A 2016 Sleep Health Foundation Survey Study of Australian Adults found that females are 40% more likely than males (26%) to experience difficulty in falling asleep with little difference across age groups. Nearly half 47% of women wake often overnight, which is a problem that also increases significantly with age. Problems with waking early and not being able to easily get back to sleep also increase with age. Here we take a look at what maybe effecting your sleep:
LIGHT
Humans, along with most living creatures, have an internal clock that mirrors nature’s cycles of day and night. The hypothalamus and area of the brain is our timekeeper which regulates many of our body’s functions, like sleep, energy, and hunger.
Cells in the retina of the eye detect sunlight and send messages to the brain that keep us in a roughly 24-hour pattern. These light cues trigger all kinds of chemical changes in the body, changing our physiology and ultimately our behavior. When daylight starts to fade the hormone melatonin begins to increase and body temperature falls—both of which help us to become less alert and more likely to sleep. With the help of morning light, melatonin levels are low, body temperature begins to increase, and the hormone cortisol is released to help us feel alert and ready to begin our day.
Artificial light after dark can send ‘wake-up’ messages to the brain, suppressing the production of the sleep-inducing hormone melatonin and making it harder to fall asleep and just as importantly stay asleep. A recent study showed that even bright room light could have this chemical effect. And early sunrays begin to activate the body and can cause some of us to rise before we’re ready.
Consider low-wattage, incandescent lamps at your bedside to help you wind down in the hours before sleep. Remove other sources of artificial light, for example, streetlamps or porch lights, the glow from the power buttons of electronics like TV’s or bright alarm clocks. Consider blocking these to make the room completely dark while you sleep. Use block-out curtains or blinds to keep your body in sleep mode until it’s time to wake up and start the day.
GADGETS
The world is full of gadgets and we love them! iPads, tablets, laptops and smartphones are never far from hand, utilising them for both work and entertainment. A recent poll by the National Sleep Foundation (USA) found that 95% of people use some type of computer, video game, or smartphone at least a few nights a week within the hour before bed.
Using TVs, tablets, smartphones, laptops, or other electronic devices before bed delays your body’s internal clock – circadian rhythm, suppresses the release of the sleep-inducing hormone melatonin, and makes it more difficult to fall asleep. This is largely due to the short-wavelength, artificial blue light that’s emitted by these devices. The more electronic devices that a person uses in the evening, the harder it is to fall asleep or stay asleep. Besides increasing your alertness at a time when you should be getting sleepy, which in turn delays your bedtime, using these devices before sleep delays the onset of REM sleep, reduces the total amount of REM sleep, and compromises alertness the next morning. Over time, these effects can add up to a significant, chronic deficiency in sleep. This may help explain our ‘need’ for that morning caffeine kick!
Our circadian rhythm appears to be especially sensitive to light with short wavelengths — in particular, blue light (460-nanometer range of the electromagnetic spectrum) This light, which is given off by electronics like computers and smartphones, and also by energy-efficient bulbs, has been shown to delay the release of melatonin. Explaining how electronic gadgets could keep you feeling ‘wired’ past bedtime.
Turn them off! for at least an hour before bed. It can take some time for the body to come down from technology’s alerting effects. Read a book, take a bath or shower and let your body chemistry settle for the night.
2016 Sleep Health Survey of Australian Adults reported
the following reasons for awakening from sleep:
FOLLOW ON
Gabrielle is the founder and creator of Human & Kind {Organics} The aim of my blog is to share information to educate the reader with the latest research on skin health. I believe we can all achieve beautiful, radiant, healthy, glowing skin without using products containing potentially harmful ingredients which will damage your skins microbiome. Certified organic (ACO) skin care is better for your skin health and the planet Earth.
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REFERENCES:
- Can Blue-Enriched Light Keep Us Alert?
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3027693/ - Exposure to Room Light before Bedtime Suppresses Melatonin Onset and Shortens Melatonin Duration in Humans https://academic.oup.com/jcem/article/96/3/E463/2597236
- The relationship between insomnia and body temperatures.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18603220?ordinalpos=1&itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_ResultsPanel.Pubmed_DefaultReportPanel.Pubmed_RVDocSum - Spontaneous brain rhythms predict sleep stability in the face of noise
https://www.cell.com/current-biology/abstract/S0960-9822(10)00778-5 - The influence of white noise on sleep in subjects exposed to ICU noise
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1389945704002242 - The effects of lavender oil inhalation on emotional states, autonomic nervous system, and brain electrical activity.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22612017 - Book – Walker, Matthew. Why We Sleep: The New Science of Sleep and Dreams (p. 271). Penguin Books Ltd. Kindle Edition.
- The Sleep Foundation
https://sleepfoundation.org