Another new health trend, courtesy of TikTok. It's called sleepmaxxing, an elaborate multi-step nighttime routine designed to enhance sleep quality and quantity, according to CNN Health.
One user's routine includes blue light-blocking glasses, red light therapy to simulate sunset, vitamin D and magnesium tablets, magnesium ointment applied to the wrists, organic cotton bedding, an eye mask, a nose strip to open the sinuses, and mouth tape to prevent mouth breathing.
Other maxxers add a precisely timed shower, sauna and meditation, and even kiwi fruit.
All of this begs the question: Is this a sleep strategy, or just a social media fad? It's both, according to Harvard Health. Some of the sleepmaxxing essentials are just good sleep hygiene. According to CNN, experts have long agreed that you'll sleep better if you don't drink caffeine or alcohol before bedtime, sleep in a cool and dark room, and stash the screens.
Some of the hacks lack evidence to support their use, but carry few risks.
Several sleepmaxxing hacks, however, may actually worsen sleep or pose health risks. Mouth taping can be dangerous for people with obstructive sleep apnea or collapsed airways. Supplements, unnecessary for most people, can mask sleep disorders.
If you're experiencing real sleep issues, consider calling a doctor before sleepmaxxing.
Rick Good spent ten years in the newspaper business, including with The News & Observer (Raleigh, NC) and The Greenville News (Greenville, SC). He co-wrote, with Melinda Coleman, Rutledge to Riley: Governors of South Carolina, 1776–Present (Published by The Greenville News), and is the author of Mind Games Trivia #1 (Amazon). He has recently spent 15 years creating original trivia content through Sounds Good Mobile Entertainment and continues that with his new company, SGME Software. He edits The Smart Reader’s money, real estate, and business coverage.
