Table of contents:
- Research: blindfold promotes better quality sleep
- The advantages and disadvantages of wearing a blindfold for sleeping
- Advantages
- Reduces swelling
- Drive away the light
- Deficiency
- Vulnerable to wake up late
- Leaves lines on the face
Sleep is a basic need that is very important for humans. The reason is, good sleep quality can affect the overall health of the body. Therefore, it is important to make good quality sleep every night. The use of an eye patch for sleep is said to make sleep better. Is that true? If so, is it necessary to wear an eye patch to sleep?
Research: blindfold promotes better quality sleep
A study was conducted to determine the effect of blindfold on the quality of sleep in cardiac patients involving 60 inpatients at the Coronary Care Unit (CCU) in a hospital in Iran.
In this study the doctors tried to use several ways to improve the sleep quality of the patients. This method uses aromatherapy, muscle relaxation, and the use of eye patches to sleep. The eye patch used is made of cloth and has an elastic band to attach to the patient's head.
This eye patch is designed to block out all possible light entering the patient's eye and create total darkness. The results showed that the use of an eye patch improved the sleep quality of the experimental group compared to the control group who did not use the tool.
At the end of the study, the experts concluded that wearing an eye patch for sleep was proven to improve the quality of sleep for heart patients, who are usually not restful and need sleeping pills.
The advantages and disadvantages of wearing a blindfold for sleeping
From the results of this study, it can be concluded that eye patches can improve sleep quality. But the choice is back to you, whether you feel you need it or not. Here are various advantages and disadvantages that you can consider before using the eye patch to sleep.
Advantages
Reduces swelling
An online health column at Columbia University reports that you can relieve eye puffiness when you wake up by wearing an eye patch that soothes and gives a cool sensation to the eye.
This you can get from the eye patch made of gel. Some of these eye patches even have a calming herbal scent to enhance your relaxation during sleep.
Drive away the light
The Schiffert Health Center of Virginia Tech recommends wearing an eye patch to block out any light that might interfere with your sleep. Light usually signals the body to wake up.
Meanwhile, your body responds to darkness by making you sleepy. Therefore, wearing an eye patch is great for making you fall asleep quickly and soundly.
In fact, a 2010 Chinese study examining patients in intensive care units found that participants who wore eye patches and earplugs had high levels of melatonin, a hormone that helps control sleep time.
Deficiency
Vulnerable to wake up late
An eye patch that is used while sleeping blocks incoming light. Therefore when the sun rises, you may still feel the night because your eyes are not exposed to sunlight which would normally make your body wake up. So you are prone to experiencing longer sleep times and causing oversleeping.
Leaves lines on the face
Most mass covers have an elastic band to attach to the head. This rubber can leave a wear line on the side of the face if it is too tight. However, if you choose loose rubber, it will fall off easily while you sleep.
The various considerations above can be your reference whether you need an eye patch for sleeping or not. The most important thing is to maintain the quality of your sleep every night so that the body gets the maximum benefit from the sleep process itself.
