It's no secret that sleep is essential to overall health. Spending enough time asleep each night (the exact number varies, but seven to nine hours is considered the gold standard for most adults) gives your body and brain the opportunity to recover and pays off for your long-term heart health, brain health, weight management, immune response, and more.
Most of us know what it feels like to wake up from a deep, high-quality sleep: We get out of bed feeling mentally sharp and positive about the day ahead. Unfortunately, factors like stress, distractions, and uncomfortable bedroom environments can all keep us up and night and make energized mornings a distant dream.
Experts agree that the single most important way you can improve your sleep is to stick to a consistent bedtime and wake-up time. (Learn why that's so essential here.) If your sleep timing is always off, buying your way to a better snooze will not be possible. However, there are definitely products that can help people stick to their schedules; achieving more consistent and reliably restorative sleep in the process.
Over the years, I've interviewed dozens of physicians, psychologists, and neuroscientists who specialize in sleep to get their intel on the tools and techniques that will actually help people achieve their deepest rest. These are the products that they recommend again and again, and each one would make a dreamy sleep gift.