9 Ways To Hack Your Brain For Better Sleep, From A Neuroscientist

Even if you're getting a full night's sleep, there's always room to improve your actual sleep quality, as well as initiate sleep more effectively. To find out how, we asked neuroscientist and author of Biohack Your Brain Kristen Willeumier, Ph.D., for her top strategies to help the brain prepare for deep sleep:

As Willeumier explains, lights will decrease your body's production of melatonin, which is what helps signal the body that it's time to sleep. To help support melanin production, she recommends dimming the lights about an hour before you go to sleep.

Eating anything (particularly a large meal) too soon before bed can have negative effects on your quality of sleep because it takes a fair amount of energy to digest food. Willeumier recommends reducing your food consumption at least three hours before bed. If you do need to reach for a bedtime snack, she says magnesium-rich foods like nuts and seeds or a bit of dark chocolate are good options.

And speaking of magnesium, it's a favorite supplement of Willeumier's for clients who have trouble getting to sleep. She also recommends pharmaGABA, the natural form of the GABA neurotransmitter. (It just so happens that mindbodygreen's sleep support+ formula contains both sleep enhancers, as well as relaxing jujube!) Magnesium is an "essential mineral needed to help calm the body down," Willeumier notes, and it also works to calm the mind, so you can get to sleep faster and wake up more rejuvenated.* Take it about half an hour before bed to see the best results, she adds.

One of the best ways to avoid tossing and turning at night is to go to sleep at the same time every evening. "Your brain does very well when it's on a routine," Willeumier notes. If possible, she always tells her patients to aim to sleep between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m. to sync up with their body's natural production of melatonin, which kicks off at around 9 p.m.

As you likely know, caffeine and sleep don't mix. But a lot of people don't realize that caffeine has a half-life of up to six to eight hours1, meaning it takes a while to pass through our systems. As such, Willeumier advises avoiding caffeine after 3 p.m.—and that includes things like tea and soft drinks, as well as coffee.

You might be able to get away with a glass of wine at dinner if you're eating early enough, but Willeumier says to try to stop consuming any alcohol at least five hours before bed. "It interferes with your sleep architecture in the evening," she notes, and it's known to inhibit REM sleep2.

If you're looking for some calming evening activities to do rather than staring at a screen, Willeumier suggests trying a guided meditation geared toward sleep, "to help shift your brain into those slower brain wave states." Other types of audio such as binaural beats for sleep, or even soothing nature sounds, would work here as well.

Epsom salt baths can be particularly helpful if you're holding a lot of tension in the body or are feeling physically restless, Willeumier explains. Taking any kind of bath can be a calming self-care ritual, and the salts contain magnesium, giving you the added benefit of deep physical and mental relaxation.

There's no question that if you want to have a great day, it starts the night before, with sleep that's deep and restorative. Whether your issue is actually falling asleep or staying asleep throughout the night, incorporating these brain-supporting activities into your nighttime routine can help prepare the brain to catch plenty of zzz's.