Why You Need Your ZZZ's

Everyone should aim for 7.5 or 8.0 hours of sleep at night, but millions of us don't get enough--and chronic sleep deprivation is one of the worse things that can affect us, damaging everything from our immune systems to making us injure ourselves.

 

In fact, sleep deprivation can actually make us GAIN weight, because it affects ghrelin, leptin and cortisol--all hormones that regulate appetite.

March 3-10, 2013 is National Sleep Awareness Week, so it is a good time to look at the things that can keep us tossing and turning.  Once we know exactly what the problem is we can, hopefully, do something about it.

 

·         Stress: Things like mind-chatter, impending deadlines and other events can make us toss and turn. Here’s where it is a cause, though; we awaken tired, anxious, irritable, depressed and lacking mental clarity—which means decreased or non-existent--coping mechanisms, adding to our ever-increasing stress load.

·         Pain: “If we consistently do not get enough rest it opens us up to the daily aches and pains we feel, as well as more serious injury,” said Michael Gazeleh, DC.  Guess what?  That pain keeps us awake.

·         Illness: The constant stress of sleep deprivation can trigger chronic and degenerative illnesses, but you also want to explore reasons for  not being able to stay asleep: “That might be caused by something like pain or even hunger,” said Dr. Peter Bongiorno, ND, Lac. “Hunger might either mean that there’s a problem with the liver or simply that the patient needs to eat a little more before bed.”

·         “The bedroom isn’t dark enough. Melatonin is the body’s natural substance that’s produced at night, and a decreased level results in lower immunity, increased risk of infection. “Even the slightest light can cause a decrease in melatonin  levels,” says Dr. Bongiorno ND, Lac

·         Pets.  I’m not passing judgment; in fact, I freely admit that I love sleeping with pets; to me, they’re like warm furry pillows.  However, the Mayo Clinic conducted a study finding that more than half of its patients seeking consultations at their sleep clinic were pet owners complaining of nightly sleep disturbances, caused by things like cover-hogging, kicking, growling, meowing, or even scratching.

 

.