New Chico-Based Wellness Series Starts Next Week. 

Just call us trendsetters! If Pantone has a color of the year, then we’re claiming a wellness tip for 2021: Welcome the Year of Good Sleep!

To keep COVID-19 at bay and our immune systems happy this season, we’ve teamed up with several local businesses to gather a series of wellness tips aimed at helping you get better zzzs in 2021. 

Over the next several weeks, we’ll be sharing professional advice from local experts on topics like fitness, nutrition, sleep, art, and mental health. These interviews will highlight key tips on how to stay healthy so you can get a good night’s sleep. 

What does sleep have to do with wellness, you might ask?

At Square Deal, we firmly believe a good night’s rest is one of the best ways to stay healthy.

Studies show that a hearty seven or more hours of sleep each night can give you a whole host of positive health benefits. It can help repair heart and blood vessels as well as regulate growth, insulin, and hunger hormones. Even better? Prioritizing sleep as an important weapon in your wellness arsenal gives your body the upper hand in the fight against inflammation and illnesses like diabetes, heart disease, and high blood pressure.

Most exciting: adequate sleep also makes vaccines more effective. “After getting a shot, people with sleep issues don’t develop the same antibody response as well-rested people, and that leaves them more susceptible,” says Shalini Paruthi, M.D., a sleep specialist and spokesperson for the American Academy of Sleep Medicine.

Understandably, the stresses of the pandemic have significantly affected the sleep quality for many people around the world. 

Stress, decreased activity, and changed routines have led to what doctors are calling “coronasomnia” in an increasing amount of the population.

“COVID-19 is causing a huge amount of anxiety for so many people,” said Kimberly Hardin, a UC Davis Health professor in the Internal Medicine Department, co-director of the sleep center and the director of the Sleep Medicine Fellowship Program. “People worry about jobs, about their kids being home, about getting sick. There’s a lot more anxiety, fear and depression–and those can cause insomnia.”

Increased susceptibility to COVID-19 is also consideration for those with pre-existing sleep issues, said Chandra L. Jackson, Ph.D., a research investigator with the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences and an adjunct investigator with the National Institute of Minority Health and Health Disparities.

Knowing how important sleep is to our overall health, we’re bringing you actionable wellness advice to improve your quality of sleep. First-up in the series? “How to Pick the Healthiest Mattress”– courtesy of your favorite team here at Square Deal! Check back next week to read all about it. We hope you’ll join us on this journey as we prepare for a recharged and revitalized 2021.