Today's three-minute lesson

Alcohol and Sleep Quality

Alcohol can make you feel sleepy.

That is why it is easy to assume that a drink in the evening helps you sleep.

It may help you fall asleep more quickly, but falling asleep easily and sleeping well are not the same thing.

Alcohol is a sedative. As it begins to affect your brain, it can reduce feelings of alertness and make the transition into sleep feel easier. However, sedation does not reproduce the natural structure of healthy sleep.

Yesterday, you learned that sleep moves through a series of stages and cycles. Alcohol can interfere with the balance and progression of those stages.

During the first part of the night, alcohol may alter the amount of time you spend in rapid eye movement - or REM - sleep. As your body processes the alcohol and its sedating effect wears off, sleep often becomes lighter and more fragmented.

You may wake more frequently during the second half of the night, even if you do not remember every awakening in the morning.

This is one reason you can spend enough time in bed after drinking and still wake feeling poorly rested.

Alcohol can disturb sleep in other ways too.

It can increase the need to urinate during the night, contribute to dehydration and make snoring more likely by relaxing the muscles around the upper airway. It can also worsen breathing problems in people with obstructive sleep apnoea.

The effect is not limited to heavy drinking.

The more alcohol you drink, and the closer you drink it to bedtime, the more likely it is to affect the quality and continuity of your sleep. However, even a smaller amount can make a noticeable difference for some people.

This does not mean that you must promise never to drink again.

The purpose of this course is to help you understand the choices available to you, not to turn every evening into a test of perfection.

If you choose to drink, having less and finishing earlier in the evening gives your body more time to process the alcohol before you go to bed. Eating alongside it and alternating alcoholic drinks with water may also help you drink more slowly, although water cannot cancel alcohol's effect on your sleep.

It can also help to notice the difference for yourself.

A sleep tracker is not required. Pay attention to whether you wake during the night, how you feel when you get up and whether your energy or mood feels different the following day.

Your task is to choose one alcohol-free evening this week. If you already do not drink, simply continue as you are.

If you do drink on another evening, try finishing earlier than usual and notice whether the timing changes the way you sleep.

The aim is to understand the trade-off clearly enough that the choice becomes an informed one.