Do viral sleep hacks really work? An expert speaks out

This should not be The It's hard to fall asleep in the first few minutes after closing your eyes. Yet, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, one in three Americans has trouble falling asleep at night. People may have trouble sleeping well or staying asleep at night due to chronic pain, nicotine use, hormonal changes, pregnancy and menopause, medication use, sleep apnea or mental health issues, according to Keisha Sullivan, Md. Sullivan is a physician of osteopathic medicine and family medicine and a sleep medicine specialist at Kaiser Permanente in Largo, Maryland.

There are plenty of tips online about how to sleep better, fall asleep faster, and sleep longer. But that doesn't mean that these tips are accurate or scientifically proven. Many of the sleep tricks that sound too good to be true that you find on your social media feeds won't solve your sleep problems. Here's what will help you do just that.

I rounded up some of the sleep tips and advice floating around the internet and asked Sullivan to confirm or refute the common sleep wisdom we find online. From the best sleeping position to the breathing techniques that work, here's what I learned.

For more sleep tips, check out our look at CBD as a natural sleep aid and how to prevent allergies from ruining your sleep.

10 general sleep tips, proven or disproven

Keep the temperature in your bedroom between 62 and 68 degrees Fahrenheit

Sullivan recommends keeping the bedroom even cooler, at 15 to 19 degrees Celsius. She explains that a room temperature between 15 and 19 degrees Celsius lowers the body temperature and thus helps with falling asleep.

Read more: Create the perfect sleeping environment in 7 easy steps

Red light helps in the production of melatonin

One tip I found online recommended turning on red wavelength lights at night because it supposedly promotes the production of melatonin, the natural hormone that helps us sleep.

A 2012 study of 20 female athletes found that the group's sleep, melatonin levels, and endurance performance improved when they were exposed to red light therapy for 30 minutes. While the research on red light and sleep is promising, more research is needed to thoroughly examine the effects.

According to Sullivan, there is little scientific evidence to support this tip of turning on red lights at night. However, she noted that exposure to blue light, such as from smartphones, tablets and other screens, before bed can disrupt sleep and inhibit melatonin production.

Read more: Best blue light blocking glasses

Stay away from your bed and bedroom until you are ready to go to sleep

This tip is true. Our brain, no matter how sophisticated and complex it may be, associates different spaces with a certain number of actions: you eat in your kitchen, relax in your living room, work at your desk and sleep in your bedroom. Sure, You know that you can do more than one thing in the same room, but our brain does not.

Sullivan explains that getting a good night's sleep depends on having a good sleep routine. Part of that routine is training your body to recognize the signals to fall asleep. If you spend your day working or doing other things in your bed instead of sleeping in your bedroom, you're confusing your body about the action it should be taking in that place.

Do not eat anything 3 hours before going to bed, do not work 2 hours before going to bed and do not make any phone calls 1 hour before going to bed

You don't have to follow it exactly, but it's important to maintain some distance between eating and sleeping, as well as between technology use and sleeping. Sullivan advises patients to eat their last meal of the day 3 to 4 hours before bedtime, and she recommends putting away all electronic devices 1 to 2 hours before bedtime.

Take a warm bath or shower before going to bed

Taking a warm shower or bath right before bed can help you fall asleep more easily. A warm shower or bath can cause distal vasodilation, explains Sullivan, which is an “increase in blood flow to the extremities, which lowers your core body temperature more quickly.”

Military method to fall asleep

The military method for good sleep comes from Relax and win: championship performancewritten by Lloyd Bud Winter. Winter found that pilots in the Navy's pre-flight school could fall asleep in just two minutes using the military method of practicing progressive muscle relaxation. This prepares the body for sleep, according to Sullivan, and allows you to focus by tensing and then relaxing different muscle groups. Studies suggest this technique can help you fall asleep, Sullivan said.

Drink sour cherry juice

Sullivan agreed with this tip, pointing out that tart cherry juice naturally contains melatonin, which can promote sleep. Read about CNET sleep editor Caroline Igo's experience trying the viral Sleepy Girl mocktail with tart cherry juice.

Avoid sleeping on your stomach and sleep on your side instead

TikToker Jayde Carroll received over 350,000 views for his TikTok in which he urged viewers to stop sleeping on their stomachs because “studies have shown that it is the worst sleeping position.” What studies? Carroll did not elaborate. He recommended sleeping on your side instead.

Sullivan partially agrees, saying she encourages her patients to sleep on their side, and if that's not possible, the next best option is sleeping on their stomach. “Sleeping on your back is actually the worst sleeping position. I think patients are surprised to hear that,” Sullivan said. When you sleep on your back, your tongue and jaw can fall back, blocking your airway and making your breathing difficult while you sleep, which is especially dangerous for people with sleep apnea, Sullivan explained.

4-7-8 breathing technique

The 4-7-8 breathing technique has its roots in pranayama, a breathing exercise from yoga. In this technique, you breathe in through your nose for four seconds, hold your breath for seven seconds, and breathe out through your mouth for eight seconds. It is said to help you fall asleep faster and focus your concentration.

Whether Sullivan approves or disapproves of this technique, she believes that any type of breathing technique can help someone fall asleep.

Read more: Under stress? These 5 breathing exercises can help relieve the symptoms

Taking magnesium

Although melatonin is popular as a sleep aid, people who take it regularly report feeling groggy and hungover the next morning. There is some debate about whether it is the right drug to use as a sleep aid.

More and more people are skipping melatonin supplements and turning to magnesium instead. Taking a magnesium supplement or eating magnesium-rich foods like seeds, legumes, nuts and avocado just before bed is one way to naturally signal to your brain that it's time to wind down. “Preliminary studies show that magnesium may improve sleep quality, but more research is needed,” Sullivan said.

Try these other tips for a good night's sleep

Eat protein-rich foods

“Foods like nuts, fish and eggs are high in magnesium, which can help regulate the neurotransmitters that aid sleep,” Sullivan said. She also recommended drinking warm milk or tart cherry juice or eating goji berries before bed.

Wear socks in bed

Wearing socks to bed not only keeps your feet warm throughout the night, but it also helps regulate your body temperature, explains Sullivan. “As our bodies produce more melatonin toward the end of the day, our body temperature begins to drop, which helps us fall asleep,” Sullivan said. “Wearing socks can help with distal vasodilation, which is increased blood flow to your hands and feet, which lowers your body temperature more quickly, which helps you fall asleep faster.”

Create an environment for sleeping

Keep your room cool, turn on a relaxing podcast or white or brown noise, and darken your bedroom as much as possible to create an ideal sleeping environment.

Read more: Best white noise machine

Diary before bedtime

To quell those racing thoughts right before bed, Sullivan recommends writing them down in a journal. This is also another good habit you can incorporate into your nightly routine and set yourself up for light sleep.

Correction, May 22: An earlier version of this article misstated Dr. Keisha Sullivan's medical specialty.