What is a Good Night Sleep Really All About?

Sleep is food for the brain, get enough of it and get it when you need it! We need sleep to keep us happy, healthy and alert. While you sleep, your body and brain work together to prepare you for a new day. That is why it is so important to give yourself time to sleep.

Sleep is an integral part of human existence, closely tied in with cosmic clock of internal and external circadian rhythm and we spend around one third of our total lives doing it.

When we don’t sleep in sync with this life giving pulse , we alter our biological rhythm that control hormones and neurotransmitters determining appetite, fertility, mental and physical health. When we sleep less then we are supposed to, Melatonin is not the only hormone affected.

There are at least ten different hormones as well as many neurotransmitters in the brain that go sideways when you do not get enough sleep. Melatonin is just the tip of the iceberg. It is all the other shifts that changes appetite, fertility, mental, structural and cardiac health.

The consequence of sleep loss is bigger then falling asleep behind the wheel, suffering depression, have chronic fatigue, heart disease, diabetics and poor learning and cognitive skills. It is death, according to sleep scientists around the world.

Why most people do not talk about sleep and hormones, posture, Chinese medicine, Yoga, trauma, Chiropractic, Kinesiology, nutritional medicine, meditation and mental attitude? Most likely because the research is buried separately in 7 or 8 different disciplines in academia. It is like 10 blind men trying to describe the elephant based on what they are touching. Each discipline holds part of the puzzle and there is no magic bullet when it comes to treating sleep related disorders.

What are the Stages of Sleep?

Sleep is divided into 4 stages of Non REM sleep and REM sleep (Rapid Eye Movement). These are sometimes referred to as “sleep phases” or “sleep cycles“….
Dreaming occurs in both stages buy mostly during REM sleep. Each cycle of NREM and REM is repeated every 90 minutes, 4 to 5 times a night. 5-6 cycles is an ideal amount of sleep required for everyone after 15 years old.

Melatonin is the night hormone which down regulates catabolic enzymes and catabolic hormone secretion and activates enzyme systems involved in anabolism through its action on the hypothalamus. Melatonin helps adapt the timing of physiological processes and it promotes the promotion of restorative or anabolic physiological processes. Elevated melatonin levels have been associated with increase sleepiness, reduced core temperature, increase in heat loss, decreased cardiovascular output, and reduced alertness and enhanced immune responsiveness.

 
Do I have a sleep problem? Ask yourself the following:

• Does your sleep and wake up time vary often?
• Do you have an irregular eating time habit?
• Do you exercise at night?
• Do you sleep for less then 5 hours?
• Do you sleep for more then 9 hours?
• Do you have regular monthly cycles (Females only)?
• Do you travel weekly crossing more then one time zone?
• Are you a shift worker?
• Are you a smoker?
• Do you have neck pain, low back pain or joint pain?
• Do you experience anxiety and /or depression?
• Do you have difficulty relaxing your legs and/or have achy legs?

If you have answered yes to any part of the questions, you have sleep problem.

Maintaining sleep is important for growth, rejuvenation and detoxification. There are a number of biochemical imbalances and conditions that may affect the maintenance of sleep, causing you to wake frequently during the night.

Want to know more about a good night sleep? Visit Dr. Reza Samvat's website - http://www.sleep4health.com.au