Sleep May Determine Your Longevity

YOU: “Sorry I am late but I overslept”

BOSS: That’s Ok! I am just excited you got your proper rest so that you can live an optimal healthy life.

YOU: Thanks Boss!

 

As sarcastic as the dialogue above is, the point is that our sleep may be the most important aspect to our health. The average adult sleeps an hour and a half less now compared to over 100 years ago, thanks to the internet, e-mail, cell phones, and television that are all taking bites out of our sleep cycle. Current research by the University College London Medical School concluded that those who get less sleep are unhealthier than their rested counterparts.

 

Sleep is the body’s opportunity to rest and repair the damages occurred from the previous day. In a new study, epidemiologist Jane Ferrie questioned 7,700 British civil servants about their sleep habits over an eight year period. She found that those who slept six to eight hours nightly at the beginning of the study but decreased the amount of rest they got by the end, increased their risk of heart disease 110%. “When you sleep your blood pressure drops, your heart rate drops, and the heart doesn’t have to work as much,” explains Dr. Lawrence Epstein, medical director of the Sleep Health Centers in Boston.

 

What is the best solution?

 

• Get more sleep without prescription drugs that decrease the quality of sleep and interrupt the body’s natural healing ability.

 

1)    Read 30 minutes before bed with the TV off.

2)    Perform 4 x 4 breathing (See Last Weeks Blog Post for Instructions)

3)    Drink a glass of chamomile tea.

4)    Do not use any electronics within 30 minutes of your bed time.

5)    Do not eat past 9:00 pm.

6)    Drink a glass of water after 9:00 pm

7)    Turn your cell phone off.

8)    Write in your journal about the day.

 

If you can think of any techniques that help you sleep, please add them to the comments. Thanks!

 

 

 

 

 

110% increase in risk of dying from heart related disorders			Optimum Sleep Time			110% increase in risk of dying from noncardiovascular causes
3 hours	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11