Sleep Essential For Good Health

Adequate restful sleep, like diet, exercise and nutritional supplements, is critical to good health.  Insufficient restful sleep can result in mental and physical health problems.¹ Yet, getting to sleep, staying asleep and waking refreshed can be a problem for many of us.  The National Sleep Foundation reports (2002) that America is on the verge of a poor sleep epidemic.  Results of your latest national poll revealed: 63% of American adults get less than 8 hours of sleep that is recommended to maintain optimal physical, mental and emotional health.  One third of the US population says they get less sleep now than they did 5 years ago.²

Getting adequate sleep each night appears to have a wide range of benefits.  Research suggests that a good  night’s sleep can give the immune system a boost and reduce the risk of heart disease, heart attack and type 2 diabetes.  There is also evidence to suggest that getting adequate amounts of good sleep may increase longevity.³

A study conducted by Japanese researchers involving men aged 42 to79 uncovered an important connection between sleep and heart attacks.  He found that men who worked 61 hours or more a week in the year preceding the heart attack were twice as likely to have a heart attack as men who worked 40 hours or less.  The men who slept 5 hours or less each working day during thr year preceding the heart attack were 2-3 times more likely to have a heart attack.¹.  Meanwhile, research by Ayas (Arch Intern Med. 2003;163:205-209) revealed a link between heart disease and sleep.  The results showed that compared with women who slept for 8 hours each night, women who slept less than 5 hours a night had a 82% greater risk of heart disease, those who slept 6 hours a night had a 30% increased risk and those who slept 9 hours or longer had a 57% increased risk.¹

Additionally, people who slept for less than 6 hours each night are more likely to gain weight and were therefore at higher risk of type 2 diabetes.  Sleep deprivation also has a profound deleterious effect upon the immune system.  Moldofsky, et al., reported that sleep deprivation reduces both the production and activity of immune cells.

Sleep is composed of 5 distinct stages.  Normal sleep contains REM (rapid eye movement) and NREM (non-REM) segments.  Non-REM sleep, is divided into 4 stages, where sleep deepens until stages 3-4 (delta sleep).  REM sleep, also known as stage 5, is where dreaming occurs.

Dr. Eve Van Cauter from the University of Chicago reports that biological signs of accelerated aging appear in healthy young man after less than a week in which they slept no more than 4 hours a night.  Harvard Medical School's neurophysiology lab director J. Allan Hobson suggests as serious sleep loss "might predispose you to getting diseases that are known to be genetic."

So how much sleep do you need?  The general rule of thumb has been 8 hours per night.  However, research published in 2002 found that people who slept for 8 hours were 12% more likely to die within the study’s time span of 6 years.  Those who slept 6-7 hours a night lived longer.  Another study, also published in 2002, found that 14% of people who said they slept for more than 8 hours a night had a history of stroke and TIAs, whereas less than 6% of those who slept for just 6 hours a night had a stroke history.  The studies suggested 6-7 hours may be the optimal amount of sleep for adults.  The common misconception is that a person’s need for sleep declines with age.  What does change is the amount of time that middle-aged to older people spend in deeper sleep.  The percentage of REM sleep remains largely constant across all age groups.  Just 20 minutes of restful slumber during the day not only rejuvenates your thinking but could also make it easier for you to sleep at night⁴.

A number of factors commonly associated with aging may interrupt, delay or shortened sleep.  These include:

• Lifestyle changes
• Decreased secretion of melatonin
• Changes in body temperature cycle
• Decrease exposure to natural light
• Dietary changes
• Decreased mental stimulation during the day
• Aches and pains
• Diseases and medications used to treat them
• Hormonal imbalances, especially hot flashes in menopausal women
• Psychological conditions including depression and anxiety
• Frequent waking to go to the bathroom
• Stress or bereavement

 The proper recipe for sleep is different for each person depending upon her needs and conditions.  Simply taking a sleeping pill may not result in achieving all of the health benefits of optimum sleep.  It is important to identify and address the various factors that can impair sleep and correct them to achieve optimum sleep, optimum health and optimal longevity.

Our new office is conveniently located in the heart of beautiful South Glastonbury, CT. ( click here for directions)