Cracking the Sleep Code

No More Insomnia! The Foods And Vitamins That Can Put You To Sleep

Insomnia and Nutrition - How and What We Eat Could Affect Our Sleep

By Vishal P. Rao

All the natural and holistic systems of medicine or therapies maintain the powerful effect of diet and nutrition on our body and mind. Like all other disorders, dietary factors play significant role in prevention of insomnia and sleep disorders. We will explore some of these dietary and nutritional factors related to sleep.

Insomnia and Dietary Stimulants

Dietary stimulants are metabolic disruptors that overstress the adrenal and cause the imbalance of hormones.

One of the contributing factors for insomnia is stimulant food and drugs. Caffeine drinks (coffee, tea, cola, cocoa) and chocolates cause an adrenalin rush in the body and wakes people up.

We should feel energized and refreshed after a good sleep. The need to take caffeine in the morning to ‘wake up’ creates a vicious cycle by perking up adrenaline from adrenal glands. Dr. Jonathan Wright, the author of “The New Detox Diet”, has gone to extreme by calling caffeine an insecticide. He cites that plants use caffeine to kill insects.

MSG (monosodium glutamate) is another ingredient of grocery store products. Avoid it as it predisposes to sleep disorders, migraine headaches and even Alzheimer’s disease.

Refined white sugar is another stimulant that perks the level of glucose in blood and stresses the pancreas.

Insomnia and Carbohydrates

People who eat short-lasting kind of sugars in evening are more prone to wakefulness in night. The sugar in their food is released sooner and metabolized in body. A drop in glucose level promotes the release of glucose regulating hormones (adrenalin, glucagon, cortisol and growth hormone) and this wakes them up.

Eating right foods in the evening that has long-lasting type of sugar and release sugars gradually do help in having better sleep without awakenings.

Exposure to sunlight is minimal in short days and long nights of winter.

Then melatonin hormone is above normal. High level of melatonin in brain suppresses serotonin and it results in feeling down, drowsy or getting the blues.

The common, easy and wrong way to get over the blues is to eat

Melatonin: The Insomnia Cure or Not?

Everyone is searching for a way to get their zzzz's.  Sleep is just as important as water.  Although, when you get thirsty you fill up a glass a water and drink it...done.  Sleep doesn't come that easy for all and yet if we don't get the amount we need--- we slowly start to deteriorate.

Melatonin is getting a lot of attention but it's important to know all the facts. Here's a great article with some important facts to read--- before you dive into the melatonin craze...

Should you take Melatonin for your sleep problems?

By Vishal P. Rao

You may have heard from various sources that Melatonin is a panacea for all kinds of sleep disorders. It seems that marketers are trying to position it as a wonder pill that you can take to get rid of all any of your sleep disorders that you may be having.

However, it is important to understand a few things about sleep disorders and melatonin to be able to assess whether you should take Melatonin for your sleep issues or not.

Chin Straps for Snoring: A Cure or a Danger?

If you snore it doesn't necessarily mean that you have sleep apnea...but it does mean that you could have sleep apnea. Snoring occurs in the back of the throat where the soft palate collapses thus restricting air flow.  How much and how often it collapses is how the diagnosis is made.  If a snorers mouth remains closed forcing them to only breathe through their nose--- the soft palate will still collapse from the air coming in through the nose.  The only treatments that could keep the throat open is pressurized air (CPAP machine), moving the jaw forward (dental mouthpiece) or surgery.

The chin straps that companies are advertising as "snore cure" will only make a difference reducing the sound of the snoring. There is still oxygen deprivation because the 'snore originates' in the back of the throat--- not in your mouth. Obviously the nasal air passage is smaller than the throat air passage... so personally I would want to make sure that my mouth was wide open if my soft palate was prone to collapse during sleeping. 

There are several companies that claim to cure snoring by using a chin strap to keep your mouth closed. 

Any Sleep is Better Than No Sleep

Thanksgiving...a time to be reflective on all that we have.

Change your attitude to be thankful for the amount of sleep you do get...instead of dwelling on how much sleep you don't get.

Can't sleep? These herbs will put you out!

There's an art when it comes to sleeping well.  If you weren't born with the artistic talent  then "bringing in" the talent might be necessary...occasionally.  The cliche applies here---everything in moderation.

Most are aware that the Chinese culture is far ahead the general population in regard to natural remedies?   Some think it's a gimmick because they're not FDA approved.  If the Chinese have used certain herbs for years with a positive outcome, it would be silly to ignore this evidence...it just simply has not been studied in the US.  This week at Cracking the Sleep Code we will be talking about different sleep remedies that have worked for thousands of people. 

Check out isleepless ---you will learn of some great drink and herb ideas that will make you melt into your mattress.

Sleep Deprivation Equals...Depression

Sleep deprivation can be so disabling it can cause us to loose our jobs, get divorced or make us become clinically depressed.  Insomnia, sleep apnea or other sleep disorders all have the same end result... misery.  A therapy for the insomniacs that is getting a lot of attention is Cognitive Behavioral Therapy. This is not only for people with insomnia but it can also help people turn around bad habits and negative moods.  Our moods can actually become a habit...even to a point where we can't remember what it felt like to be happy.  Our brains work on repetition. The more we let ourselves feel or act a certain way it becomes ingrained and can become difficult to break the negative cycle. Poor sleeping habits work the same way.  Poor sleep hygiene can result in severe insomnia just as choosing to see the "glass half empty" can lead to depression.  You have to break the cycle and shake yourself up before you'll start moving in a positive direction.

Here is a great article on Cognitive Behavioral Therapy. I really enjoyed this website because it reminded me of the much needed emotion...gratitude.

Sleep Quote For November 11th

"Nothing cures insomnia like the realization that it's time to get up."

W.C. Fields (American Comic and Actor, 1880-1946)

I feel like I get my best sleep in the morning.  That's when I really hit dream land.  If I've had a bad night i.e....a lot of bathroom trips, kids needing me, or just thinking too much---- sometimes I'll finally fall into a deep sleep in those early hours of the morning.  But when that alarm goes off...I would give my left lung to stay in bed for more sleep.
 

Sleep. Everyone Wants a Pill. What About a Real Cure?

Could the reason behind why so many of us turn to sleeping pills is because we believe that our sleep problems are so complicated we must need a drug to be a good sleeper?  If you've been a horrible sleeper for years with bouts of insomnia, you most likely won't believe that you can be cured with some behavioral changes.  By behavioral changes I mean...changing the way you think about sleep and practicing good sleep hygiene.  This cure often goes dismissed by hard core insomniacs as a cliche but it has been proven to turn insomniacs into robust sleepers.  Here is a excerpt from a great New York Times article on the studies comparing behavior changes and sleep medications.

The medical journal Sleep last year reported on five high-quality trials that showed cognitive behavioral therapy helped people suffering from insomnia fall asleep sooner and stay asleep longer. Another American Journal of Psychiatry analysis of 21 studies showed that behavioral treatment helped people fall asleep nearly nine minutes sooner than sleep drugs. In other measures, sleep therapy worked just as well as drugs, but without any side effects.  Read full article.

There is a way to become an expert sleeper without the drugs.  It could take a week or even a month for your sleep to be "robust" but it will be a heck of a lot cheaper and it will fix your problem instead of being just a band-aid.

Tylenol PM: An Answer To Your Sleep Problems? Or not

We will try anything if things get bad enough.  Just before going to the Doctor to ask for sleeping pills we try the over the counter stuff.  Nyquil, Benedryl, Tylenol PM.  We know these were not made for the purpose of putting us to sleep...they were made for something else and we're enjoying the side effect.  The makers even tout the "PM" and the "NY"--quil to let you no that you'll get a bonus of a sleep boost along with the cold relief.  Tylenol PM and some other cold medicines contain an antihistamine that performs the job of drying up excess mucous by suppressing your histamine.  Histamine is what keeps us alert so obviously by suppressing it--- we will feel sleepy. 

Will taking these over the counter cold remedies as a sleep aid wreck our lives or put our health in danger?  It seems reasonable to say no if used VERY occasionally.  But when we start using them every couple of days or several times a week on a consistent basis it can become  a slippery slope.  It's difficult to sleep well with the "normal" amount of histamine if you're used to it being suppressed.  Now you're hooked. 

Here is an interesting review of Tylenol PM from the people at "We Know Sleep." website.

Could Mold be Causing Your Sleep Disturbances?!

When searching for a cure for anything we sometimes need to think outside of the box.  The causes of sleep disturbances can be a tricky thing to figure out but it can be done.  Not all insomniacs have trouble getting to sleep, some suffer from maintenance insomnia or waking up frequently and not being able to return to sleep.  If we could fix what has been waking us up, then we wouldn't have to worry about getting back to sleep! I came across an interesting excerpt from an article on mold sensitivity and sleep disturbances that I wanted to share...