool your body simply cannot function without. After a long day on the tools, sleep is the only natural way your body and brain get to properly recharge.
Why Sleep Matters More Than You Think - When you’re not getting quality sleep, the effects go far beyond feeling groggy the next morning…
Snoring often gets dismissed as a harmless quirk of getting older, something to chuckle about or politely ignore. But for older adults, snoring can be a sign of something far more significant happening during sleep, and it’s worth paying closer attention to than most people realise.
A Surprisingly Common Condition - Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is far more common in older adults than most people assume. Some research suggests that nearly half of people aged 60 to 85 may have the condition, yet the vast majority remain undiagnosed…
Snoring gets a bad rap as the punchline of sleepover jokes and the reason your partner kicks you to the spare room. But for tradies, particularly those operating machinery, driving long distances, or working at heights, snoring can be the first warning sign of something far more serious. Sleep apnea is more common than most people realise, and on a job site, it can be downright dangerous.
What Is Sleep Apnea? Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) happens when your throat repeatedly narrows or closes completely during sleep…
When we think about what’s keeping us up at night, gum disease is probably the last thing that comes to mind. Yet research increasingly shows that the health of your gums and the quality of your sleep are far more connected than most people realise, and the relationship runs both ways.
How Poor Sleep Affects Your Gums: When you don’t get enough quality sleep, your immune system takes a hit.
