January is a month for wellness. And that includes sleep. Lately the world has woken up to the importance of getting enough quality shuteye. It can have an impact on our mental and physical health, and overall productivity.
So let’s have a look at some of the newest and best ways we can make 2026 the year we have our best sleep yet.
For starters, we can pay more attention to what we eat. The Sleep Foundation notes that certain foods contain nutrients and compounds that help influence brain activity and sleep. There’s melatonin, for example — which regulates circadian rhythms and sleep. Foods with melatonin include the likes of pistachios, almonds, eggs, and milk. Foods with lots of tryptophan, which you’ve probably heard about around Thanksgiving since it’s in turkey, will also help. It’s an amino acid that promotes melatonin. You’ll also find it find it in fish, eggs, cheese, and pumpkin seeds.
Melatonin’s also found in some beauty products — like The Dream Patch For Sleepy Time ($70 for 28 patches on thegoodpatch.com). Just peel and stick them on your wrist, and the vegan, dermatologist-tested gluten- and latex-free patches release 10 mg of melatonin, hops, and valerian root for up to 12 hours to usher you off to dreamland.
Sleep tracker watches have soared in popularity over the last couple of years. One in particular has captured the limelight — the WHOOP 4.0 (yearly memberships include the watch and range from $149-$359 on whoop.com). It’s been spotted on everyone from Prince William to LeBron James, and it tracks all four stages of sleep and calculates how much sleep you get as well as its quality. It can then help you set an ideal sleep schedule.
We all know, too, that sometimes feeling overwhelmed can keep us up at night. When that’s the case, turn instead to non-invasive vagus nerve stimulation; these small handheld devices can provide stress relief that balance our nervous systems before bed. I’m a fan of the Truvaga 350 ($299 on truvaga.com) for its easy-to-use design and for its effects: After very gentle, two-minute stimulations, you wind up with a deeper rest that’s uninterrupted. (Bonus: it can also boost digestion and enhance your brain-gut connection.)
And sometimes, of course, the most clever design products are founded in traditional comfort. There’s no better proof of that than artisanal Ostermoor’s Down Pillow ($195 on ostermoor.com) — an absolute game-changer in the sleep realm. Created by a heritage luxury home brand (they make incredible mattresses as well), Ostermoor is headquartered in New York City yet they handcraft everything right here in New England. The pillow’s design relies on a three-chamber construction, so it provides consistently perfect and astoundingly plush support. Meanwhile, the casing is made of a sublime 100% jasper cotton, and the overall effect is simply cloudlike and restorative.
And when all’s said and done, we can’t ignore the importance of getting down to basics. Nothing lulls you to sleep like a a beautiful set of unbelievably soft, warm sheets. In the freezing cold of a New England winter, that means flannel. Garnet Hill sells some of the prettiest I’ve seen in their Signature Toile Floral Flannel Sheet Set ($49-$249 on garnethill.com), made in a Portuguese mill. They weave them in a delicate floral print and brush them multiple times to render them extra soft. And extra hard to get out of in the morning. Don’t say I didn’t warn you.