If you have ever fought to stay awake behind the wheel of a car, you understand how serious sleep deprivation can be. Unfortunately, millions of Americans suffer from either occasional or chronic insomnia, a condition that leaves them exhausted, irritable, and accident-prone. There are even studies showing that the chronically sleep-deprived are more likely to be overweight and suffer from diabetes and heart problems. Exercise improves sleep - for about 60% of people. It can also take up to three months of regular exercise for sleep to improve. If you are in the unlucky 40% for whom exercise produces minimal or no improvements in sleep quality, you still have natural options that can greatly improve sleep quality.
The Miracle of Flax Oil
If you want to sleep better, try adding flax oil to your diet. This is probably the easiest and cheapest thing you can do to improve the quality of your sleep. Flax oil contains several different types of fatty acids that have been shown to help you fall asleep and stay asleep. Flax oil contains omega-3 fatty acids that regulate the neurotransmitter serotonin. Serotonin itself is calming and it is also used by the body to make melatonin, a known sleep-promoting substance. In addition, flax oil contains omega-6 fatty acid that are used to produce a sleep-modulating substance called PGD 2. The omega-9 fatty acid, oleic acid, is used to produce oleamide, which induces sleep. I tried rather high doses of flax oil-four to six tablespoons daily-and found that I was sleeping better within three days. After my sleep cycle returned to normal, I reduced the dose to two tablespoons per day. The fatty acids in flax oil are quite sensitive to heat. Never cook with this oil and always keep it refrigerated.
After adding flax oil, include more complex carbohydrates and leafy green vegetables to your diet. Brown rice is rich in tryptophan, which the body converts into serotonin and then into melatonin, the sleep hormone. Brown rice, beans, oatmeal, and salmon are good sources of Vitamin B-6, which helps the body convert tryptophan into serotonin.
Leafy green vegetables are rich sources of calcium and magnesium which are calming and promote sleep. Taking magnesium supplements an hour before bedtime makes it easier to fall asleep. Eat a snack containing complex carbohydrates and no protein shortly before bed. This will promote serotonin production and keep your blood sugar stable throughout the night. A simple trick is to stir a tablespoon of barley malt right into a small cup of hot water and drink. It is warm, sweet, and soothing. Be sure to brush your teeth afterwards as consuming carbohydrates before bed promotes tooth decay.
Insomnia from the Perspective of Traditional Eastern Medicine
According to Traditional Eastern Medicine, if you have trouble falling asleep, you have consumed too many "yin" foods like caffeine and sugar. Avoid these foods. If you can fall asleep but awaken later in the night, you have eaten too many "yang" foods like salt, meat, and baked flour products. In this case, eat a plant-centered diet with lots of leafy green vegetables.
Traditional Eastern Medicine offers other insights. Insomnia at various times of the night is, according to this view, linked to certain organs. For example, if you awaken between 11 P.M. and 1 A.M., you may have difficulties with your gallbladder. If you routinely awaken between 1 A.M. and 3 A.M., you may have problems with your liver. To correct liver and gall bladder imbalances, avoid meat, dairy, eggs, baked flour products, sugar, and alcohol. Also avoid too much fat, which is very hard on the gall bladder. Eat a diet that emphasizes vegetables. In particular, eat lots of leafy green vegetables like collard greens, kale, dandelion greens, and mustard greens. Leafy green vegetables are rich sources of alpha lipoic acid, an antioxidant important for liver health. They are also rich in calcium, magnesium, and lutein, a nutrient that is essential for eye health. Epidemiological studies show that women who regularly eat leafy green vegetables have a reduced risk of ovarian cancer.
If you awaken between 3 A.M. and 5 A.M., this may be a lung problem. In this case, avoid dairy products for a few months. A traditional remedy for lung problems is lotus root tea. Lotus roots can be found at nearly all Chinese food markets. To prepare the tea, cut any brown spots off of the lotus root and grate the lotus root finely. Use about 1 tablespoonful of lotus root per cup of water. Add a pinch of salt if you like. Simmer gently-do not bring to a full boil-for about 10 minutes. Drink the tea hot.
The adrenal glands play a key role in regulating sleep. Imbalances in adrenal hormones will lead to serious sleep disturbances. Studies have shown that people suffering from insomnia often have higher levels of nighttime cortisol secretion than good sleepers. To reduce cortisol secretion, avoid sugar, caffeine, and alcohol. The standard recommendation is to avoid caffeine after noon but I would go one step further and avoid caffeine all the time. I have noticed, however, that I can tolerate white tea because it contains far less caffeine than other forms of tea. Kukicha twig tea is also low in caffeine and is well-tolerated. In fact, a common macrobiotic remedy for insomnia is to add a teaspoon of organic soy sauce to a cup of kukicha tea and drink before bedtime. It seems to work, too, but don't use it for more than 2 or 3 nights in a row because the salt in the soy sauce will make you crave sweets. You can strengthen your adrenal glands with high quality vegetable protein. Small beans are especially good. A Japanese bean called aduki (or azuki or sometimes adzuki) is especially good for the kidneys and adrenal glands. Brew a tea by mixing a cup of adzuki beans in four cups of water. Add a postage-sized piece of kombu to the pot and simmer for 20 minutes. Drink this tea hot. You can always continue cooking the beans and eat them later.
Blood sugar imbalances will lead to insomnia also. From a macrobiotic point of view, low blood sugar is caused by a pancreas that is too "tight" and that secretes too much insulin. Foods that make the pancreas "tight" are animal products, salt, and baked flour products. Instead, emphasize sweet vegetables like carrots, cabbage, squash, and onions. Small quantities of whole, low-sugar fruits like apples, pears, watermelons, and berries add natural sweetness and reduce cravings for stronger sweets.
Women and Insomnia
If you are female and your insomnia is linked to menstruation or menopause, avoid too much salt and eat more soy products. Fermented soy products like miso, natural soy sauce, natto, and tempeh are excellent sources of phytoestrogens, which are plant-based compounds similar to estrogen but much milder in their effects. Natto is made from soy beans that have been fermented with a mold that grows on rice straw. It has a pungent taste and is available at Japanese food stores. Most Americans do not like the taste. Tempeh is an Indonesian staple that has become popular among vegetarians in the U.S. It is mild tasting and is easy to prepare. Pan fry it and top it with natural sauerkraut or serve it with saut�ed vegetables and brown rice.
Yuki Nabe is prepared from tofu and daikon, a long white radish found in nearly all Asian markets and health food stores. Grate 1 � cups of daikon, add a pinch of salt, and cook in a covered pot over a medium flam for 3 to 5 minutes. Add 1/3 cup of cubed tofu, cover, and cook for an additional 3 minutes. The daikon, which is quite pungent when raw, becomes sweeter as it cooks and adds a pleasant flavor to the tofu.
An effective treatment for insomnia-and other PMS symptoms-linked to menstrual issues is black cohosh. As a woman who has been there and tried it, I can tell you that black cohosh provides significant relief for insomnia as well as for weepiness, irritability, and the general awfulness of difficult menstruation.
Electromagnetic Fields and Insomnia
A controversial recommendation for sleeping better, one with which not everyone agrees, is to reduce exposure to electromagnetic fields. Computers, television, cell phones, and wireless devices like security systems, computer networks, and cordless phones are major sources of these fields. If you have insomnia during the work week but sleep well on the weekends, the cause may not be job stress-it may; be a high exposure to electromagnetic fields in the workplace. A number of research studies have linked computer work and cell phone use to disturbed sleep. One study by a Japanese research named Tetsuye Nakazawa was published in the American Journal of Industrial Medicine. In his research, he found that people who used the computer for more than 5 hours a day were far more prone to insomnia, depression, and irritability. If you suspect this may be a problem, avoid the computer for several hours before bed. Use a headset for your cell phone that has an air tube leading from the phone to your ear. These headsets will greatly reduce your exposure to electromagnetic fields. Exercise in a natural environment - in a park or near the ocean - before bed and avoid computers and cell phones after the exercise.
I had an interesting experience with computers and insomnia. In the early 1980s, I would regularly wake up at 1 AM and find myself unable to get back to sleep until after 4 A.M. Since I didn't have a car then, I was walking 18-20 miles a week back and forth to work. It was puzzling: I was getting more exercise than I had ever gotten in my life and yet was sleeping worse. The business I worked at was sold and the 1 AM awakenings stopped. They resumed again, after a decade, when my new place of work got computers. I didn't make the connection until I went to an acupuncturist for help with the insomnia and he told me that this might be a problem. A later post will cover the issue of electromagnetic fiels and insomnia in more detail.
Natural and Homeopathic Remedies
Try some herbs. Hops, passion flower, and lemon balm promote sleep. Vary the herbs you use because your body becomes tolerant to them over time and they lose their effectiveness. I find that hops tea works very well for me for about two nights, then it loses its effectiveness. Therefore, I try to use it when other remedies fail. There is a very good tea sold in many health food stores and even some grocery stores called Nighty Night. This contains a mix of herbs and seems to be relaxing. Be aware that too much of certain herbs like kava-kava and valerian can cause liver damage. The key is moderation.
Because tryptophan is the precursor to both serotonin and melatonin, you may want to try taking tryptophan itself. Pure tryptophan is marketed by a company called Bluebonnet Nutrition (www.bluebonnetnutrition.com) and can be ordered by your health foods store.
I have experienced some success with homeopathic remedies. I happen to like Rescue Sleep, one of the bach flower remedy products. This homeopathic product is designed to alleviate stress and anxiety. While nothing works as well as Ambien, Rescue Sleep does help if the insomnia is caused by stress. I suspect that it works for another reason: if you have taken sleeping pills for years, the act of taking the pill is a signal to your body that it is time to sleep. Using Rescue Remedy, which is sprayed into the mouth almost like breath spray, signals your body that it is time to sleep.
Allergies Can Disturb Sleep
Investigate the possibility of allergies. Chemicals that the body produces in response to allergens can reduce the conversion of tryptophan into serotonin and melatonin, thus affecting sleep. Allergies are also significantly linked to depression and fatigue. If you are depressed, fatigued, and have trouble sleeping, eliminating allergens may provide significant relief. The obvious way of determining whether or not you are allergic is to be tested by an allergist. A low-cost alternative is to eat nothing but brown rice for 5 days (almost no one is allergic to rice) and introduce foods one at a time and gauge your reaction. Be sure that you are introducing foods one at a time. For example, if you want to test yourself for a corn allergy, eat plain corn, not nachos, because you wouldn't know if you were allergic to the corn or to the oil or seasonings used to make the nachos. Common allergens are wheat, corn, soy, milk, tree nuts, and shell fish. Although not usually listed as a common allergen, I have found that people are frequently allergic to spices. About 15% of people with food allergies have at least one spice allergy. There is a condition known as allergic tension-fatigue syndrome. If you are both tense and exhausted, spices may be the culprit.
Exercisep>
The Do-In Way: Gentle Exercises to Liberate the Mind, Body, and Spirit (An older book was entitled The Book of Do-In (DOE - EEN) by Michio Kushi offers two sets of exercises that are especially helpful in combating insomnia. The first exercises are the meridian stretches. These can be done at any time of the day or night but I like to do them in the morning because they stimulate a healthy flow of energy throughout the body and get you ready for the day. The night time exercises are, obviously, done at night. This is a set of 20 exercises, none of which are too strenuous. By the 17th or 18th exercise, you will feel yourself become amazingly sleepy and it will be difficult to stay awake to do the last two or three exercises.
Conclusion
If you follow the steps outlined above, making especially sure to include flax oil and leafy green vegetables, you should see a remarkable improvement in your sleep within two weeks.
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