Sleep is a basic instinct of life. We must have it. And it must be regular and sound. Sometimes poor sleep as a symptom of something not right in our bodies. At other time, it is the cause. Cause or symptom, we know that the long-term effects of poor sleep are profound. I consider it as one of the 10 foundations of good health.
How does sleep work?
We have an internal body clock that regulates our sleep cycle, controlling when we feel tired or refreshed and alert. This clock runs on a 24-hour cycle known as the circadian rhythm. After waking up, you’ll become increasingly tired throughout the day. These sleep patterns are affected by:
· Adenosine: levels increase throughout the day as you become more tired, and then drop during sleep.
· Light: The brain processes signals when the eyes are exposed to natural or artificial light.
· Melatonin: As natural light disappears the body will release melatonin, a hormone that makes you feel sleepy.
· Cortisol: When the sun rises in the morning, the body will release cortisol that promotes energy and alertness.
The 4 Stages of Sleep
The first three stages are known as non-rapid eye movement (NREM) sleep, and the last stage is REM sleep.
Stage 1: This light sleep is the transition between wakefulness and sleep and only last a few minutes.
Stage 2: This second NREM sleep stage is a deeper sleep and eye movements stop and your body temperature will drop.
Stage 3: Heartbeat, breathing, and brain wave activity all reach their lowest levels, and the muscles are as relaxed as they will be.
Stage 4: The first REM stage starts about 90 minutes after you fall asleep. Your eyes will move back and forth rather quickly under your eyelids. Breathing rate, heart rate, and blood pressure will increase. Dreaming happens in this phase. Your arms and legs will become paralyzed. The duration of each REM sleep cycle increases as the night progresses. The duration of the REM stage will decrease as you age, causing you to spend more time in the NREM stages.
These four stages will repeat cyclically throughout the night until you wake up. For most people, the duration of each cycle will last about 90 mins.
How much sleep do we need?
Adults need 7-9 hours of sleep a night. Sleeping too much is thought to be as bad as sleeping too little. In the study of people who slept six hours or less, they found they had elevated levels of beta amyloid, which "greatly increases" risk for dementia.
Sleep is important for SO many things. Here are the big ones.
Immunity: When you sleep, your body makes cytokines, these are proteins that fight infection and inflammation and, it produces antibodies and immune cells. That’s why sleep is so important when you’re sick or stressed because this is when the body needs even more immune cells and proteins.
Memory consolidation: Recently learned experiences are converted into long-term memories.
Brain Functioning and Detox: Nerve cells communicate and reorganize, brain’s glymphatic (waste clearance) system clears out waste from the central nervous system. It removes toxic by-products. Poor sleep was identified as one of the things many Alzheimer suffers had experienced during their lives.
Weight Maintenance: Sleep affects your weight by controlling ghrelin, the hunger hormone which increases appetite, and leptin which increases the feeling of being full after eating. Lack of sleep elevates ghrelin and suppresses leptin and the imbalance makes you hungrier.
Cell Restoration: The body repairs cells, synthesises protein, restores energy, and releases molecules like hormones and proteins.
Insulin Function: Insulin is a hormone that helps your cells use glucose, or sugar, for energy. Insulin resistance means, your cells don’t respond properly to insulin. This can lead to high blood glucose levels and, eventually, type 2 diabetes. Sleep may protect against insulin resistance. It keeps your cells healthy so they can easily take up glucose. The brain also uses less glucose during sleep, which helps the body regulate overall blood glucose.
Emotional Wellbeing: During sleep, brain activity increases in the parts of the brain that regulate emotions. Sleep and mental health are intertwined. When you get enough sleep, the amygdala can respond in a more adaptive way. But if you’re sleep deprived the amygdala is more likely to overreact. On the one hand, sleep disturbances can contribute to the onset and progression of mental health issues, but on the other hand, mental health issues can also contribute to sleep disturbances.
Insufficient sleep leaves people vulnerable to attention lapses, reduced cognition, delayed reactions, mood shifts and a higher risk for certain medical conditions including obesity, type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, stroke, and early death.
Top 10 Tips
Like any disruption in your body, you need to stop and listen to what your body is trying to tell you. In its simplest, the body may be saying that the environment you are in isn’t optimal and it needs a few changes to make it feel more able to turn off.
The tips below cover those. However, if those don’t work and you are still not sleeping well, listen harder and start to check out some other possible causes. It may be medications, breathing issues, metabolic issues, sleep disorders or some underlying issue that needs to be identified.
So get started with these environmental factors that can make a big difference.
1. Limit caffeine and alcohol 3 hrs before bed- both stimulate the brain and alter the circadian sleep pattern by telling the body to wake up.
2. Consider Aromatherapy- relaxing smells go straight to the brain and can calm the nervous system.
3. Exercise during the day- but at least 4 hours before bed. Exercise reduces stress levels and keeps your circadian sleep pattern on track but too close to bedtime and the endorphins released during exercise don’t have time to wear off.
4. Get sunlight in the morning- it keeps the body clock on track.
5. Get the right environment- Keep a stable temperature 21 degrees- keep the room dark and quiet. Your body responds to light and temperature.
6. Take a break from the news and social media before bed- they can increase anxiety.
7. Turn off your computer and phone 30-60 minutes before bed- blue screens tell your body to wake up and confuse your body clock.
8. Don't check your phone when you're in bed- if possible, don't sleep with your phone right next to your bed.
9. Find positive outlets for your stress, emotions – a racing mind is hard to still.
10. Keep a consistent bedtime routine that includes a relaxing activity such as reading, listening to music, a bath or cup of herbal tea, meditation- and gives you 7-8 hrs a night.
Good luck
Annie
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