sleep deprivation

Well it'was an amazing show to watch all the lightning this morning. Very impressive display, Mother Nature. However, I (Jen) would appreciate if the next exhibit would allow me to get a little more sleep. According to the National Sleep Foundation, an adult needs an average of 7-9 hours of good, quality sleep. That sure doesn't happen for me when it's tunderstorming in the wee small hours.

Obviously daytime sleepiness can contribute to loss of productivity and general crankiness. But there are a few more serious health risks that can be involved in reduced number of sleep hours. Did you know it can also be linked to poor diet choices? I was very interested to learn that lack of sleep effects hormones in such a way that we feel an increase in appetite. It was found that people will low number of sleep hours can have an impact on glucose and insulin levels, making it hard to lose weight. Clearly one night of poor sleep doesn't lead to a lifetime of bad health, but for those of us that habitually struggle for the zzzs it can be a slippery slope. Being tired makes us that much less motivated for healthy diet and exercise habits, leading to weight gain, which we all know can cause a myriad of health risks such as sleep apnea, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, increased risk for stroke, etc... Aah!

There are factors that we can't control- wakeful babies, snoring spouses or thunderstorms. But we can make some choices that allow us to get as much sleep as possible. Planning ahead and getting to bed at a decent time no matter what is one. Another is to reduce caffeine intake, especially later in the day. I know, I know, not a popular option for some, but it could make a difference. Adding an extra pop in the day not only increases our calorie intake but also can make it more difficult to get to sleep at night. Additionally chosing to work out around mid afternoon is the recommemded time for best sleep. We are glad to get our exercise in whenever we can, and exercise can help us sleep better at night, but it can help the most if we are able to fit our work outs in at least three hours before bedtime. We can also create an environment for sleep by keeping the lights low, the temperature cool, and finding earplugs or some kind of white noise machine to combat any noise. And while lots of people claim that TV helps them fall asleep, experts state that TV stimulates the brain instead of allowing it to calm down, so the goal is to turn the set off at least one hour before bed. Think for a minute of the nights you watched some news report that ticked you off or some thought-provoking movie that got the gears of your mind working so you couldn't sleep and you'll know it's really true.

Getting enough sleep is a crucial part of our overall health. Regularly getting enough sleep will help us with our efforts in diet and exercise and keep our moods light. Our job is to do what we can to make that happen so that we don't spend our days dull whitted, yawning and crabby. Sometimes it's easier said than done, but it is definitely worth the effort.