Health and Sleep

One nutrient that is really essential for health and wellbeing is sleep. There’s nothing that will help us more to get through the day as 7 or 8 hours of deep undisturbed sleep. It’s the best tonic available, and a real boost for the body to repair itself.

Research has shown that through dreaming, sleep helps the brain to lay anxieties quite literally to rest – and so leaving it, and us, ready for the next day’s challenges. The sad truth is that many of us are failing to get enough sleep, and having difficulty getting to sleep in the first place.

If you are concerned about your sleep patterns and feel tired unhealthy and run down, this section is for you.

Nutrition's Role in Sleep

Nutrition can be a great way to enhance sleep, as well as general relaxation and exercise. If you are highly stressed throughout the day, it is likely to interfere with a good nights sleep. The best way to counteract this is to take a good B complex vitamin supplement, 1000mg of vitamin C and 300mg of magnesium daily to balance health and energy levels.

Another important factor is your blood sugar level - fluctuating levels can disturb sleep. If you tend to crave sweet foods or stimulants such as tea, coffee, chocolate or cigarettes, you may have poor blood sugar control.

The solution is to eat healthier mostly whole foods and fruit, which has a stabilizing effect and also take 200mcg of chromium, which evens out blood sugar. The herb valerian also promotes sleep. You need about 500 to 1000mg taken one hour before going to sleep. A brisk walk before bedtime can also help to get you ready for a good snooze.

If your brain and nervous system is too hyped up to go to sleep, I suggest that you avoid stimulants like tea and coffee for at least 4 hours before you go to bed. The minerals calcium and magnesium both calm the nervous system and also aids restful sleep. You can buy powders of calcium and magnesium that dissolve in water.

Difficulty waking up

You may not be getting as good a quality of sleep as you think. The dream cycle in sleep is important for regenerating your mind and ironing out difficulties of the preceding day. However, many people have patchy sleep patterns and may wake up during the night, or don’t sleep deeply enough for dream activity. This can leave you exhausted in the morning.

The amino acid GABA and the herbs valerian, hops and passion flower, can all help. GABA is made in the body from gluthamine, another amino acid. Combinations of these relaxing herbs and amino acids can help you sleep and wake up refreshed.

The second reason for these difficulties is low blood sugar on waking. If so, you need to review your diet and intake of sugar and stimulants. Cut these out, along with chocolate and go for a healthy diet high in fruit and vegetables, high quality protein such as organic chicken and tofu, and whole grains like quinoa and rye. Also be sure to drink 1.5 litres of water a day.

Having problems with Snoring?

Snoring can cause great difficulties, both for the person trying to go to sleep with a snoring person besides them, AND for the person snoring as it often disturbs their sleep too!

What makes the snoring noise is air struggling to get through the throat when the uvula (the little hanging “bell” of tissue) blocks it and the skin vibrates.

One supplement that claims to reduce the noise level of snoring is Snor Away a highly researched blend of olive, sunflower, almond, sesame and peppermint oil with vitamins.

It comes in a spray that coats the back of the mouth and throat effectively unblocking this tissue. Just two squirts will last 6-8 hours. A similar product is Neversnore. They are both worth a try. Available from mail order on 01355 243091 in the UK.

Having problems with grinding teeth?

People who grind their teeth when asleep are stressed. The first thing to go is reduce the amount of unhealthy stress in your life. I realise that this could be difficult especially if you are in a demanding job and can’t quit.

However, you can learn to manage your stress through regular healthy exercise, yoga, massage, relaxing baths, enjoyable hobbies, time to yourself, meditation and relaxation techniques.

Having said that, health supplements can help. The nutrient most useful for teeth grinding is vitamin B5. In addition to a multivitamin and mineral supplement, take 100mg of B5 twice daily. B vitamins in general are good for your nervous system and can help improve stress tolerance, as can vitamin C (1-2 grams twice daily) and Siberian Ginseng (200-400mg daily

Finally, teeth grinding can often occur because of tension in the jaw. This can be reduced by supplementing 200-400mg of magnesium – which relaxes muscles – before going to bed.

Insomnia

Insomnia is the name given to long term chronic sleeplessness where a person can hardly sleep at all. The underlying causes are difficult to pinpoint and overcome but they can include depression, a dietary overload of stimulants, especially caffeine, drinking too much alcohol, chronic pain and other physical ailments.

The body has a natural (circadian) rhythm which determines when you sleep and when you wake. This is controlled by a hormone called melatonin, which in turn is released by the pineal gland at the top of the brain. As with other hormones, levels of melatonin decreases with age. By the age of 60, for example, your body produces half as much melatonin as when you were 20.

It has been shown that tiny doses of melatonin taken at bedtime can quickly bring blood levels of the hormone back to healthy normal levels and help to make you have good nights sleep. Long haul travelers use melatonin to re-regulate their body clocks and avoid jetlag and this health supplement is excellent for shift workers.

However if you live in the UK over-the-counter sales of melatonin is illegal and only available by private prescription.

To get around this problem, we can take a step back and instead of boosting levels of melatonin, we can increase levels by stepping up our intake of serotonin, a neurotransmitter involved in the manufacture of melatonin. You can also use the diet foods below to boost levels of tryptophan, an amino acid which is vital for melatonin levels.

Studies have shown that people who find it difficult to get off to sleep are deficient in their healthy levels of serotonin, which requires large amounts of vitamin B6. This vitamin is found in carrots, cheese, avocado, fish, lentils, peas, potatoes, spinach, sunflower seeds and whole meal flour.

If you suffer from insomnia, eat more of these healthy foods and cut out high sugar unhealthy foods such as white bread, and white rice, which can cause the blood sugar to fluctuate.

Those who eat a carbohydrate based diet of quality whole foods are found to be calmer, rarely depressed, and better able to sleep soundly than those who do not. Calcium is also a potent mineral to aid sleep.

Drinking a glass of warmed milk at bedtime can help – and should also be taken with a calcium citrate supplement. Camomile is also an excellent sedative and can safely be given to children as a tea. Fresh lemon balm made into a tea is also an excellent remedy.

The majority of sleeping pills are prescribed to the over 65s who may find it better to take a late night snack. A muffin or a banana before bedtime can improve the quality of sleep.

Bringing stress levels under control is also very important and caffeine, which stimulates the production of adrenaline should be avoided as much as possible. People who drink a lot of coffee during the day often have difficulty getting to sleep.

Natural sleep secrets - cure insomnia for good without medication

You can have a perfect Nights Sleep!
Relax and Sleep provides information you can use to find out about Sleep Disorders and plan your next perfect nights sleep. Learn about Insomnia and Sleep Deprivation so you can Sleep Tonight.

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