Brits's top 30 sleeping habits revealed - from giving up cheese to counting sheep

Brits are going to great lengths for a blissful night's slumber, from solo sleeping arrangements to banning gadgets and steering clear of cheese before bedtime.

A fresh survey has uncovered the top 30 things people have tried in order to get a good night's sleep. These include pragmatic measures like fitting blackout blinds and tweaking room temperatures, as well as using calming pillow sprays or engaging in meditation to wind down beforehand.

The research indicates that the average adult manages just three nights of restful sleep per week, with a significant number never experiencing an ideal night's rest. The main reasons for this include overthinking, nightmares, or simply an uncomfortable pillow.

Pet owners are divided on whether sharing their bedroom with their animal companions helps their sleep. Four in ten enjoy having their pets in the room as is makes them feel less lonely. However, only 17 percent believe it positively contributes to their sleep.

Of those who live with their partners, 10 percent sleep in separate rooms. Many say it helps improve their sleep quality, and for a quarter of these couples, it has even strengthened their relationship

DFS's head of home, John Rastall, commented: "It's not rare for couples to sleep in separate rooms these days, which means spending double on mattresses, pillows and sheets, but a price people are prepared to pay."

Take this quiz to find out what easy lifestyle tweaks you could make to help improve your bedtime routine and get you to dreamland faster.

The research, which was commissioned by DFS, found experiencing a bad night's sleep makes people feel sluggish, too tired to exercise, a third have even been told they look unwell.

Moreover, insufficient sleep often leads to a drop in motivation and heightened stress levels, which in turn can negatively affect people's mental health and overall wellbeing.

DFS partnered with sleep expert, Anne Marie Boyhan, who said: "Sleep is very much linked to light, so I recommend getting as much natural light as possible before 10am which helps boost the production of our sleep hormone, melatonin.

"In the evening, keep it dark - sleep in a pitch-black bedroom with the help of blackout blinds or eye masks and a tidy space equals a tidy mind, keep it uncluttered.

"Banish blue light from screens an hour before bed and use amber bulbs in the bedroom."

On the flipside, when people do manage a restful night’s sleep, they report feeling revitalised, more concentrated and content. Four in ten find themselves in a noticeably better mood all day.

Despite these benefits, only a fraction maintain a consistent nightly ritual to promote better sleep.

Anne added: "A bedtime routine is very personalised - I would recommend choosing one or two products and practices you look forward to, it doesn't have to be a long or arduous ritual.

"For me that means winding down at 9:30pm with a cup of sleep tea, doing my night time skincare and sleep journaling in bed before lights out by 10:30pm."

She adds: "Prioritising sleep leaves us feeling happier, more productive and better able to focus."