Sleep & Why it is so Important

Have you ever woken from your slumber where the night before you tossed and you turned basically all night long? Maybe it felt like it took forever to finally fall asleep. Then the day just progressively gets worse and worse.

You notice all your aches and pains throughout the day. Everything and everyone seems to get on your nerves more than usual. Heck, you may even be extremely hungry and want to eat the entire box of donuts in your office's break room.

These are all symptoms of getting poor quality sleep.

Sleep is the most important aspect of our overall physical and mental wellbeing. When we consistently get poor quality sleep, all other negative symptoms will increase.

Here are some important terms to recognize regarding sleep. (also basically a science lesson)

1. Sleep Latency = how long it takes to fall asleep (usually just self-reported)

   1. "good" or "normal" is about 10-20 minutes

   2. typically a good indication of getting quality sleep

2. Circadian Rhythms = the natural cycle of physical, mental, and behavior changes the body goes through in a 24-hour cycle. Mostly affected by light and darkness by the SCN part of the brain. Also known as the "body's clock."

   1. cardiovascular system is controlled by this

   2. hepatic system is controlled by this

      1. -- detoxifies blood, metabolizes glucose, and synthesizes proteins

   3. pancreatic system is controlled by this

   4. adipose system is controlled by this

      1. -- connective tissue that interacts with your endocrine system which communicates through hormone signals

   5. gastrointestinal system is controlled by this

1. Melatonin = a naturally occurring hormone that helps regulate circadian rhythms & can positively or negatively impact sleep

   1. it is NOT a sleeping pill and is miscommunicated as such

2. Sleep Deprivation = the situation or condition of suffering from a lack of sleep. You can be sleep deprived from consistently getting poor quality sleep or not enough sleep in general.

   1. Symptoms: drowsiness, irritability, anger, decreased alertness, brain fog, fatigue, tremors, reduced coordination, food cravings, increased risk of stress, impaired memory, impaired decision-making, and even difficulty processing social cues.

3. Cortisol = a steroid hormone that our adrenal glands produce and release - it mainly helps regulate body's response to stress.

   1. if a person is overly stressed and consistently produces cortisol then it is no longer helpful and can cause damage to our system.

So, you are probably thinking "Ooookay, this is great and all but how does one get better sleep and/or lower cortisol to not have all of these terrible symptoms?"

Here are some quick tips that can help improve your sleeping.

• On average, adults need 7 - 9 hours of sleep each night.

  • Teenagers are what we call "phase delayed" and require between 8 - 10 hours of sleep each night.

• If you take a nap, never nap within 6 hours of your bedtime as it will further negatively impact your circadian rhythm.

  • A power nap should never be more than 30 minutes.

  • HOWEVER, if you have the time a 2 hour nap will give you a complete sleep cycle (N1 through REM).

• Melatonin is naturally occurring in the body and in certain foods. Over the counter supplements are not regulated by the FDA and should be used with caution. Melatonin is not a sleeping pill, but a circadian rhythm regulator. For best practice, take in the afternoon multiple hours before bedtime.

  • Foods high in melatonin include: nuts, milk (not whole milk), OILY fish like salmon, bananas, cherrys, eggs, oats, goji berries, etc.

• Don't eat a big meal within 3 hours of sleeping. ex: if your bedtime is 10pm, try to eat dinner prior to 7pm.

  • digestion can impact our body clock and wake us up during sleep

• Caffeine gives us energy by blocking adenisine receptors. Adenisine builds throughout the day to help us get quality sleep. Try not to have caffeine later in the day. For best sleep quality, no caffeine past 2pm in the afternoon.

• Start dimming your lights in your home two hours prior to bedtime.

  • Blue light mimics daytime (blue skies, sunshine, etc) which gives us more energy.

  • Warm light like yellow, orange, red, mimics evening and sunsets which helps us to wind-down from the day and signals to our body to prepare for sleep.

• 20 minutes of sunlight first thing in the morning will reset our body clock (i.e. circadian rhythm) which will improve sleep later that night.

Other important factors include exercise and nutrition which I will cover more in a future post. Let me know if you have any questions you'd like me to answer in a future blog or if any of this information was helpful.

**Information utilized from the Institute of Brain Potential training I attended called "Vitality Unleashed: Mastering the Triad of Nutrition, Sleep, and Exercise for Optimal Well-being."