Hello Again!

Alright, let’s get into the three component parts of the circadian rhythm that a person will want to make sure are in, if he wishes to get a good night’s sleep, and let’s look at them before I’ve written 3 pages without getting to the point!

Eating:

In the previous blogs, we have already discussed the importance of restricting one’s window of eating to an 8-12 hour period each day- breaking one’s fast at the same time each day, and taking his last bite at the same time each day!

Yes, this is a discipline, but this is what regulates proper digestion, assimilation, and elimination, allowing the organs to repair themselves and get ready for the new day.

One must stop eating 2 to 4 hours before going to sleep each evening.

After 6 to 7 hours of no food, the body will switch from making and storing fat to burning fat!

So, from that first sip of coffee or tea in the morning, or a full breakfast until a person takes his very last bite in the evening- and this will include any snacks before bed… the very last bite… that is your time-restricted eating window, and this should be between 8 and 12 hours each day.

It is rather difficult to fall asleep and get reparative sleep if a person is still trying to digest his food at midnight or in the early morning hours.

Gut Bugs.

Just an aside, a person’s gut microbiome, a guy’s gut bugs, alters between day and night. The gut bugs we have at night when we go to sleep will die off, and different bugs will “bloom” by the time we wake in the morning, and these bugs will transition throughout the day. These bugs help us digest our food, and so an ever-changing variety is very important, and only possible with proper sleep, limited eating windows, and a large variety of foods in our diets.

These gut bugs are sooooooooooooooo important to one’s health that I will talk more about them in future blogs.

Again, any questions, please let me know!

 

Light:

Light can be a big problem when trying to fall asleep.

Because of certain protein receptors in our eyes, the blue light of day and that of light bulbs, screens, and LED bulbs will actually tell our brains that it is morning and we should be awake!

This is fine if it is daytime, but not when a person is trying to fall asleep.

 

 

 

Melatonin.

Because of the blue light spectrum, melatonin, a hormone that enables us to sleep, is not released and so does not tell the body to sleep.

One should keep the lights dim in their house at night if this can be done safely. Tripping and breaking bones will also keep you from sleeping!

Red/orange night lights can help as they will not interfere with the release of melatonin.

If one does need to read or study at night task lighting can help. This is a spotlight of sorts that shines on your work, but not into your eyes.

Also, some cell phone and computer screens have a way of turning the screen lights to more of an orangy-pink which can also help.

So, ideally NO screens or illumination for at least a half-hour to an hour before bed to allow the melatonin levels to rise and bring about sleep.

On the opposite side, natural light in the morning will actually help wake you up.

As a person gets their sleep rhythm in sync, which would be going to bed at the same time each night… even on the weekends, and waking up at the same time as the sun comes up… even on weekends, this will set the brain’s circadian clock for the day!

By the way, eating sets the body’s circadian clocks.

A person might not need that cup of coffee first thing- I know, bite my tongue!

But being outside in the morning for about a half-hour really gets things going, and being outside for an hour or more each day, and being physically active is really amazing for getting a person ready for sleep that night.

This brings us to our third category…

Activity:

Activity is really just activity and can include walking, jogging, gardening, playing with the dogs…, anything that has a person moving, outdoors in natural sun or daylight.

Heck, I suppose just standing outside in the morning for a half-hour, barefoot and earthing… that would be amazing!

Earthing is just that- one’s bare feet, or hands, or exposed body parts are brought into direct contact with the earth- the ground, the dirt… you know, land! This allows for discharging any negative ions one has accumulated from all the electronic “stuff” we use each day.

Throughout the day a person should certainly avail themselves of any opportunity to get outside and take in the natural sunlight.

If a person wears glasses, take them off, and don’t wear sunglasses. Let the sunlight get into your eyes and do its magic.

Of course, DO NOT STARE INTO THE SUN!

Alright, thanks for sticking with me… I know these blogs have been quite long, but the information is very beneficial and could change a person’s life for the better.

Okay, before leaving Sleep, in the next blog I will summarize the 12 Tips for getting a good night’s sleep found in the back of Mathew Walker’s book,  Why We Sleep.

The next topic will be light and how it relates to the circadian rhythm. I know we talked about it a little bit with trying to sleep better, but…, there is more!

Again, if you have any questions, please let me know I will be more than happy to help you.

Take Care,

Dr. Dave

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