Have you ever seen a child who is way overdue for a mid-day nap? Trying to communicate, let alone rationalize with them is near impossible. Limited sleep can cause your sweet little child to undergo a horrific transformation. Without the proper rest, kids become irrational, uncontrollable, and easily angered. I think we can all agree this is not a healthy behavior. It is imperative you get good sleep. It is essential for better health.
The long-term effects of sleep deprivation are real and damaging to our bodies. Sleep deprivation drains your mental stamina and your physical body. Sleep deprivation is caused by a consistent lack of sleep or a reduced quality of sleep. Just like air, food, and water, your body needs sleep. It is not optional. Studies show that reduced sleep (less than five hours a night) can increase your risk of death. Researchers from the University of Warwick, and the University College London, found the lack of sleep can more than double the risk of death from cardiovascular disease.
Chronic sleep deprivation (less than five hours of sleep per night) can cause dis-ease with the body’s organs and systems which leads to ill-health. Every system of the body can become weakened or dysfunctional with chronic loss of sleep. It is one of the top reasons leading to chronic pain.
Initially, sleep deprivation will cause fatigue, difficulty concentrating, slow reaction times, poor decision making, and emotional instability. Sleep deprivation will also cause: a weakened immune system, high blood pressure, weight gain, increased risk of cardiovascular disease, low sex drive, increase risk of type 2 diabetes, poor balance, and increased risk of death.
For a moment, let’s talk about the positive side of getting good sleep. Our sleep allows our body to reset and heal. Sleep is like energy saver mode for your computer. It allows your body systems to have less stress and allows your overall system a chance to recharge.
Think for a moment what happens when you get a cold or the flu virus… Your body demands sleep. Often it will cause you to stay in bed for days at a time. This resting time allows your body a chance to conserve energy and heal.
In my office, improving sleep for our patients is vital. If we don’t ensure good quality sleep, healing will always be hindered. We have a simple two-pronged approach to 95% of all patients with sleep troubles. What approach we take depends upon the patient’s lifestyle and history.
The first approach deals with stress-induced sleeplessness. Individuals with long days and high stress often over-tax their adrenal glands. Your adrenal glands are part of a complex and very sensitive feedback loop. When your body is chronically stressed, your adrenal glands will begin to struggle to keep up, which in turn will affect your body, mind, and sleep. In most cases, we will want to build up the adrenals with a natural adrenal support.
The second approach deals with poor sleep patterns. Over time, chronic sleep disruption can train your body to have poor sleep patterns. An example of that is an individual who wakes up every day at 5am for work and then tries to sleep in on Saturday. It’s probably not going to happen. When stress is low but nights are sleepless (hard time falling asleep or difficulties falling back to sleep), my first line of action is to reset the sleep pattern. This can take some time if there have been years of chronic sleep issues. My top pick to help correct this is to use a high-quality 5-Hydroxytryptophan (5-HTP).
The human body naturally makes 5-HTP from the amino acid tryptophan. 5-HTP converts into serotonin (the body’s happy hormone) which then converts into melatonin. By carefully adding natural 5-HTP, with the help of a healthcare professional, it can help boost your body’s levels of serotonin and melatonin. With the right process, this can reset your body’s poor sleep patterns to allow for consistent regular sleep patterns.
Low serotonin levels are often associated with depression, anxiety, weight gain, and sleep disorders. This is why prescription anti-depressants are sometimes prescribed for sleep by doctors. Prescribed synthetic (man-made) anti-depressants are SSRI (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors). In essence, they reuse your own serotonin over and over again. Utilizing 5-HTP is a holistic and natural approach to this issue.
Sleep is vital for your body to maintain its energy, decrease pain, increase focus, and maximize your healing. If you struggle with sleep, I hope you work towards finding a natural solution to get you sleeping better. With better sleep you will be on your way to better mental, emotional, and physical health.
-by Brandon Crouch, DC
About the Author: Dr. Brandon Crouch is a Chiropractor with Crouch Family Chiropractic (www.crouchfamilychiro.com). Dr. Crouch can be reached for comments or questions at 270-842-1955 or via email at: office@crouchfamilychiro.hush.com.
