The first supplement that we are going to discuss is melatonin. Melatonin is secreted by the pineal gland and is a pea-sized structure at the center of our brains, which helps our eyes register at the fall of darkness. At night, melatonin is produced to help our bodies regulate our wake-sleep cycle. The amount of it produced by our body lessens as we get older, which is why it is important to supplement with melatonin. Another useful supplement in helping you sleep better is phosphatidylserine. Phosphatidylserine is a natural nutrient found as part of the cell membranes of cells. Phosphatidylserine is most notably found in the cell membranes of neurons, comprising of about 7 to 10 percent of it lipid content. It has been available in the North American market since the early 1990`s, but has been available to the rest of the world for many decades. L-tryptophan is an essential amino acid that humans cannot live without. Tryptophan is a precursor for serotonin, melatonin, niacin, and its functional group is idole. Despite its benefits, tryptophan has been implicated as a possible cause for schizophrenia in people who cannot metabolize it properly. When properly metabolized, it creates a waste product in the brain that is toxic, causing delusions and hallucinations. The most common sleep aid, ZMA, is a combination of the two essential dietary minerals, zinc and magnesium. These two minerals are sometimes not adequately supplied in the diet so it could benefit you if you don`t have sleep troubles. The zinc is in the chemical forms zinc methionine and aspartate while the magnesium is in the aspartate form. There is no evidence of any claim that ZMA has any effects beyond those of taking equivalent amounts of zinc, magnesium, or Vitamin B6. All of these substances are healthy and the combination will also be healthy as long as it is not overdosed. Serotonin is known to regulate mood, appetite, sleep, emotion, and is implicated in the control of numerous behavioral functions. Decreased serotoninergic neurotransmission has been proposed to play a key role in the treatment of depression. The concentration of synaptic serotonin is controlled directly by its uptake in the pre-synaptic terminal. In addition to anti-depressants, highly specific serotonin reuptake inhibitors have been developed, which are increasingly prescribed for depressed patients. The final sleep aid supplement that we will discuss is 5-HTP. 5-HTP is found in some over-the-counter weight loss formulas and is an extract from a West African plant seed containing a contaminant linked to a rare blood disorder. Despite the fact that it can help you sleep, it has not been proven to effectively promote weight loss. 5HTP is also a breakdown product of the amin acid tryptophan present in most protein rich foods. Everyone wants better sleep and sometimes it`s difficult to teach yourself common methods to use to sleep better. These supplements do help but you may be able to get natural sleep by keeping stress to a minimum, eating a healthy diet, and exercising. If these methods don`t work then feel free to experiment with a sleep product until you find one to your liking. Until next time, later.
Do you keep your partner awake at night with your snoring? Are you often tired during the day? Do you sometimes find yourself suffering from morning headaches, being a bit forgetful, unable to concentrate and irritable? If so, you may be suffering from sleep apnea.
Sleep apnea is a very common and often undiagnosed sleep disorder that, according to some estimates, affects five percent of the adult population. Characterized in particular by loud snoring and daytime tiredness, sleep apnea occurs because you stop breathing during sleep. This can occur literally hundreds of times each night and your breathing can be interrupted by up to a minute or more on each occasion.
Your breathing is interrupted either by a physical blockage to your airway (for example, loose skin in the back of your throat, or perhaps your tongue, blocking your airway), in which case you are said to suffer from obstructive sleep apnea, or by a failure on the part of your brain to send out the necessary signals to the muscles of your body that control breathing, in which event your condition is described as central sleep apnea.
It is also possible to suffer from mixed sleep apnea which, as the name suggests, is a combination of both obstructive sleep apnea and central sleep apnea.
Both men and women suffer from sleep apnea, although the condition is more commonly seen in men and, in particular, men who are over 40 and overweight.
The main consequence of sleep apnea is that, because your sleep is very light, fragmented and of poor quality, you also suffer from insomnia, or excessive daytime tiredness. Your partner would probably disagree and say that the main problem is your snoring, but that’s a different story!
There are a range of treatments available for sleep apnea (including surgery in particularly severe cases), but in the vast majority of cases your quality of life can be improved considerably with a few simple lifestyle changes and natural remedies. Indeed, in mild cases, this is often all that is needed.
Here are 7 simple tips to offset the effects of sleep apnea related insomnia and restore some of that lost daytime ‘get up and go’.
Tip 1. Look at your weight.
If you’re overweight then this is undoubtedly contributing to your problem. Losing just a few pounds can make a significant difference.
Tip 2. Avoid alcohol.
Alcohol relaxes your throat muscles and this makes it much easier for these muscles to ‘collapse’ during sleep and block your airway. There’s no need to cut out alcohol altogether, but you should restrict your intake and certainly cut out alcohol in the three or four hours before going to bed.
Tip 3. Avoid sleeping pills.
Sleeping pills can also relax your throat muscles and cause similar problems to those seen for alcohol. Sleeping pills, however, can also cause a variety of other problems as well and there use is not recommended in cases of sleep apnea.
Tip 4. Avoid tobacco.
Smoking inflames your nasal tissues causing them to swell and restrict your nasal airway. Ideally, you should give up smoking altogether but, if this is too high a fence to jump, then try to cut down and, in particular, reduce your smoking during the evening.
Tip 5. Sleep on your side.
If you’re typical of the majority of sleep apnea sufferers you sleep on your back, making it far easier for the tissues in your throat, and for your tongue, to block your airway. Even if you go to sleep on your side, you probably roll onto your back shortly after falling asleep.
Try propping yourself up with pillows or cushions so that you sleep on your side. If this doesn’t work then sew something like a tennis ball into the back of your pajamas. You’ll find that rolling onto the tennis ball will be quite uncomfortable and it will soon condition you to sleep on your side.
If you can’t sew, find a shirt or tee-shirt with a breast pocket. Pop the tennis ball into the pocket and then wear the shirt back-to-front.
Tip 6. Improve your nasal breathing.
If you suffer from a ‘stuffed up’ nose, then try using a nasal spray to help open up your nasal airway. Nasal sprays should not however be used regularly or for prolonged periods, as they can cause damage to the tissues of the nose.
As an alternative, pop along to the drug store or chemist and buy yourself one of many very cheap devices that are available today to help keep your nose open while you sleep. Your pharmacist or chemist will be happy to show you what’s on offer and to help you to make the right choice.
Tip 7. Avoid sleep deprivation.
Make sure that you are getting enough sleep and that you’re following a regular bedtime routine. Also make sure that your bedroom conditions are set for sleep (the right temperature, quiet, dark etc.) and that you’ve dealt with the worries of the day and are relaxed and ready for sleep each night.
One of the major consequences of both obstructive sleep apnea and central sleep apnea is insomnia, and curing the insomnia associated with sleep apnea is a major step in the management of the condition.
These are just a few simple tips but you’ll be amazed at just what a difference they can make.
Both Zach Bashore & Donald Saunders are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
Donald Saunders has sinced written about articles on various topics from Health Insurance, Forex Training and Diabetes Treatment. Donald Saunders is the author of a number of health related publications including:"How To Get A Good Night's Sleep - Simple Solutions To Help You Rest"Pick up your free copy today and discover the key to curing sleep apnea-. Donald Saunders's top article generates over 165000 views. to your Favourites.