Improved
6112 HealthChanged
3785 LivesSaved
3568 Lives0 lives impacted in the last 24 hrs Learn More
In the last blog I talked about the circadian rhythm which are responsible for our “sleep and wake cycles”. These rhythms are responsible for our ability to have a restful and restorative night sleep.
My patients are like so many other Americans who have difficulties getting quality sleep, a condition called, insomnia at least several times per week. Insomnia is definite as the prolonged and usually abnormal inability to obtain adequate sleep. The National Sleep Foundation conducted a survey in 2009 about the sleep problem in the United States and here were some of their findings. 64% of the people being surveyed experience a problem sleeping problem at least a few nights per week up 13% from 2001. Over 40% of the participants stated that they have difficulty sleeping every night. Some other finds were that difficulty sleeping affected people’s ability to work, caused people to feel drowsy while driving, and prevented people from participating in leisure activities.
The hormones that play a major role in our sleep and wake cycles are melatonin and cortisol imbalances in these hormones cause our sleep problems. Let’s look a common reason why you might have low levels of melatonin too much light at night.
Melatonin levels rise in the absence of light so if there is too much light in your eyes each night melatonin levels will be low. What can cause too much light all of our technology computers, cell phones, TV, or falling asleep with all the lights on. The solution to this problem is to turn off all computer etc a couple of hours before going to bed. TV is hard one for many of my patients because they don’t want to turn it off a couple hours before bed so I recommend that they take the TV out of the bedroom so the bedroom can be used for sleep. Many people think TV is relaxing but it is actually stimulating to the brain and to the light receptors in your eyes. This is also why it is important to make your bedroom as dark as possible to increase your melatonin levels.
Proper eating is also essential to make sure that you have of the precursors to create serotonin and melatonin in the body. This is accomplished by eating a whole foods diet that has one serving of plant protein or lean animal protein during each meal.
Next time we will talk about how imbalances cortisol levels impact sleep.
Live Vibrantly,
Dr. Dae
Dr. Dae's website: www.healthydaes.org
Dr. Dae's book: Daelicious! Recipes for Vibrant Living can be purchased @ www.amazon.com or www.healthydaes.org
Dr. Dae's Bio:
“Dr. Dae" (pronounced Dr. Day) Daemon Jones is a Naturopathic Physician who completed her training at the University of Bridgeport College of Naturopathic Medicine. She is certified as a General Practitioner by the North American Board of Naturopathic Examiners (NABNE). Dr. Dae provides tailored treatment to meet the unique needs of every individual she sees in her practice. She also provides specialized support for persons challenged by nutritional deficiencies, weight problems, hormonal and reproductive system disorders, attention deficit disorder and those experiencing chronic diseases. Dr. Dae is an adjunct faculty member for Smith Farm Center for Healing and the Arts. She is the author of Daelicious! Recipes for Vibrant Living. Dr. Dae is a featured chef with www.myfoodmyhealth.com. Dr. Dae is a regularly featured writer for the Elite GoogleNews Website empowher.com where she shares her personal and professional vision for living whole and living well. To learn more about Dr. Dae, her products and services, please visit her on the Web at www.Healthydaes.com.
Add a CommentComments
There are no comments yet. Be the first one and get the conversation started!