More sleep means less chances of getting the flu

In 2015 researchers at Carnegie Mellon University conducted a study involving 153 participants who documented their sleep patterns and voluntarily subjected themselves to rhinovirus infused nasal drops. The results were overwhelming, showing that individuals who sleep an average of six hours or less each night are over four times more likely to catch the common cold than those who sleep seven hours or more. Participants who averaged five hours showed even greater susceptibility to infection. In other words, the more sleep you get in the weeks leading up to viral exposure, the less likely you are to catch a bug.

Quality is as important as quantity

But it wasn’t simply the duration of sleep that proved significant in flu prevention. Sleep efficiency, a measure that accounts for overall sleep quality by discounting disturbances and middle-of-the-night awakenings, was the primary predictor of infection. More so than age, BMI, race, sex, season of exposure, psychological factors such as stress, or health practices such as smoking and physical activity, the quality of your sleep is the most predictive measure of your viral susceptibility. So, the deeper you sleep, the less likely you are to come down with a cold or a flu.

Sleep also helps to heal an infection sooner

Sleep not only promotes your ability to avoid infection, but it’s a major factor in the ability to recover once you’ve contracted a virus. Extended periods of deep sleep allow for the production of immune bodies such as T cells. T Cells exist in two varieties, Killer T Cells, which scan the body and destroy infected and cancerous cells and Helper T Cells, which coordinate immune responses through the release of messenger molecules called cytokines. Cytokines travel throughout the body regulating and activating appropriate pathways within your body’s adaptive response to pathogens. Sleep deprivation prevents proliferation of these essential immune bodies, depleting your arsenal and leaving you with weakened defense.

Interestingly, in the Carnegie Mellon study I cited earlier, the sensation of feeling “well rested” was not a sure indicator of good health in study participants. It was the objective measure of sleep quality and duration rather than perceived energy level that carried weight. There is no shortchanging the physiological processes that repair our bodies and brains and bolster our immune responses while we sleep. It’s not always easy to get the 7 – 9.5 hours of sleep necessary to optimise your physical and cognitive health, but if you prioritise your commitments and exercise good sleep hygiene, you’ll be well on your way to kicking the common cold and keeping the flu at bay.

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Melatonin is a hormone which plays an integral role in circadian cycles and the regulation of sleep onset. Studies have proven judicious melatonin dosage is effective in easing jet lag and shift work sleep disruptions, maintaining sleep patterns in children with neuro-developmental disabilities and in older adults with natural melatonin deficiencies.

In addition to sleep regulation, melatonin functions as an antioxidant, preventing cell damage and inflammation through elimination of free radicals. Recent studies have shown that melatonin, by virtue of these free-radical scavenging properties, could even be responsible for reducing neuronal damage in cases of stroke, chemical toxicity, Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s disease.

With all of this evidence stacked up in its favor, why not head for the pharmacy to stock up on the supplement? Wait!

Possible Side Effects of Using Melatonin Supplements for Sleep

First, it’s important to recognize that your body produces its own melatonin. This endogenous supply is produced primarily by a small gland just above the center of your brain, the pineal gland. Retinal [eyes], epithelial [skin], and intestinal cells also produce melatonin, but not in the form that regulates circadian rhythms. While external melatonin, whether from natural food sources or a supplement, interacts with your brain in the same way as the bodily form, the influx of the hormone can flood your system and offset your natural melatonin production.

When you purchase melatonin as a supplement in the pharmacy, you typically get a dose between 1 and 10mg. This is a dramatically large range which reflects the lack of regulation on production and sales. Melatonin is the only hormone in the United States available for purchase without a prescription. And the United States is one of the only western nations that allows non-prescriptive sales of the hormone. Because melatonin can be obtained through natural food sources, it is designated as a dietary supplement alongside vitamins and minerals. This designation absolves melatonin sales from FDA regulation, meaning that the factory-produced, synthetic hormone makes it to the shelf in doses that are much too large and with incredible variance in purity between brands.

According to the National Sleep Foundation, a melatonin dosage of 1mg to 3mg can increase its blood levels to up to 20 times their normal value. This is problematic because in excess, this hormone can cause grogginess and sleep inertia the following day. Sleep inertia is the physiological condition that persists between sleep and wakefulness, characterized by impaired cognitive, sensory motor acuity and persistent drowsiness. Melatonin production by the pineal gland is a single element in an eloquent symphony of hormonal regulation; cranking up the volume on any one contributor will throw off the balance of the entire ensemble and offset your body’s natural cadence. In most cases of insomnia and delayed sleep onset in adults, there is not enough evidence, particularly for long term intervention, to support supplementation.  It is far safer and more effective to promote the body’s natural ability to produce the hormone on its own.

So How Do You Make Your Body Produce the Right Amount of Melatonin?

In order to synthesize melatonin, your body needs access to all the right ingredients, the main one being tryptophan, an amino acid. You may remember hearing this funny word around Thanksgiving, when turkey is held responsible for the drowsiness after the Thanksgiving meal. And there’s something to this. Turkey, like chicken, eggs, cheese, meat, is rich in tryptophan. In a series of reactions, tryptophan is converted to serotonin, which is then converted to melatonin. But tryptophan isn’t the only ingredient needed to synthesize melatonin. Other key players include vitamin B6 and co-enzyme A, a derivative of biotin and amino acid L-lysine.

Both tryptophan and lysine are essential amino acids, meaning they cannot be synthesized by the body and therefore must be obtained in the diet.  Foods such as nuts, seeds, beans, lentils, poultry, and eggs all contain high levels of tryptophan, lysine, and vitamin B6. You can also use supplements to obtain a balanced mix of these crucial ingredients. Adhering to a healthy diet rich in melatonin precursors will optimize your body’s ability to synthesize melatonin and naturally regulate consistent sleep-wake cycles.

More Reasons to Break the Bad Habits

For as much emphasis as you place on putting healthy fuels into your body, equal care should be given to keeping unhealthy substances out. Caffeine, nicotine, and alcohol suppress melatonin production and will result in disrupted sleep patterns. Additionally, surges in blood sugar cause cortisol levels to spike and melatonin levels to plummet. So if you’re trying to kick a sweet-tooth induced habit, this is one more reason to do so. And if you’re accustomed to grabbing a late-night snack, avoid the sweets and make sure it’s low in carbohydrates. Human physiology is dynamic and resilient. Give your body its best shot at wellness and self-regulation by breaking these habits.

Exercise During the Day, Cut the Lights at Night

In general, exercise will improve the quality of your sleep, but exercising at night can decrease melatonin production and delay or prevent sleep onset. If possible, exercise during the morning [not at the expense of your sleep quantity] or in the afternoon. Adopting a consistent schedule will assist your body in regulating hormonal balance and maintaining circadian rhythms.

The most important way to promote your circadian rhythm and your body’s melatonin producing abilities is through regulation of light exposure. Light, registered as an electrical impulse, passes along a bundle of nerves from the eye to the brain, signaling and synchronizing circadian processes throughout the body. This electrical impulse deactivates the pineal gland, inhibiting melatonin.  However in the absence of light, the pineal gland is able to operate in high gear producing melatonin and promoting sleep onset and maintenance. It is important to establish a regular schedule that involves exposing yourself to bright light every morning and avoiding daylight spectrum and blue light within an hour of bedtime.  This means no TVs, tablets, phones, computers, or bright households lights.  Dim the lights and put away the electronics to set the stage for a sound night’s sleep.

Related » Daytime strategies to help you sleep better

Conclusion

While it is a key element in sleep physiology, it is essential to consider supplemental melatonin dosage with proper discernment.  If you regularly travel internationally, work night shifts, or if you’re over the age of 60 and have difficulty sleeping, with the consultation of your doctor, a melatonin supplement could be an effective alternative to prescription sleep aids. However, before visiting the pharmacy, give your body a chance to produce and regulate an endogenous supply of melatonin by adopting a healthy diet, maintaining a regular schedule, and regulating your exposure to light.

The post How to Improve Melatonin Production Naturally and Sleep Better appeared first on Complete Wellbeing.

1. Establish a regular sleep-wake schedule

The single most effective strategy for improved sleep is establishing a consistent schedule. Go to bed and wake up at the same time every day. Pre-deadline days, weekends, birthdays, and holidays are no exception; your circadian rhythm does not, unfortunately, accommodate your social life or your professional obligations. It is vital to maintain consistency despite the occasion.

Inconsistent sleep schedules correlate with poor sleep quality, increased sleep latency [time it takes to fall asleep], and shortened sleep duration. To establish consistency in your sleep routine, start by determining your sleep need. The majority of the adult population requires 7.5 to 9 hours each night for optimal performance and alertness the following day. However, this need fluctuates with age and activity level, and is largely specific to the individual.

Studies show that most people overestimate their actual sleep and underestimate their sleep need [you would have thought it’s the other way!], so choose a realistic schedule that fulfills your true sleep need and stick to it. Adding one to two more hours can dramatically change your health, your mood, and your daytime performance.

2. Ditch the snooze button

If you’re getting enough sleep and keeping a regular schedule, you should have no use for an alarm, much less the snooze button. It’s not an issue of mind over matter, it’s a physiological necessity. If you’re not getting enough sleep or if you’re waking up in the middle of a sleep cycle, you’re going to feel drowsy, but pressing the snooze button won’t help.

Pressing it affords you only a few minutes of fragmented rest, which leaves you feeling more groggy than you would otherwise. Either set your alarm later to maximise quality sleep or bite the bullet and wake up on the first alarm and plan for a power nap or an earlier bedtime.

3. Expose yourself to bright light every morning

Your body’s physiological [circadian] rhythm is a symphony of physiological and behavioral patterns conducted by the suprachiasmatic nuclei [SCN], a 20,000 neuron area in the brain’s hypothalamus. Through electrical impulse, the SCN controls the crescendos and decrescendos of body temperature, hormone production and release, neural activity, and resultant patterns of drowsiness and alertness. These cycles maintain a pattern that is nearly 24 hours in length, but they depend on external stimuli, namely light, to keep the cycle in sync with the 24 hour progression of the external world.

Start your day by exposing yourself to bright [ideally natural] light for at least 15 minutes first thing in the morning to “sync” your circadian rhythm and activate the systems that keep you awake and active.

4. Avoid light exposure within one hour of sleep

Melatonin is a hormone chiefly responsible for coordinating your circadian rhythm. Its release is dependent on the absence of light. The absence of light triggers melatonin release, which initiates the onset of sleep and is integral to every stage of sleep thereafter.

Electronic devices like TV and iPads emit daylight spectrum light. As long as you’re in front of a screen or under bright household lights, you’re inhibiting melatonin release and sleep onset. It’s important to avoid light exposure for an hour before going to sleep or wear blue light blocking glasses to prevent retinal stimulation. This cues your body to release melatonin and ready itself for sleep.

5. Cut caffeine from late afternoon to bedtime

It takes at least six hours to metabolise caffeine, so it’s a good idea to stop drinking energy drinks, sodas, coffee, and tea from late in the afternoon until bedtime. Also avoid other caffeine sources, including chocolate or java flavoured desserts and protein bars, and more surprising sources including some weight-loss pills and pain relievers.

The final caffeine caveat is to mind your decaffeinated beverages. The FDA designates decaffeinated coffee as containing 2-5mg of caffeine per 5oz cup. This concentration alone can disrupt sleep and considering that most retailed decaf coffee contains levels far exceeding this limit, it’s wise to completely cut coffee consumption from mid afternoon.

6. Avoid alcohol consumption within three hours of bedtime

If you’re one to partake, you know that alcohol, being a depressant, can make you drowsy. But don’t let this sensation fool you into believing that alcohol consumption aids sleep. Alcohol, in fact, does just the opposite. It disrupts your circadian rhythm, causing mid-night awakenings and preventing restorative REM sleep.

Aside from disturbing your physiological sleep rhythm, alcohol can increase snoring and sleep apnea by decreasing muscle tone and it will likely cause disruptive trips to the restroom [not the kind of rest you want or need].

Avoiding alcohol consumption within three hours of bedtime ensures a restful and uninterrupted snooze.

7. Exercise regularly

Regular exercise reduces the incidence of insomnia, decreases snoring and sleep apnea through weight loss, and improves overall restfulness through improved respiration and circulation.

Body temperature is an important component of circadian rhythm. Core body temperature spikes during exercise, then plummets approximately five hours later. Coordinating this with the natural rise in body temperature in the morning or the natural drop in body temperature preceding sleep optimises the onset, quality, and duration of sleep.

Morning and afternoon exercise are therefore optimal, while evening and late night workouts are likely to delay the onset of sleep. However, if you opt for a morning workout, be sure not to compromise your nocturnal sleep requirement.

8. Eat a balanced, anti-inflammatory diet

When it comes to diet, the major aim is stabilising blood sugar, obtaining necessary micronutrients, and balancing consumption of protein, fibre, and healthy fat. Doing so will promote healthy hormone production and release, avoid inflammation, equip your body with adequate fuel, and ultimately contribute to optimal sleep latency, quality, and duration.

Stabilise blood sugar by eating meal low in glycemic index every five hours. Avoid processed foods and added sugar. This will help regulate cortisol levels, preventing disruption of REM sleep.

Build your meals up from a base of vitamin and mineral rich veggies, clean proteins, and healthy fats. This will provide the necessary precursors for sleep inducing hormones, while minimising inflammation and spikes in blood glucose.

Begin curbing difficult-to-digest foods three hours before bedtime. This includes spicy, fried, and high protein foods. Instead, opt for fruits such as cherries, kiwis, and bananas, which are readily digestible and packed with potassium and magnesium for muscle relaxation.

9. Quit smoking

Cigarette smoke is a multifaceted sleep thief. Nicotine, a stimulant, inhibits the onset of sleep and causes insomnia and increased awakenings. Individuals who smoke cigarettes are also 2.5 times more likely to suffer from obstructive sleep apnea due to inflamed tissues in the nose and throat.

Smoking alters the expression of genes that facilitate circadian rhythms and may permanently hamper the quality of your sleep. Quitting relieves symptomatic sleep problems and avoiding cigarettes altogether places you among the soundest sleeping demographic.

10. Practice mindfulness

Maintaining a prayer life or cultivating a meditation or yoga practice has been linked to healthier sleep habits and sounder sleep. These practices maintain stress hormone levels during the day that otherwise accumulate to disrupt the onset and depth of sleep come nighttime.

Meditation enhances neural plasticity and network synchronisation, which allows for seamless transitions into and out of deep sleep.

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