Your sleep is affected by how you treat your body, from what you eat to how much you exercise. Take stock of your habits and notice where changes might help you sleep better.

Regular exercise reduces stress and anxiety, and generally improves sleep. Get at least 150 minutes a week of moderate aerobic activity — such as brisk walking, swimming or mowing the lawn — or 75 minutes a week of vigorous aerobic activity — such as running or aerobic dancing. You can also do a combination of moderate and vigorous activity. It's best to do this over the course of a week. You can achieve more health benefits if you ramp up your exercise to 300 minutes or more of moderate aerobic activity a week.

Keep in mind that one of the natural signals that tells your body it may be time to sleep is a drop in your core body temperature. Exercise, however, causes your core body temperature to rise. Exercising within a few hours of bedtime may make it harder for some people to get to sleep. For others, late-day exercise isn't a problem.

It may require some trial and error to see how the timing, length and intensity of exercise affects the quality of your sleep. Without making any other changes that are likely to affect your sleep, take notes on how well you sleep after exercising at different times. This can help you determine the time of day that's best for you to exercise without disrupting your sleep.

What you ingest, and when, plays a role in your ability to fall asleep and stay asleep. Here are a few things to keep in mind:

• Limit caffeine. If you drink beverages with caffeine (coffee, tea and soda), keep the amount you drink to a minimum and stop by 12 p.m. (or 10 hours before your bedtime).
• Avoid large, high-fat meals late in the day. Studies have shown that eating a large meal close to bedtime may make it harder to fall asleep. A light, bedtime snack such as milk with cheese and crackers or a bowl of cereal may help you sleep. Avoid snacking when you awaken in the middle of the night. If you have diabetes, talk with your doctor about eating close to bedtime and how it may affect your glucose control during sleep.
• Avoid alcohol at bedtime. Although alcohol can make you fall asleep, it will also cause you to wake up more times during the second part of the night once its sedative effect wears off.
• Don't drink too many fluids before bedtime. Drinking lots of fluids before bed can cause you to wake up repeatedly to use the bathroom. If this problem affects you, avoid drinking fluids for three hours before you go to bed.

If you use tobacco and nicotine, stopping may improve your sleep. Studies have shown smokers don't sleep as well as nonsmokers. If you smoke, ask your health care provider for help creating an action plan for stopping. Be aware that your sleep might get a bit worse before it gets better in the first few days after quitting smoking.