I had no idea that brushing my teeth right before bed was keeping me awake — a doctor explains why and what to do instead to fall asleep fast

The image shows a dark haired woman wearing white pyjamas sleeping on her side on a white pillow and with a white duvet pulled under her arms. Insert, there is an image of a woman wearing a white robe cleaning her teeth while looking into a bathroom mirror.

The seeds of a good night’s sleep are sown well before you get into bed — as I’ve only recently appreciated. For years, I’ve waited until I actually want to fall asleep before beginning my bedtime prep, only to then wonder why I no longer feel tired once my nighttime tasks are complete.

Sound familiar? Here, Dr William Lu, a sleep medicine physician, explains why the timing bedtime tasks, such as cleaning your teeth and washing your face, has more of an impact on your ability to fall asleep than you might think — how correcting it can help you fall asleep faster.