How To Get A Good Night's Sleep

An article in first shown in The New Scientist says if you ignore your body's natural clock by working and playing at any time of the day or night, you could set a time bomb for illness, injury and even death, according to sleep experts. The price of ignoring your natural sleep patterns can range from aches and pains obesity, depression, heart disease to chronic fatigue syndrome .
A regular bedtime can be as important to your health as stopping smoking or cutting back on saturated fat. Your biological clock, nestled in the hypothalamus region of your brain, controls what time you eat and rest, the rhythmic surge of hormones, changes in body temperature, immune system activity and a host of other body functions.
Different people have different sleep patterns. Some are morning people while others are nocturnal creatures. Problems arise when you ignore your natural body rhythms to meet the demands of work or family, says the article. People who restrict their sleep or are engaged in shift work where sleep becomes fragmented and disturbed are at risk for cardiovascular disease. This has been shown in nurses who have been engaged in shift work over a long period of time. They show an increased risk for heart attacks.
Sleep debt can also contribute to depression, and lost sleep creates dangers at work and on the roads. Sleep deprivation results in impairment in people's capabilities to operate in their usual, expected way, and they would not necessarily know that they are impaired. Most people require roughly seven to eight hours of sleep a night to stay alert through the day. Warning signs of lack of adequate quality sleep include forgetfulness, irritability, confusion, fatigue, low libido and depression.
Tips to Help You Sleep
Exercise, avoiding caffeine after 12 PM, dark rooms or sleeping masks, white noise, cool bedrooms and hot baths are all helpful. Three different classes of natural products promote sleep. Herbs like valerian, passion flower, hops, kava kava, and the minerals calcium and magnesium can work for adults of any age. It may take two weeks for the effects to be noticed by some.
Melatonin is more indicated the more above 40 you are. Also, night workers, those travelling across time zones, those with high levels of the stress hormone cortisol, and women with hot flashes often do well with melatonin You can actually measure your melatonin levels via online mail order salivary hormone test "Sleep Profile". This helps determine your need.
Potions, Teas, Vitamins, Drinks, Massages And Herbal Baths Are All Helpful In Inducing A Good Night's Sleep
1. A herbal bath can soothe your nerves and relieve insomnia. Boil 2 ounces of Balm leaves in water for a few minutes, then let steep for 20 minutes. Strain and add to your bath water. Your bath water should be warm, but not hot, as the latter could stimulate rather than soothe.
2. Make a tea out of one or several of the following herbs: Catnip, Cowslip, German Chamomile, Hops, Passion flower, Valerian, Balm, Linden and Melissa. Drink several times a day if possible.
3. Inositol, one of the B vitamins, as well as pantothenic acid, both help induce sleep. Try one or even both together. Inositol: 1 to 3 grams an hour before bedtime. Pantothenic Acid: 1/2 to 2 grams an hour before bedtime.
4. Tryptophan is a natural amino acid which induces sleep. Combined with calcium it can be even more effective. Try the following program:
(a) 3 trypthophan tablets half an hour before bedtime.
(b) 1 chelated calcium and magnesium tablet 3 times a day and 3 tablets half an hour before bedtime.
5. Turkey is an excellent source of tryptophan and milk of calcium; therefore, a turkey sandwich with a cup of warm milk at bedtime might cure your sleeplessness. A cheese sandwich would also help, as cheese (as well as milk) contains both tryptophan and calcium.
6. Make an effective sleeping potion:
(a) Combine 1 tbsp. tincture of Valerian (from a pharmacy), 1-1/2 tsp. of apple cider vinegar, 3 tbsp. of honey and 2 tbsp. of gin or vodka in a cup. Stir.
(b) Add 2 tbsp. or more of hot milk and stir again. Drink this mixture warm or hot half an hour before bedtime. If you are not asleep within an hour, repeat the dose. Do not drink more than 2 doses in an evening.
7. Massage the soles of your feet with mustard oil at bedtime.

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Last updated June 6th 2008