Do you enjoy wine before bed? So do we! That’s why we wanted to let you know what wine REALLY does to our sleep
You had a rough day. A disgruntled customer wasn’t satisfied and complained, an employee submitted their notice, and you barely had time to eat lunch. All pretty typical business owner’s day, but still – ugh. If you’re just like us, you want to unwind from the day’s stress and pour a glass of wine at bedtime to help sleep.
Now you’re tossing and turning at night, and the next day is equally stressful. There’s already a lot on your plate as an entrepreneur that keeps you awake at night. So, while it may seem harmless, drinking in the long run is not helpful.
You'll Fall Asleep More Easily, But Won't Rest As Well
Alcohol is a sedative after all – and 20% of Americans have admitted to relying on it to help them fall asleep. You may have heard that red wine, for example, is considered “healthy” before bed. This is because it contains resveratrol, a compound known for its sleep-inducing properties, along with other benefits like boosting metabolism. Or maybe it was the allure of late-night television that tempted us to sip our wine like the glamorous characters do overlooking their luxurious surroundings.
However, like a spontaneous night out during your 20s and can’t remember how you made it home, it will mess you up the next morning. That’s because the restorative and cognitive benefits of a good night’s sleep are affected by the consumption of alcohol.
What Wine Before Bed Really Does
Now we don’t mean to imply that you are a heavy drinker. Obviously, you don’t wake up in the late afternoon feeling hungover like a college student after just a glass of wine.
Nevertheless, if you want to wake up refreshed and full of energy the next day, it might be worth reconsidering. Drinking wine too close to bedtime will disrupt your body’s natural sleep pattern. During the first half of the night when the body is processing alcohol, you’ll spend more time in deep-wave sleep and less time in REM.
But what’s so bad about being in deep sleep longer?
The body has its own natural biological functions. It knows when to transition from deep sleep to light sleep as needed. Changes to this structure of sleeping don’t usually bode well. REM is necessary in the first half of the night for mental restoration, such as memory and emotional processing. Without REM, this will be disrupted.
The second half of the night is when disruptions become more pronounced. As the alcohol is metabolized, its sedative properties wear off. Your sleep shifts from a deeper state to a lighter one, with more frequent awakenings at night. You may not even remember these micro-awakenings - they could have been small instances of your eye opening or brief moments of consciousness to a noise outside before quickly falling back to sleep. Still, these little moments disrupt the flow and quality of sleep. At times you might wake up earlier than usual in the morning and be unable to go back to bed.
Beware the Tolerance Build Up
”Surely one glass might be fine though?" Yup, it is! But take that with a grain of salt
We mentioned earlier that red wine can be “healthy,” but it still disrupts sleep. It’s just the least disruptive compared to other wines and alcoholic options. After 3 consecutive days of an innocent glass of wine before bed, the body begins to build a tolerance slightly. You’ll need a little more each time to fall asleep, and this can snowball into catastrophic consequences. What may seem like falling asleep is more akin to blacking out. Keep in mind that 2-3 drinks during the day can affect sleep, so be wary of company lunches.
All in all, enjoy a drink at night because you want to. Not because it’s good for you or can substitute other sleep aids. Try savoring your glass of wine a few hours before bed with your dinner, or on a weekend night with your favorite snacks and movie to be less stressed about next-day consequences.
