Daylight Savings Time & Your Sleep Cycle: How to Adjust and Thrive ⏰ 😴

As daylight savings time rolls around, it can wreak havoc on your sleep cycle. Whether you're springing forward or falling back, adjusting to the time change can be challenging for your body and mind. But don't worry—by understanding how to recover your sleep schedule and adopting some healthy habits, you can navigate daylight savings with ease and maintain a good night's rest.

Recovering Your Sleep Cycle After Daylight Savings

One of the best ways to adjust to the time change is by gradually shifting your sleep schedule before it happens. Here are a few tips to help you recover your sleep cycle:

1. Adjust Your Bedtime in Small Increments
   Start adjusting your bedtime 10-15 minutes earlier or later each night, depending on the direction of the time change. This gradual shift helps your body slowly adapt to the new schedule.
2. Get Plenty of Natural Light
   Exposure to natural light during the day, especially in the morning, helps regulate your body's internal clock, also known as your circadian rhythm. Try going for a morning walk or opening the blinds as soon as you wake up.
3. Stick to a Consistent Schedule
   Once daylight savings hits, aim to go to bed and wake up at the same time every day, even on weekends. This consistency helps reinforce your body's new sleep-wake cycle.

Healthy Habits for a Better Night’s Sleep

Maintaining healthy sleep habits is essential for adjusting to daylight savings and improving sleep quality year-round. Here are a few habits to incorporate into your routine:

• Create a Relaxing Bedtime Routine
  Engage in calming activities like reading a book, meditating, or taking a warm bath before bed to signal to your body that it's time to wind down.
• Limit Screen Time Before Bed
  The blue light from phones, tablets, and TVs can disrupt your sleep. Try to avoid using electronic devices at least an hour before bed.
• Watch Your Diet and Exercise
  Eating heavy meals or drinking caffeine late in the day can interfere with sleep. Likewise, regular physical activity during the day can help you fall asleep faster and enjoy deeper sleep.

For more tips, check out this blog article: 4 Ways to Improve Your Sleep.

Dr. Stephen Smith’s Video: Get Help Falling and Staying Asleep

If you have trouble staying asleep or falling asleep, Dr. Stephen Smith has a solution for you! Watch his video, Do you have trouble staying asleep or going to sleep? Finally Sleep Now! where he discusses effective ways to improve your sleep using proven strategies and supplements.
Watch the video here.

You can also read more in this blog post: Finally Sleep Now.

Featured Sleep Support Products

At Agape Nutrition, we offer a variety of natural supplements designed to support healthy sleep. Here are some of our top picks:

• BioClinic Naturals Somno-Pro Chewable Tablets
  Formulated with key ingredients like 5-HTP and melatonin, these chewable tablets help promote relaxation and reduce the time it takes to fall asleep.
• Natural Factors Stress-Relax Tranquil Sleep Chewable Tablets
  This blend of melatonin, L-theanine, and 5-HTP helps calm the mind and supports restful, uninterrupted sleep.
• Results RNA Resteva Sleep Extra Strength Spray
  A quick and easy spray formula, Resteva Sleep provides potent ingredients to help you fall asleep faster and wake up feeling refreshed.
• EcoNugenics EcoSleep Vegetable Capsules
  This plant-based formula is designed to support relaxation and healthy sleep cycles, making it a great natural alternative.
• Pure Encapsulations Best-Rest Formula
  Combining valerian, passionflower, and other calming herbs, this formula promotes relaxation and enhances sleep quality.
• Sleep Factors Capsules
  With a unique blend of amino acids and herbs, Sleep Factors works to support your body's natural sleep mechanisms for a restful night.

For more great sleep-supporting products, explore our Sleep & Circadian Rhythm collection.

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Recipe of the Month: Chocolate Chunk–Pumpkin Seed Cookies

Delight your taste buds and nourish your body with this delicious recipe for Chocolate Chunk–Pumpkin Seed Cookies. Packed with magnesium-rich pumpkin seeds, these cookies can help support muscle relaxation and improve sleep. Find the recipe below!

Incorporating the right habits and supplements into your routine can make all the difference in your sleep quality—especially during daylight savings time. 

Sweet dreams from the Agape Nutrition Team!

Chocolate Chunk–Pumpkin Seed Cookies

Never throw away your pumpkin seeds again! Instead, save them to make these delicious cookies perfect for fall or any other time of the year. These cookies are great when you are looking for a sweet but crunchy treat. Easily made vegan or gluten-free, these are perfect for those seeking to practice a more diet-conscious lifestyle.

Prep: 30 Min. Cook: 20 Min. Total: 50 Min. Servings: 18

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups raw pumpkin seeds (pepitas)
• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon hot smoked Spanish paprika
• 1 1/2 cups (packed) light brown sugar
• 1 1/3 cups granulated sugar
• 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
• 2 large eggs
• 1 1/4 cups bittersweet chocolate chunks or chips
• Sea salt flakes

Instructions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Toast pumpkin seeds on a large rimmed baking sheet on the upper rack until golden brown while tossing occasionally. This should take about 8-10 minutes. Let seeds cool.
2. While the seeds are cooling, whisk flour, cocoa powder, kosher salt, baking soda, cinnamon, and paprika in a large bowl. Beat brown sugar, granulated sugar, and butter in a separate large bowl until pale and fluffy, about 4 minutes. Add eggs one at a time, blending well after each addition. Add dry ingredients in 3 separate additions, mixing until well blended after each addition. Fold in chocolate and pumpkin seeds.
3. Portion dough into 18 balls (about 1/4 cup each). Space balls 3 inches apart on lined baking sheets. Sprinkle them with sea salt and bake. Some ovens may require you to rotate the pans halfway through for even baking. Bake the cookies until the edges are slightly browned and firm with soft centers. This should take approximately 18–20 minutes (for best texture, do not overbake). Remove from the oven, transfer to a wire rack, and allow to cool. 

Notes:

• These are easiest to make with a handheld electric or stand mixer. Use medium-high speed to mix brown sugar, granulated sugar, and butter, then reduce the speed to low when adding dry ingredients.
• To make these cookies vegan or gluten-free, use almond flour, coconut oil (a bit less than 1 cup), and flax eggs (2.5 tbsp warm water, 1 tbsp ground flax) in place of all-purpose flour, butter, and large eggs.
• Unsalted sunflower seeds are a great replacement for pumpkin seeds.
• For a bit more heat in your cookies, consider adding 1/2 tsp. chile powder along with the paprika.