Sleep myths

Boots sleep expert Chris Idzikowski debunks some common fallacies.

An hour before midnight is worth two hours after:

FALSE Changing your sleep to fit in 'the hour before midnight' will most likely be the wrong time for your biological clock and you will wake feeling less like you've slept well.

Don't go to bed on a full stomach:

TRUE A decrease in body temperature is a sleep trigger. Going to bed after eating a large meal can increase body temperature during the night, as your body will still be digesting food.

Nightcaps help you sleep:

FALSE Alcohol may reduce anxiety and aid the onset of sleep but it is a diuretic and impairs breathing. Wakefulness can occur as the brain realises the alcohol has gone.