Posted on: September 12, 2007
It’s Time To Get Some Sleep
The more we do, the less we sleep: That is making us sick
By Afi-Odelia E. Scruggs
CTW Features
If getting a good night’s sleep seems like an impossible dream, take solace in the fact that you’re one of 70 million Americans suffering from a sleep disorder, according to the U.S. National Institutes of Health.
The problems range from insomnia caused by emotional stress or depression, to an inability to get to sleep – also known as delayed sleep syndrome – to restless leg syndrome, involuntary muscle movement that keeps folks from getting a full rest.
Whatever the cause, lack of shut-eye costs the country $16 billion in health-care expenses and $50 billion in lost productivity, the agency estimates. And the situation doesn’t seem to be improving. More Americans are meeting the demands and stresses of daily life by getting less sleep, not more, even though studies show that skipping sleep hinders productivity, slows down reaction time and decreases the ability to focus.
So how much sleep is enough? Adults need between six to eight hours of sleep a night. And nighttime really is the best time for sleep, since our body clock revs us up during the day and winds us down after dark.
When your inability to fall or stay asleep begins to interfere with work or other responsibilities, it’s best to see a doctor. Still, there are steps you can take to ensure you drift off to dreamland when your head hits the pillow.
“I like my patients to work on habits first,” says Dr. Hitesh Makkar, a pulmonary specialist in Akron, Ohio, who also specializes in treating sleep disorders.
Image courtesy Getty Images, Mike Reisel
He notes the trick to curing those sleepless nights is to work on the underlying cause and to practice good sleep hygiene. Here are some suggestions:
Stick with a schedule
Go to bed at a regular time and get up at a regular time. Having a schedule seems to strengthen the circadian cycle, the body clock that regulates our sleeping and awakening.
Rise and shine
Work out early in the day, not late in the evening. The body clock prepares us for sleep by slowing lowering our body temperatures. Exercise raises the body’s temperature. If a trip to the gym is part of your routine, do so at least four hours before bedtime.
Cut the caffeine
Sipping a venti mocha latte at 6 p.m. almost guarantees you’ll be tossing and turning at midnight. That’s because the half-life of this stimulant – the time the body needs to metabolize half the amount of caffeine consumed – is about six hours. To compensate for a restless night, you’ll probably reach for another cup of coffee, starting the cycle again.
Try a bedtime snack
A cup of warm milk seems to help induce sleepiness, although the science behind the claim is debatable. The sleep-inducing amino acid tryptophan, found in milk and other foods such as turkey, cheese, peanuts and tuna, induces sleep when it enters the brain. The protein in milk may decrease the effect of the tryptophan, though.
No late-night alcohol
Don’t down a glass of beer or wine before bedtime, though. These drinks make you sleepy but don’t produce the deep, restorative rest, warns Dr. Nancy Foldvary-Schaefer, director of the Sleep Disorder Center at Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland.
“Alcohol markedly fragments the quality of sleep,” she says.
don’t fight Still can’t sleep? Give in. If you lie in bed longer than 20 minutes without falling asleep, don’t toss or turn.
“If you can’t go asleep, don’t stay there. Get up until you’re tired and then try again,” Makkar says. Keep your activities relaxing, though. Don’t watch action movies or read a mystery novel. Avoid over-stimulation that might further delay sleep.
