GOOD HABITS

Sleep Tight Every Night

According to a recent report from the National Sleep Foundation, 41 percent of people are tossing and turning at least a few evenings a week. And a lousy night’s rest does more than ruin your morning mood, it can wreak havoc on your health. A special report out of Harvard University notes that not clocking enough slumber time increases your risk for diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, weight gain and more. (Newborns and babies require up to 18 hours of sleep; toddlers up to 14; preschoolers 11 to 13; school-age kids need up to 11; 10-year-olds through teens need 8.5 to 9.25 hours a night; and adults should snooze between seven and nine hours nightly.)

To help meet your target Zzs, set up a consistent sleep schedule, including when you go down and when you wake up, and establish a relaxing bedtime routine that begins an hour or more before you hit the hay. Also key: Keep the bedroom dark, quiet and cool; boot sleep-stealers, like the TV and computer, from the room; eat dinner at least two hours before bed; and avoid caffeine and alcohol for four to six hours before bedtime. Although alcohol can make you sleepy and help you fall asleep more quickly, it disturbs the quality of your sleep (you sleep more lightly) and wakes you up earlier. So ultimately, you get less and poorer-quality sleep.

Make Hand-Washing a Habit

Do you want to know what’s likely the single most important thing you can do to protect yourself and your family from sickness? It’s hand-washing, finds the AAP. “Just regular old soap is perfect,” says Dr. Asta. “The thicker the liquid soap, the better for kids, however. It’ll take them longer to wash it away and lead to a better cleanup.” (Ideal scrub-time: about 20 seconds.)

One of the best ways to get your kids to wash is for you to do it, too. Apparently, adults not practicing regular hand-washing is one of the biggest barriers to kids doing it, finds a report in the journal Health Education Research. Beyond sudsing up before meals and snacks, after using the bathroom and when coming in from the outdoors, it’s also important to keep good coughing and sneezing hygiene. When possible, use a tissue, not your hands, to cover your coughs and sneezes. “A dirty tissue can be thrown out and hands can be washed,” says Dr. Asta. Don’t have a tissue on hand? Sneeze or cough into the inside of your elbow. Just be sure to toss your shirt in the laundry when you get home. Viruses and bacteria can linger on clothing.