We all instinctively know that sleep is essential for our
overall health and wellness but we tend to push through our “sleepiness” and
attempt to give ourselves a jolt with things like coffee and energy
drinks. Chronic lack of sleep has
a cumulative effect, so you cannot skimp on sleep on weekdays and then try to
"catch up" over the weekend.
Sleep is vital to our long-term health because it is the
window of time that allows for the body to repair and restore itself. Why do you think teenagers sleep so
much and for long periods of time?
It’s not because they are always lazy! They are experiencing rapid rates of growth and development
and the only way that can take place is when the body is at rest. Sleep is their bodies’ innate instinct
that it needs time to grow. Sleep
is so powerful that it can even overcome genetic factors.
A new study of 1,800 pairs of twins found that even if
you're genetically predisposed to being overweight, there is one easy thing you
can do to put yourself in control of how much weight you gain.
As reported by CNN, researchers found that genes accounted
for 70 percent of the differences in body mass index (BMI) in those who slept
less than seven hours per night. Environmental factors, such as diet and
exercise, accounted for just four percent of the differences. But in twins who
slept nine or more hours per night, environmental factors shot up to 51 percent,
and genetic influences dipped to 32 percent. So, sleep deprivation appears to
have a significant influence over your genetic expression.
According to CNN Health:
"Getting adequate
sleep, in other words, appears to dampen genetic risk and allow the influence
of diet, exercise, and other controllable lifestyle factors to
"surface," the researchers say." [1]
New data from researchers at the University of Alabama at
Birmingham shows not getting enough sleep can increase the risk for stroke
symptoms in people with a healthy body mass index who are at low risk for
obstructive sleep apnea and have no history of stroke.
“We adjusted for many possible factors that could explain
this increase, including hypertension, high cholesterol, sleep disordered breathing
and being overweight or obese,” explains Megan Ruiter, Ph.D., the study’s lead
author and a UAB post-doctoral fellow in the Division of Preventive Medicine in
the School of Medicine.
“Despite controlling for other known stroke risk factors, we
still found the association between sleeping less than six hours and reporting
stroke symptoms, like sudden body weakness or numbness or deficits in vision,”
says Ruiter.
Sleep specialist Susan Harding, M.D., who was not involved
with this study, says these findings do not come as a surprise to her.
“Short sleep duration is already associated with
cardiovascular death and other cardiovascular related events,” says Harding,
director of UAB’s Sleep/Wake Disorders Center. “What is different with this
study is that it specifically looked at people who are at a normal weight,
which means they are less likely to have diabetes – which is a stroke risk
factor – and found they are still at increased risk of stroke symptoms.” [2]
Sleeping well is one of the cornerstones of optimal health,
and if you ignore your poor sleeping habits, you will, in time, pay a price. In
general, you will feel best and maintain optimal health when your lifestyle is
in line with your circadian rhythm. (Internal biological clock) It's wise to
establish healthful routines of eating, exercising and sleeping, and to stick
to them every day, including the weekends.
Unfortunately, sleep deprivation is such a chronic condition
these days that you might not even realize you suffer from it. Your circadian
rhythm has evolved over many years to align your physiology with your
environment. However, it operates under the assumption that you are behaving as
your ancestors did. Historically, humans have slept at night and stayed awake
during the day. If you stay up late at night, depriving yourself of sleep, you
send conflicting signals to your body.
As a result, you body gets confused and doesn't know whether
it should be producing chemicals to help you sleep, or gear up for the
beginning of a new day.
Without good sleep, optimal health may remain elusive, even
if you eat well and exercise (although those factors will tend to improve your
ability to sleep better). Aside from directly impacting your immune function,
another explanation for why poor sleep can have such varied detrimental effects
on your health is that your circadian system "drives" the rhythms of
biological activity at the cellular level. Hence disruptions tend to cascade
outward throughout your entire body. For example, besides impairing your immune
function and raising your cancer risk, interrupted or impaired sleep can also:
·
Increase your risk of heart disease.
·
Harm your brain by halting new cell production.
·
Sleep deprivation can increase levels of
corticosterone (a stress hormone), resulting in fewer new brain cells being
created in your hippocampus.
·
Aggravate or make you more susceptible to
stomach ulcers.
·
Contribute to a pre-diabetic state, making you
feel hungry even if you've already eaten, which can wreak havoc on your weight.
·
Raise your blood pressure.
·
Contribute to premature aging by interfering
with your growth hormone production, normally released by your pituitary gland
during deep sleep.
·
Increase your risk of dying from any cause. [3]
Are Sleeping Pills A
Viable Option…
If you have trouble sleeping, you're not alone. According to
the National Sleep Foundation's (NSF) 2010 "Sleep in America Poll,"
only four in 10 respondents said they got a good night's sleep every night, or
almost every night, of the week. [4] But please don't make the mistake of
resorting to sleeping pills. At best, they're ineffective. At worst, they can
be dangerous.
According to U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) data,
over-the-counter sleep products such as Tylenol PM and Excedrin PM don't offer
any significant benefit to patients. In 2007, an analysis of sleeping pill
studies financed by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) found that sleeping
pills like Ambien, Lunesta, and Sonata reduced the average time to go to sleep
by just under 13 minutes compared with sugar pills -- hardly a major
improvement.
Skimping on Sleep to
Work Out Could Backfire
While I do recommend exercising first thing in the morning,
I don't advise sacrificing sleep to do so. Fortunately, you don't have to! The
research that has emerged over the past several years clearly indicates you
don't need to exercise for long periods of time—as long as you're exercising
with a purpose! Both young children and animals clearly demonstrate the proper
way to exercise: in short but aggressive or intense spurts with rest in
between.
High intensity interval training using an elliptical machine
or stationary bike or running sprints can mimic this, and a growing body of
research tells us the benefits from exercising this way are FAR greater than
slow, long-distance forms of exercise. Interval training can dramatically
improve your cardiovascular fitness and fat-burning capabilities in a fraction
of the time. I also like doing
resistance/body-weight circuits where you pick 5-6 exercises and cycle through
them as many times as possible in the time you have available. This approach is especially effective
for those who dislike traditional “cardio.”
A high intensity interval session only requires about 20
minutes or less, two or three times a week, opposed to an hour or more on the
treadmill, several times a week. Most people can carve out 20 minutes without
losing sleep over it. As mentioned above, getting enough sleep is an important
aspect of health, and lack of sleep can hamper weight loss efforts and
contribute to a wide range of health problems.
In order to benefit your health, you need to be consistent
in your sleeping habits.
As a general rule, adults need between six and eight hours
of sleep every night. However, there are plenty of exceptions. Also, as the
study on twins suggests, you may need upwards of nine hours a night in order
for it to outweigh certain genetic predispositions, by allowing your body to
reap maximum benefits from a healthy diet and exercise regimen. The amount of
sleep you need may also drastically change depending on your circumstances,
such as illness or going through an emotionally stressful time.
Pregnant women also typically need more sleep than usual
during the first trimester. My advice is to pay close attention to your body,
mind and emotional state. For example, if you consistently feel tired upon
waking, you probably need to sleep longer. Frequent yawning throughout the day
is another dead giveaway that you need more shut-eye.
Optimizing Your Sleep
Sanctuary
There are many factors that can influence your sleep, but
one that many fail to consider is the use of light-emitting technology, such as
your TV, iPad, and computer, before going to bed. These emit the type of light
that will suppress melatonin production, which in turn will hamper your ability
to fall asleep. Ideally, you'll want to turn all such light-emitting gadgets
off at least an hour prior to bedtime.
Next, making some adjustments to your sleeping area can also go a long
way to ensure uninterrupted, restful sleep:
Cover your windows with blackout shades or drapes to ensure
complete darkness. Even the tiniest bit of light in the room can disrupt your
pineal gland's production of melatonin and serotonin, thereby disrupting your
sleep cycle.
So close your bedroom door, get rid of night-lights, and
refrain from turning on any light during the night, even when getting up to go
to the bathroom. If you have to use a light, install so-called "low
blue" light bulbs in your bedroom and bathroom. These emit an amber light
that will not suppress melatonin production.
Keep the temperature in your bedroom at or below 70 degrees
F (21 degrees Celsius). Many people keep their homes and particularly their
upstairs bedrooms too warm. Studies show that the optimal room temperature for
sleep is quite cool, between 60 to 68 degrees F (15.5 to 20 C). Keeping your
room cooler or hotter can lead to restless sleep.
Move alarm clocks and other electrical devices away from
your head. If these devices must be used, keep them as far away from your bed
as possible, preferably at least three feet. [5]
One of my favorite phrases in regard to youth
fitness/athletic development specifically and overall health and wellness for
all ages generally; “pick the lowest hanging fruit first.” What this simply means is that rather
than stressing out about whether your child has the best strength, speed, or
sport skill training address the things that can make a difference right now. The fastest way to optimize performance
and separate you from the competition on the field of play and in the game of
life is mastering the basics first.
Nutrition is the fastest way to do this because every time you eat
something it affects your performance; positively or negatively and it’s done
at minimum three times a day.
But getting proper rest is a close second and given the recent research
findings the gap is closing in my mind.
The pillars of athletic development should be nutrition and sleep
habits. These are two factors that
are absolutely within your control.
If you have had trouble getting bigger and stronger it’s not because of
your lifting program. Without
proper nutrition and recovery time the task of adding strength, muscle mass and
explosive power is greatly diminished!
“People just don’t
realize how important sleep is, and what the health consequences are of not
getting a good night’s sleep on a regular basis… Sleep is just as important for
overall health as diet and exercise.”
–Carl Hunt, MD, director of the National Center on Sleep
Disorders Research at the National Institutes of Health
Afterthought:
I touched on it briefly above but working out in the morning
is a great strategy because not only do you get it out the way early but it
also sets you up for having an extremely productive day. There are a few things to consider
however when training in the morning and I will address them next week.
Phil Loomis
Youth Fitness/Nutrition Specialist
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