If you catch yourself yawning through the day without a clue why, your home might be the perpetrator. It has been suggested that your home décor, appliances, and lifestyle choices can all affect your state of mind and how peaceful your night’s sleep is.
As compiled from Good Housekeeping magazine and everydayroots.com, here are a series of household culprits that may be negatively impacting your energy and exhausting you.
Blue walls
Feeling blue? A study by the company Travelodge investigated bedroom colours in 2,000 homes and found that blue-toned walls help slow down heart rate, reduce blood pressure drastically, and make you feel drowsy. Good for snooze time at night but bad during the day and the morning after.
Untidiness
Sure, you’re resting up by not getting rid of your clutter, but that may be causing you to feel even more worn-out and fatigued. A Princeton University Neuroscience Institute study found that a messy, unorganised environment causes you to expend mental energy on stress, which increases your exhaustion. Make tidiness and cleaning up after yourself a routine to stay high on energy.
Coffee habit
Although a java jolt is just what you need to kickstart your day, come the afternoon or evening, it might be the reason you’re dozing off after work. While caffeine is a stimulant and increases your energy, this upshot wears off over time, leaving you feeling worse later. It could also be that you don’t have a fast metabolism, resulting in caffeine making you lethargic.
Lavender candles
Girls and their fascination with candles! Sure, the scent is soothing, but for that same reason, it might just leave you drained. Psychologists at Wesleyan University found that people who sniffed this aroma before bed slept more soundly. So, you don’t have to ditch it entirely, but maybe stick to mint or citrus-scented candles during daytime and lavender as a pre-bedtime ritual.
Junk food
Sorry to disappoint but it’s time to ditch the paratha rolls and potato chips if you wish to maintain high energy and productivity all day. Foods loaded with simple carbs and sugar result in frequent blood sugar spike, followed by sharp drops that will make you feel drained over time. If you’re big on snacking, grab some almonds or guzzle a bowl of daal.
Air-conditioner
Recent studies found that the optimal temperature for sleep is in fact, pretty cool at 60 to 68 degrees Fahrenheit — so if you keep your bedroom or lounge chillier than that in the day time or at work, you might find yourself feeling ready for a nap during the day instead of jet setting to tackle your jam-packed schedule.
Drawn curtains
A study about workers whose offices have windows versus those without found that people, who were exposed to natural light all day long, slept 46 more minutes per night on average, leaving them enthusiastic and productive the next day. The same goes for your home — natural light will help you sleep better at night and feel more rested the next day. So, aim at loading up on Vitamin D by giving your window blinds a break.
By Umnia Shahid
Published in The Express Tribune, September 30th, 2015.
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