According to Dr Ebrahim, who is the medical director at the London Sleep Centre and co-author of the latest review, published in the journal Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research, alcohol disrupts sleep.
Drinking alcohol before going to bed may help you go to sleep more quickly but it disrupts the sleep cycle and results in less time spent in the rapid eye movemement phase (REM sleep).
This is the phase in which we do our dreaming and so you may not feel as rested after a night's sleep.
Alcohol also results in your sleep being fragmented by interrupting it in the second half of the night and you may wake up dehydrated.
Using alcohol to help you get to sleep quicker may work in the short term but will ultimately result in insomnia if resorted to too often.
Try a mug of hot chocolate instead!
Monday, January 28, 2013
Thursday, January 17, 2013
Some Sleep Problems Caused By Fear Of The Dark
Insomniacs could be afraid of the dark and that this was a contributing factor to insomnia that adults found difficult to admit
A pilot study from Ryerson University Sleep & Depression Lab posed the question, "Are people with insomnia afraid of the dark?". They conducted a small study on Toronto college students and found nearly half of the students who were poor sleepers were afraid of the dark.
The study's lead author, Taryn Moss said that the poor sleepers were more easily startled in the dark compared with good sleepers and she said that they were wondering how many people were in fact suffering from an untreated and active phobia of the dark and were not just too tense to go to sleep.
Colleen Carney, the principal investigator said that although current insomnia treatments were very effective, new approaches may be warranted which would include the treatment of this phobia of the dark. She also said that a lot more research was needed, but this finding would help insomnia treatments meet the needs for some poor sleepers that were not previously being met.
A pilot study from Ryerson University Sleep & Depression Lab posed the question, "Are people with insomnia afraid of the dark?". They conducted a small study on Toronto college students and found nearly half of the students who were poor sleepers were afraid of the dark.
The study's lead author, Taryn Moss said that the poor sleepers were more easily startled in the dark compared with good sleepers and she said that they were wondering how many people were in fact suffering from an untreated and active phobia of the dark and were not just too tense to go to sleep.
Colleen Carney, the principal investigator said that although current insomnia treatments were very effective, new approaches may be warranted which would include the treatment of this phobia of the dark. She also said that a lot more research was needed, but this finding would help insomnia treatments meet the needs for some poor sleepers that were not previously being met.
Saturday, January 05, 2013
Junk Food Craving When Deprived Of Sleep Could Lead To Obesity
Obesity could be caused by deprivation of sleep which leads to a craving for unhealthy food.
According to a new study to understand the link between sleep restriction and obesity, the sight of unhealthy food during a period of sleep restriction activated reward centers in the brain that were less active when participants had enough sleep.
25 men and women of normal weight were divided into two groups where one group's sleep was restricted to four hours for five nights and the second group were allowed to continue sleeping upto nine hours.
MRIs of their brains were taken whilst they looked at images of healthy and unhealthy foods and the results were compared.
The sleep deprived group ate more overall and consumed more fat compared to those who had regular sleep.
The study's principal investigator noted that "The unhealthy food response was a neuronal pattern specific to restricted sleep. This may suggest greater propensity to succumb to unhealthy foods when one is sleep restricted."
This study confirms previous research that also showed that sleep deprivation leads to increased food consumption, particularly sweet and salty food in otherwise healthy people.
According to a new study to understand the link between sleep restriction and obesity, the sight of unhealthy food during a period of sleep restriction activated reward centers in the brain that were less active when participants had enough sleep.
25 men and women of normal weight were divided into two groups where one group's sleep was restricted to four hours for five nights and the second group were allowed to continue sleeping upto nine hours.
MRIs of their brains were taken whilst they looked at images of healthy and unhealthy foods and the results were compared.
The sleep deprived group ate more overall and consumed more fat compared to those who had regular sleep.
The study's principal investigator noted that "The unhealthy food response was a neuronal pattern specific to restricted sleep. This may suggest greater propensity to succumb to unhealthy foods when one is sleep restricted."
This study confirms previous research that also showed that sleep deprivation leads to increased food consumption, particularly sweet and salty food in otherwise healthy people.
Thursday, December 13, 2012
Insomnia Medication May Cause Memory Loss
New research by Dr. Cara Tannenbaum, associate professor of medicine and pharmacy at the University of Montreal in Canada, suggests that the cause of memory loss and concentration in the elderly may be due to the medication.
Widely used medicines such as those used to treat insomnia, anxiety, itching or allergies can have a negative impact on memory or concentration in the elderly and are often overlooked as the cause of memory loss.
This research investigated which medications are most likely to affect both memory as well as attention, concentration, and performance of brain functions.
They found that several medications can affects both kinds of brain functioning, but were overlooked as a cause of memory loss, notably benzodiazepines, which are often used in the treatment of anxiety and insomnia.
This research reinforces the American Geriatric Society's recommendation that tricyclic antidepressants, first generation antihistamines and sleeping pills should be avoided in older patients.
However some patients may need to continue their medication despite the risks and should discuss this with their physician.
Widely used medicines such as those used to treat insomnia, anxiety, itching or allergies can have a negative impact on memory or concentration in the elderly and are often overlooked as the cause of memory loss.
This research investigated which medications are most likely to affect both memory as well as attention, concentration, and performance of brain functions.
They found that several medications can affects both kinds of brain functioning, but were overlooked as a cause of memory loss, notably benzodiazepines, which are often used in the treatment of anxiety and insomnia.
This research reinforces the American Geriatric Society's recommendation that tricyclic antidepressants, first generation antihistamines and sleeping pills should be avoided in older patients.
However some patients may need to continue their medication despite the risks and should discuss this with their physician.
Thursday, November 29, 2012
Healthy Sleep Could Prevent The Onset Of Diabetes In Teenagers
Onset of diabetes in teenagers could be prevented if they slept more as more sleep improves insulin resistance.
High levels of insulin resistance can lead to the onset of diabetes and lowering insulin resistance is thus very important in preventing it.
According to a new study conducted at the University of Pittsburgh.Increasing the amount of sleep that teenagers get could improve their insulin resistance and prevent the future onset of diabetes.
Sleep duration and insulin resistance were tracked in 245 teenagers. Results showed that this higher resistance to insulin was associated with shorter sleep duration regardless of race, age, gender etc.
According to the lead author of this study, Karen Matthews, this study is the only one that has shown this relationship in healthy teenagers, that is independent of obesity.
High levels of insulin resistance can lead to the onset of diabetes and lowering insulin resistance is thus very important in preventing it.
According to a new study conducted at the University of Pittsburgh.Increasing the amount of sleep that teenagers get could improve their insulin resistance and prevent the future onset of diabetes.
Sleep duration and insulin resistance were tracked in 245 teenagers. Results showed that this higher resistance to insulin was associated with shorter sleep duration regardless of race, age, gender etc.
According to the lead author of this study, Karen Matthews, this study is the only one that has shown this relationship in healthy teenagers, that is independent of obesity.
Thursday, November 08, 2012
Melatonin Improves Sleep In Patients Taking Beta Blockers
In a pioneering study on the use of melatonin to improve sleep in patients with hypertension who are taking beta blockers, researchers from Brigham and Women's Hospital led by Frank Scheer, PhD, MSc, found that melatonin supplementation can indeed improve sleep patterns in these patients.
The study was carried out over the course of three weeks and found that none of the study participants taking the melatonin showed any of the adverse effects that are often observed with other classic sleep medication.
Scheer said that there were also no signs of 'rebound insomnia' after the participants stopped taking the drug and that in fact, melatonin had a positive carry-over effect on sleep even after the participants had stopped taking the drug.
Melatonin is produced in the pineal gland and is a hormone that is closely involved in the sleep wake cycles. It is a naturally occurring compound which is present in plants, microbes, animals, and humans. Levels of melatonin in people are different, depending on the daily cycle. It is also a very powerful antioxidant which protects mitochondrial DNA.
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Scheer said that there were also no signs of 'rebound insomnia' after the participants stopped taking the drug and that in fact, melatonin had a positive carry-over effect on sleep even after the participants had stopped taking the drug.
Melatonin is produced in the pineal gland and is a hormone that is closely involved in the sleep wake cycles. It is a naturally occurring compound which is present in plants, microbes, animals, and humans. Levels of melatonin in people are different, depending on the daily cycle. It is also a very powerful antioxidant which protects mitochondrial DNA.
Friday, October 26, 2012
Adequate Sleep Is Essential For Weight Loss
A commentary in the Canadian Medical Association Journal states that adequate sleep is an important part of a weight loss program. This is of course in addition to diet and exercise.
Dr. Jean-Phillippe Chaput, Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario Research Institute in Ottawa and Dr Angelo Tremblay, Laval University in Quebec in recently published research found that total sleep time and quality of sleep predicted the loss of fat in people enrolled in a weight loss program.
They say that the solution to weight loss is not as simple as 'eat less, move more, sleep more.
However, an accumulating body of evidence does suggests that sleeping habits should not be overlooked when prescribing a weight-reduction program to a patient with obesity as lack of sleep increases the stimulus to consume more food and increases appetite-regulating hormones.
Dr. Jean-Phillippe Chaput, Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario Research Institute in Ottawa and Dr Angelo Tremblay, Laval University in Quebec in recently published research found that total sleep time and quality of sleep predicted the loss of fat in people enrolled in a weight loss program.
They say that the solution to weight loss is not as simple as 'eat less, move more, sleep more.
However, an accumulating body of evidence does suggests that sleeping habits should not be overlooked when prescribing a weight-reduction program to a patient with obesity as lack of sleep increases the stimulus to consume more food and increases appetite-regulating hormones.
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