Tuesday 27 March 2012

Sleep Hygiene, Night Starvation

I had never heard the phrase 'sleep hygiene' before last night, when I heard it twice - once on the radio and once on TV - within ten minutes. It's got nothing to do with cleanliness but is about arranging matters so as to get a good night's sleep - saying no to that third espresso, drawing the curtains, turning off the light and the TV, that kind of thing. It reminded me of a phrase from the now distant past that I had all but forgotten - 'night starvation'. This non-existent condition was dreamt up in the 1930s to market Horlicks, a sweet malty milk drink that is still available in various forms today. The notion of 'night starvation' caught on, and was still going strong in my childhood. I remember ads in the women's magazines that made up rather too much of my boyhood reading in which a worried housewife, who, despite sleeping well, was feeling tired all the time, consulted her doctor about it. This reassuring figure, in a pinstripe suit, would remove his glasses and suggest that 'You may be suffering from night starvation'. To remedy this, he would recommend - you guessed? - Horlicks. They don't make them like that any more (they're not allowed to) - but why did the notion of 'night starvation' take such a hold? I fancy it was because it sounded faintly alarming (and yet easily remedied), and because in those days of non-stop eating, it seemed barely credible that the human frame could survive the hours between the late supper and the cooked breakfast without further nourishment.

18 comments:

  1. I've been away for a few months and I now realise that I've been suffering 'Nige starvation'. However, I now feel sated for at least 24 hours...

    ReplyDelete
  2. Great post! I am actually getting ready to across this information, is very helpful my friend. Also great blog here with all of the valuable information you have. Keep up the good work you are doing here.
    Body Mint

    ReplyDelete
  3. Thanks for your post. I’ve been thinking about writing a very comparable post over the last couple of weeks, I’ll probably keep it short and sweet and link to this instead if thats cool. Thanks.White Label SEO

    ReplyDelete
  4. Really well created post here i have got,

    ReplyDelete
  5. post over the last couple of weeks, I’ll probably keep it s

    ReplyDelete
  6. Hi there, I found your blog via Google while searching for such kinda informative post and your post looks very interesting for me
    ldyson v8 absolute vs v6

    ReplyDelete
  7. I enjoy it for creating the details, keep up the truly amazing perform continuing
    buy real instagram followers

    ReplyDelete
  8. Very nice article. I enjoyed reading your post. very nice share. I want to twit this to my followers. Thanks !.
    lease specials bmw

    ReplyDelete
  9. Cool you write, the information is very good and interesting, I'll give you a link to my site.
    duplicate keys las vegas

    ReplyDelete
  10. Thank a lot. You have done excellent job. I enjoyed your blog . Nice efforts
    instagram like bot

    ReplyDelete
  11. Superbly written article, if only all bloggers offered the same content as you, the internet would be a far better place..
    gsd training tips

    ReplyDelete
  12. Admiring the time and effort you put into your blog and detailed information you offer!..
    diffuse hair loss male treatment

    ReplyDelete
  13. I really enjoyed reading this post, big fan. Keep up the good work andplease tell me when can you publish more articles or where can I read more on the subject?
    avro energy reviews

    ReplyDelete
  14. Very nice article, I enjoyed reading your post, very nice share, I want to twit this to my followers. Thanks!.
    wholesale clip in hair extensions

    ReplyDelete
  15. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  16. Amongst the key items of client satisfaction in all the hospitality enterprise is hygiene and repairs and maintenance. Housekeeping services tend to be for hotels to keep your and everyone at the warm season comes cleaning housecleaning services keep your place is normally entirely sparkling. Our experienced staff feature superior superior quality housekeeping offerings varying right from cleaning chores in just about every area to make sure you hard surface care and upholstery cleaning. move In & move out cleaning dubai

    ReplyDelete