Poor Sleep Quality Introduction
Isn’t it incredible that the mind disconnects from the body during sleep, and we go into basically a different realm or dimension for hours? Poor sleep quality, can kill us in a matter weeks without sleep! How is this possible? As kids and young adults, we take sleep for granted and only wish we could sleep even more than the eight or nine hours we got. As seniors, the struggle to sleep gets real and poor sleep quality can be devastating to health if not addressed.
Sleep Hygiene Suggestions
Sleep Hygiene is the practice of creating a sleep-conducive environment and maintaining a regular sleep schedule.
The following are some of the characteristics of good sleep hygiene:
– A dark, cool, and quiet room
– A comfortable mattress
– A bedtime routine
– Avoiding caffeine or alcohol before bedtime
– Avoiding or limiting naps during the day
– Avoid electronics up to 3 hours before bed
– Don’t eat 3 hours before bed
– Red light bulbs after sunset
Insomnia is a poor sleep quality disorder affecting millions
It is characterized by difficulty falling asleep, staying asleep, or both. Insomnia can be caused by many factors such as stress, anxiety, depression, and pain. I believe that it is also directly tied to our melatonin production that we covered in another post. We have huge amounts right up to post puberty and then it begins to fall. By the time we are 40, we have lost over half of our peak melatonin! By 60, it’s nearly zero!
We can assuredly take steps to improve our environment by creating a conducive setting. No light, good bedding, cool temperatures, etc. can help. On the other hand, it seems to go from being a teen and able to sleep 24 hours to 60 and unable to sleep no matter what steps you take. Again, we can tweak things to help as we age but to me, it eventually is equivalent to taking an aspirin when you get your arm chopped off!
Don’t get me wrong, I support taking all the natural steps to improve poor sleep quality over pharmaceuticals and sleeping pills. The natural therapies generally benefit overall health unlike drugs so there is little downside except.
This brings me back to melatonin. Anytime big pharma targets a natural substance such as melatonin, my BS sensor perks up. There is an attack on this molecule world wide just like other natural therapeutics that are inexpensive and work. Take vitamin D which we cover in another article, and how the medical industry fabricated stories and demonized it decades ago.
Rockefeller realized nobody was getting sick and using his hospitals in the 30s and when they added D to just about every food. The average D intake of a US citizen back then was estimated at 30mg per day. The AMA with Rockefeller deviously changed the measurement system after demonizing it to IU’s. FDA put a suggested 400 IU limit on it so people didn’t react since it sounded like a lot. In milligrams, it is a fraction of 1 mg and people had been averaging one million IU in mg terms previously per day!
So, melatonin has received the blessing of big pharma only if you take no more than 3 mg per day. Doctors and researchers are finding that amounts upwards of 200 mg are not only safe but curing serious diseases! My point is that we have been put off the trail of melatonin and one reason we suffer poor sleep quality. Probably the main reason!
Yes, you can take low dose along with some of the other natural supplements below with potentially effective results on poor sleep quality. I say go low dose and take more as needed but I think that it is fruitless for a senior to expect much from these miniscule FDA amounts. Do your own further research and you will find out that melatonin is the absolute top antioxidant with no side effects!
List of some sleep aids available at most health food stores
1. Melatonin
3. Magnesium my favorite
5. L-Theanine
6. Kava
7.Glycine semi sweet powder I add to coffee or any drinks
8, Blue Light Glasses and Computer Screens
* Please view our Melatonin post addressing dose and benefits especially for seniors experiencing poor sleep quality
Watch the video and get some insight into the many disorders and appreciate the next time you get a good night’s rest without waking up during the night! Don’t worry or give up if you are suffering from insomnia because we do discuss solutions also!
