Did you know your body has a biological clock that rejuvenates during your hours of sleep to early awakening (for most, between 11pm and 8am)? Did you also know that if you eat during the period of time for your body’s natural sleep cycle you can jeopardize your body in more ways than you can imagine? Our body requires “shut-eye” for a variety of reasons; rest, rejuvenation and detoxification. When we interrupt our sleep cycle, start eating/drinking late into the night, we jeopardize our body’s natural process for the “R&R” it needs.
Weight gain is one of the normal side effects from sleeplessness. Late night snacks are a culprit, as well as depleted progesterone (our body’s natural replenishing hormone restored during sleep to regulate digestion amongst other things) and deprived serotonin (our feel good hormone that is restored during sleep). Unless we’ve eaten a sleep inducing food product (like turkey) we’re usually not comfortable with eating and sleeping. Not only are we eating much later than what our body is accustomed to, perhaps followed by exhaustive sleep after a binge, our body takes what we’ve eaten and begins to store it for the rejuvenation process. When we’re active, our body metabolizes our food based upon our activity. When we’re sedentary, our body will store more than it burns based upon the lack of activity. Once we’ve reached a full normal cycle of restoration (about 8 – 12 hours), our body begins to “kick-in” to another cycle for being awake. Continuous interruption of our sleep cycle = lack of restoration for our body. Even under-sleeping (less than 6-8 hours of continuous sleep) can become a problem for our body in the rejuvenation process.
So what do you do if you find yourself in this mad-cycle? A few things:
*Eat three regular/balanced healthy meals daily, about 350-400 calories each meal, with a light snack (150 calories) in between. Adjust your calories to your caloric intake needs and never overeat for your activity level.
*Stop eating three hours before bedtime (that means don’t eat anything!).
*Avoid alcohol (the sugar in alcohol wreaks havoc on your body). If you’re trying to use alcohol to sleep, think again!
*Try natural remedies like chamomile tea before bedtime.
*Exercise, exercise, exercise. The endorphins from exercise will not only make your brain feel better but will give your body a natural feeling of “exhaustion”.
*Avoid visually stimulating interaction (i.e. computer screens, television).
*Read only short, simple text material.
*Turn off your cell phone and your house phone!
*Stick to a routine.
*Try changing your pillow and bedding to freshen-up your sleep surroundings. Sometimes something as simple as “fresh sheets” and a new pillow make your sleep experience more inviting.
*See your doctor and/or nutritionist to get a full physical examination.
*Avoid sleeping pills. They may work for a short period of time but they’re not addressing the root cause of your sleeplessness.
*Address any emotional changes in your life with a professional counselor. Depression, anxiety, fear, etc., affect our emotional state of mind and our judgment/behavior.
It will take some time (as much as a week or more) to see the benefits of changing your habits/routine for the benefit of your sleep, but it will be worth it. If it’s medically related, the symptoms will more than likely not go away and you will need a medical evaluation from a doctor/nutritionist/counselor to help you find the answer. If you don’t have health insurance or cannot afford professional help, than do what you can naturally to help your body restore.
Quick Tips for Wellness: Sleeplessness = deprivation of restoration.
Quick Tips for Wellness, Pat Ferguson, Copyright © 2011, All Rights Reserved
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