Are you sleepless? YAWN!!

Last night, we know, you were either binge-watching Mirzapur 2/ Scam 1992/Emily in Paris, or any other web series or movie, or exploring YouTube trending page, or having one of those ‘2 AM chats’, or waiting for that ‘One Reply’ (which Btw you will never get.), or just scrolling through insta, or playing video games. That being said, those were precisely the things you weren’t supposed to do.

But you don’t always do these things, for instance when you have loads of deadlines to meet. Well, all these lead to one outcome, that is the loss of sleep. But hey! How do we fall asleep in the first place?

With all the work, we get tired and by the end of the day our eyes become heavy, and thanks to the signals that our tired body sends to our brain and the outside environment becoming dark, the melatonin (sleep-inducing hormone) secretion increases and we begin to feel sleepy  (too much science!). Adenosine is the other sleep-inducing chemical which accumulates during the day time because of high ATP(energy currency) usage by the nervous system. In fact, Caffeine works by blocking the adenosine receptors and thus keeps us awake.

Even though a quality sleep cycle is a necessity for our body’s normal and healthy biological functioning, 8 hours of sleep has become a luxury for most of us. We all have faced the sluggishness of thoughts and sudden irritability upon loss of sleep and yet we hardly focus on a healthy sleep routine. But why is sleep essential to maintain the healthy functioning of our body? Well, even though sleep is essential, its exact function is still unclear but it’s somewhat like a recharging mechanism. Human body is an incredible machine that needs regular rest to recharge itself.

(Image by-Disha Talukdar)

What is Normal?

The normal sleep cycle consists of two components:

(Image by-Mana Kash)

• NREM(Non-rapid eye movement) and REM(Rapid eye movement).

• NREM Sleep consists of 4 stages. 

• In Stage-1(Awake) the person experiences transition from wakefulness to light Sleep. 

• The true sleep begins from Stage-2, wherein a person is in light Sleep and is easy to awake. 

• Stage 3 (occurs ~20 minutes after falling asleep) and 4 are deep sleep stages, where a person is difficult to awaken. 

During NREM sleep (specifically stage 3 and 4) heart rate, blood pressure, breathing rate, and temperature drops. And if you ever had one of those logical, less vivid, and less emotional dreams, then you probably dreamed during NREM sleep.

Most dreaming occurs during REM sleep (the dreams are usually illogical, vivid, hallucinogenic, and bizarre) during which the brain wave activity speeds up again, and heart rate, blood pressure, respiratory rate increase. The NREM to REM ratio alternates throughout the night in a 90 minutes cycle, the first half of our 8 hours sleep mostly comprises NREM sleep whereas the second half comprises REM sleep. With age, the percentage of REM sleep decreases in our cycle, studies suggest that a high percentage of REM sleep in infants and children is important for brain maturation.

During sleep, our body replenishes its energy, and recharges itself in terms of the immune system, metabolism maintenance provides emotional support, boosts creativity, consolidates memories (the process through which an event or a piece of information becomes memory), etc.

Abnormal sleep cycle, causes, and consequences

Sleep Deprivation arises because of a lack of necessary amounts and quality of sleep, which cannot support proper daytime alertness. Daytime sleepiness, sleep deprivation, and irregular sleep schedules are highly prevalent among all of us. Consequently, all spheres of our lives are deeply affected; the academic front receiving a major blow. Healthy sleep is pivotal for memory and learning. A sleep-deprived person lacks focus and attention, has altered mood, is fatigued, hence, learning is hampered. Lack of sleep slows down firing in the prefrontal cortex but increases the activity in the amygdala. Hence making the sleep-deprived person less focused, moodier, and over-reactive. Sleep deprivation holds the ability to disrupt our physical health as well. To make matters even worse, it leads to hormonal imbalance due to which a chain of events take place starting from an increase in appetite thereby increasing bad visceral fat, a decrease in anti-aging and anti-cancerous agents, and many such events. 

Long sleep deprivation may lead to irritability, mood swings, hallucinations, and in extreme cases even death. Regular sleep deprivation may impair one’s performance and health adversely. According to WHO any shift working involving disruption of the normal sleep cycle has been called a probable carcinogen (something capable of causing cancer). There is certainly no aspect of our life that can escape the ill-effects of sleep deprivation. It won’t be an exaggeration to say that the shorter the sleep, the shorter will be the life. 

Seems like high time for educating ourselves on adequate ‘Sleep Hygiene’! Before learning about the stuff that we should do to grab a restful sleep, let’s list some causes of sleep deprivation.

1. Consumption of caffeine and energy drinks.

2. Frequent exposure to light before going to bed

3. Usage of Cell phones, TV, Computer, and Video Games before bed

4. Variable schedule for going to bed and getting up

So what’s the ‘Solution’?

So far we have come across the problems posed by sleep deprivation but hold on, here are some solutions to help you out.

• The sleep-wake cycle needs to be consistent. Defined time should be taken into account for waking up and going to bed.

• Relaxing activities can be performed before sleeping such as meditation, hot water bath, reading a book, listening to soft music, etc. These help to improve sleep quality.

• Eating late at night or consuming caffeine, nicotine, or alcohol at night (or at least 8 hours before sleep) can hinder sleep. Thus reducing their consumption in the evening can aid in sound sleep.

• Increasing the exposure to bright light during the day and limiting blue light exposure in the evening can improve the body's circadian rhythm and promote sleep.

• Long daytime naps can confuse our body’s internal clock and disrupt sleep at night. On the other hand, power naps during the day have been seen to improve the efficiency and performance of individuals.

• Regular exercise is key to a good night’s sleep. However vigorous exercise before bedtime should be avoided.

• Optimizing the bedroom environment by blocking out noise, avoiding bright lights, setting up a comfortable temperature and using a comfortable mattress, pillows, etc. can aid in improving sleep quality.

• Few food and drinks that promote sleep are:

1. Chamomile or passionflower tea - These contain a substance called Apigenin, which can bind to receptors in our body and help in improving sleep and reduce anxiety and stress.
2. Almonds - contain melatonin (sleep hormone) and magnesium that improves sleep quality by decreasing cortisol, the stress hormone.
3. Turkey – contains tryptophan which increases the production of melatonin. Its protein content also aids in sleepiness.
4. Salmon, tuna, and other fatty fish – contain a healthy dose of vitamin D and omega 3 fatty acids that increase the production of serotonin hormone which further enhances sleep quality.
5. Warm milk – contains sleep-promoting compounds such as tryptophan, calcium, vitamin D, and melatonin.

Note to READERS!

Self-care is the current talk of the town. We develop self-care regimes that do well for our bodies but brain care routines are still under the shadow. Since mental health is catching everyone’s eye these days, proper brain health and sleep hygiene cannot be ignored. Healthy sleep needs to be on our priority list. Whoever said “early to bed, early to rise” knew well about science. (We know getting up is a difficult task for lazy people like us, but at least we can give it a try!) We can keep track of our sleeping patterns and find out what works best for us.

Don’t forget, Sleep is your Superpower!

Plus, If you're reading this past midnight then please go to sleep!