Can't wake up in the morning? Or go to sleep at night? It's possible for most of us to change our sleeping habits, with a bit of effort. Try this plan to adjust your circadian rhythm of sleep.
1 Set your wake-up time -- and then stick to it. Ideally, you should get up at the same time every morning, including weekends. If you sleep more than 90 minutes later on a Saturday or Sunday, it will affect your body clock, readjusting it to the later wake-up time just as you have to get up early again on Monday morning.
2 Seek light. Immediately upon awakening, expose yourself to bright light for at least 20 minutes, either by walking or exercising outside or using a special light box or portable light visor around the house, with approximately 10,000 lux of light.
3Try melatonin. It's important to discuss this first with your doctor, but for many people, taking this over-the-counter supplement -- a synthetic version of the natural hormone -- about six hours before you want to go to sleep can help regulate your body clock.
4 Put yourself in a position where you can sleep. Avoid eating, alcohol, caffeine and exercise, which rev up the body, for at least a few hours before bedtime, and then turn off the TV, power down the Internet and get off the phone. Instead, turn to your MP3 player for some mellow music or a "boring" book on tape. That way you'll evade additional light exposure and be able to start winding down.
WASHINGTON POST
Exercise on the road Personal trainer Nicole Glor has you covered on the road. "Nikki Fit Travel Workout" "(GT Media, $19.99) works every major muscle group in an efficient 30 minutes. The workout requires no equipment except for the occasional park bench for side plank or a hotel bed for a triceps dip, though both can be modified to do on the floor. Available at www.nikkifitness.com.
A checkup for new drugs The Food and Drug Administration launched a new website where patients and doctors can look for safety problems involving recently approved drugs. The site lists "adverse events" -- side effects that weren't detected in clinical trials but were reported by patients after the medications were put on the market. It addresses 26 drugs approved since September 2007 to treat ailments including depression, hypertension, asthma and arthritis.
