15 natural ways to improve your sleep

Melatonin is a natural hormone that your body produces when it’s getting close to bedtime. You can take melatonin supplements on a short-term basis if your normal sleep cycle has been disrupted, like if you’ve switched to a late-night shift at work or you have jet lag, according to Alina Petre of Healthline.

While scientists don’t quite understand how glycine helps with sleep, research has found that taking this amino acid before bedtime can improve the quality of your slumber, according to a paper published in Nature. The sleep aid comes as either a pill or a powder that you mix in water. Glycine is also naturally found in some foods, such as bone broth, bananas, kale, poultry, and fish.

Found all over the world, lavender is a flowering plant with purple blossoms often used in aromatherapy. Studies show that sniffing lavender oil starting about a half-hour before your ideal bedtime can enhance sleep.

Magnesium is a critical mineral for the body, used to support a variety of organs and functions—including sleep. Insufficient magnesium levels are associated with insomnia and other sleep problems. Magnesium supplements have been shown to help improve the quality and duration of sleep.

If you feel sleepy after eating a big turkey dinner, tryptophan might be to blame. The body can convert the essential amino acid that is found in many protein-rich foods into a molecule that’s used to create melatonin, which is associated with sleepiness, according to Grant Tinsley of Healthline. While research on tryptophan sleep aid supplements is limited, a 2010 study from Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews found that a dosage as low as 1 gram can improve how well a person sleeps.

Extract of valerian, a flowering herb found in Europe and Asia, is commonly used as a natural way to induce sleep. While objective studies on valerian are limited so far, early research has shown that taking 300–900 milligrams of this supplement before bedtime can improve the self-perceived quality of sleep, according to Alina Petre of Healthline.

Chamomile is loaded with compounds, like apigenin and coumarin, which are associated with calmness and relaxation, according to Xavia Malcolm of Jamaica Hospital Medical Center. The flower has long been used in folk medicine as a cure for insomnia. Research has found that chamomile tea helped reduce sleep inefficiency in postnatal women. Another report found that nursing home residents who took two 400-milligram capsules of chamomile daily had significantly better sleep quality.

Ginkgo biloba is an ancient tree species known for its fan-shaped leaves. Studies have shown that taking a 250-milligram dose of this herb around an hour before you hit the hay can help promote better sleep.

Chamomile isn’t the only tea that can help you doze off—hops, a plant used in beer-making, can also be steeped in boiled water for a relaxing bedtime beverage, according to Xavia Malcolm of Jamaica Hospital Medical Center. Some studies have found that hops, when used in combination with valerian, helps reduce insomnia in adults, according to Shanah Salter and Sonya Brownie of Australian Family Physician.

If you have trouble sleeping, it might be worth trying passion flower tea. Limited, yet promising research has found that drinking passion flower tea around 60 minutes before you want to catch some Zs led to an uptick in the self-rated quality of sleep among participants.

The secret to better sleep might be lingering down the juice aisle of the supermarket—tart cherry juice. It contains high levels of melatonin. A 2011 study showed that participants who drank tart cherry juice concentrate for a week experienced longer sleep duration and had significantly higher levels of melatonin in their urine than people who took a placebo.

A glass of warm milk before bed may give your brain the same effect as tryptophan, the sleep-inducing substance found in turkey and other proteins, according to Johns Hopkins Medicine. Take this natural sleep aid one step further by adding turmeric, cinnamon, peeled ginger, and honey to create golden milk, which may lower anxiety levels and ultimately provide better rest, according to Tiffany La Forge of Healthline.

Hitting the gym regularly can improve the symptoms of insomnia in adults who have proper sleep hygiene, according to a 2010 study in Sleep Medicine. However, time your exercise properly: Aerobic exercise, such as bike rides, runs, and dance, can release endorphins that may keep you awake if you work out too late in the day. Try to avoid rigorous physical activity in the two hours leading up to bedtime, according to Johns Hopkins Medicine.

The body naturally decreases its temperature to get you in the mood for rest when it’s time for bed. Setting the bedroom thermostat somewhere between 60 and 67 degrees Fahrenheit can help enhance the body’s ability to cool you down, according to the National Sleep Foundation.

It might sound obvious, but a dark environment is critical to letting your body know you’re ready to rest. For better sleep, get dark shades for your windows, turn off all smartphones and light-emitting devices, and avoid flicking on the bathroom light if nature calls in the middle of the night, according to Johns Hopkins Medicine.