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To Your Health With Dr. Jim Morrow: Episode 27, The Importance of Sleep

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To Your Health With Dr. Jim Morrow: Episode 27: The Importance of Sleep

On this edition of “To Your Health with Dr. Jim Morrow,” Dr. Morrow discusses the importance of sleep, common sleep disorders, and ways to get better sleep. “To Your Health” is brought to you by Morrow Family Medicine, which brings the CARE back to healthcare.

Morrow Family Medicine is an award-winning, state-of-the-art family practice with offices in Cumming and Milton, Georgia. The practice combines healthcare information technology with old-fashioned care to provide the type of care that many are in search of today. Two physicians, three physician assistants and two nurse practitioners are supported by a knowledgeable and friendly staff to make your visit to Morrow Family Medicine one that will remind you of the way healthcare should be.  At Morrow Family Medicine, we like to say we are “bringing the care back to healthcare!”  Morrow Family Medicine has been named the “Best of Forsyth” in Family Medicine in all five years of the award, is a three-time consecutive winner of the “Best of North Atlanta” by readers of Appen Media, and the 2019 winner of “Best of Life” in North Fulton County.

Dr. Jim Morrow, Morrow Family Medicine, and Host of “To Your Health With Dr. Jim Morrow”

Dr. Jim Morrow is the founder and CEO of Morrow Family Medicine. He has been a trailblazer and evangelist in the area of healthcare information technology, was named Physician IT Leader of the Year by HIMSS, a HIMSS Davies Award Winner, the Cumming-Forsyth Chamber of Commerce Steve Bloom Award Winner as Entrepreneur of the Year and he received a Phoenix Award as Community Leader of the Year from the Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce.  He is married to Peggie Morrow and together they founded the Forsyth BYOT Benefit, a charity in Forsyth County to support students in need of technology and devices. They have two Goldendoodles, a gaggle of grandchildren and enjoy life on and around Lake Lanier.

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MorrowFamMed/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/7788088/admin/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/toyourhealthMD

The complete show archive of “To Your Health with Dr. Jim Morrow” addresses a wide range of health and wellness topics, and can be found at www.toyourhealthradio.com.

Dr. Morrow’s Show Notes

The Importance of Sleep

• According to the Sleep Foundation, nearly 40 million Americans suffer from sleep disorders. 
  • In addition, growing older is often accompanied by “normal” changes in sleeping patterns, such as becoming sleepy earlier, waking up earlier, or experiencing less deep sleep. 
  • That means more than 40 million people are waking up tired every day and experiencing other symptoms related to not getting enough sleep. 
  • For example, it’s long been known that sleep affects your hormones, mood, cognitive skills, and even your ability to maintain a healthy weight. 
  • But if you’ve ever experienced sleep issues, you don’t need statistics to tell you that sleep is critical to your physical and mental health. 
  • And the truth is everyone can benefit from more sleep, including children and teens.

• Americans report, on average, 2 nights/week of insufficient sleep, and 39.5% of Americans get 6 hours of sleep or less per day.  
  • Studies report that sleep symptoms are exceedingly common among patients presenting for medical visits.  
  • This finding is troubling because many physicians do not ask their patients about sleep.  
  • Only 43% of primary care physicians routinely inquire about sleep vs the 80% who discuss exercise and 79% who address healthy diet. 
  • Despite this discrepancy, only 16% believed that counseling patients on sleep is not as important as counseling on diet and exercise. 
  • Thus, asking about sleep problems would address a common concern that is underappreciated

• There are two types of people in the world: 
  • sleepers and non-sleepers. 
  • If you are not a sleeper, you need to see your doctor and do whatever you have to do to become a sleeper.
• Insomnia is a condition you have to control. Most meds we use for this are not addicting.

Key Sleep Disorders

• Insomnia
  • Insomnia is characterized by an inability to initiate or maintain sleep. 
  • It may also take the form of early morning awakening in which the individual awakens several hours early and is unable to resume sleeping. 
  • Difficulty initiating or maintaining sleep may often manifest itself as excessive daytime sleepiness, which characteristically results in functional impairment throughout the day. 
  • Before arriving at a diagnosis of primary insomnia, the healthcare provider will rule out other potential causes, such as other sleep disorders, side effects of medications, substance abuse, depression, or other previously undetected illness. 
  • Chronic psychophysiological insomnia (or “learned” or “conditioned” insomnia) may result from a stressor combined with fear of being unable to sleep. Individuals with this condition may sleep better when not in their own beds. 
  • Health care providers may treat chronic insomnia with a combination of use of sedative-hypnotic or sedating antidepressant medications, along with behavioral techniques to promote regular sleep.

• Narcolepsy
  • Excessive daytime sleepiness (including episodes of irresistible sleepiness) combined with sudden muscle weakness are the hallmark signs of narcolepsy. 
  • The sudden muscle weakness seen in narcolepsy may be elicited by strong emotion or surprise. 
  • Episodes of narcolepsy have been described as “sleep attacks” and may occur in unusual circumstances, such as walking and other forms of physical activity. 
  • The healthcare provider may treat narcolepsy with stimulant medications combined with behavioral interventions, such as regularly scheduled naps, to minimize the potential disruptiveness of narcolepsy on the individual’s life.

• Restless Legs Syndrome (RLS)
  • RLS is characterized by an unpleasant “creeping” sensation, often feeling like it is originating in the lower legs, but often associated with aches and pains throughout the legs. 
  • This often causes difficulty initiating sleep and is relieved by movement of the leg, such as walking or kicking. 
  • Abnormalities in the neurotransmitter dopamine have often been associated with RLS. 
  • Healthcare providers often combine a medication to help correct the underlying dopamine abnormality along with a medicine to promote sleep continuity in the treatment of RLS.

• Sleep Apnea
  • Snoring may be more than just an annoying habit – it may be a sign of sleep apnea. 
  • Persons with sleep apnea characteristically make periodic gasping or “snorting” noises, during which their sleep is momentarily interrupted. 
  • Those with sleep apnea may also experience excessive daytime sleepiness, as their sleep is commonly interrupted and may not feel restorative. 
  • Treatment of sleep apnea is dependent on its cause. 
  • If other medical problems are present, such as congestive heart failure or nasal obstruction, sleep apnea may resolve with treatment of these conditions. 
  • Gentle air pressure administered during sleep (typically in the form of a nasal continuous positive airway pressure device) may also be effective in the treatment of sleep apnea. 
  • As interruption of regular breathing or obstruction of the airway during sleep can pose serious health complications, symptoms of sleep apnea should be taken seriously. 
  • Treatment should be sought from a health care provider.

• Sleep and Chronic Disease
  • As chronic diseases have assumed an increasingly common role in premature death and illness, interest in the role of sleep health in the development and management of chronic diseases has grown. 
  • Notably, insufficient sleep has been linked to the development and management of a number of chronic diseases and conditions, including type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, obesity, and depression.

Reference cdc.gov

Tips for Better Sleep

• Good sleep habits (sometimes referred to as “sleep hygiene”) can help you get a good night’s sleep.
  • Some habits that can improve your sleep health:
    • Be consistent. Go to bed at the same time each night and get up at the same time each morning, including on the weekend
    • Make sure your bedroom is quiet, dark, relaxing, and at a comfortable temperature
    • Remove electronic devices, such as TVs, computers, and smart phones, from the bedroom
    • Avoid large meals, caffeine, and alcohol before bedtime
    • Get some exercise. Being physically active during the day can help you fall asleep more easily at night.

What Should I Do If I Can’t Sleep

• It’s important to practice good sleep habits, but if your sleep problems continue or if they interfere with how you feel or function during the day, you should talk to your doctor. 
• Before visiting your doctor, keep a diary of your sleep habits for about ten days to discuss at the visit.
• Include the following in your sleep diary, when you—
• Go to bed.
• Go to sleep.
• Wake up.
• Get out of bed.
• Take naps.
• Exercise.
• Drink alcohol.
• Drink caffeinated beverages.

Benefits to Better Sleep

• Better productivity and concentration
  • There were several studies that scientists did in the early 2000s that looked at the effects of sleep deprivation.
  • What the researchers concluded is that sleep has links to several brain functions, including:
    • Concentration
    • Productivity
    • Cognition
• A more recent 2015 study in the Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry showed that children’s sleep patterns can have a direct impact on their behavior and academic performance. These include:
• • Better calorie regulation
    • There is evidence to suggest that getting a good night’s sleep can help a person consume fewer calories during the day.
    • For example, one study in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America says that sleep patterns affect the hormones responsible for appetite.
    • When a person does not sleep long enough, it can interfere with their body’s ability to regulate food intake correctly.

• Greater athletic performance
  • Getting a sufficient amount of sleep can boost a person’s athletic performance.
  • According to the National Sleep Foundation, adequate sleep for adults is between 7 and 9 hours a night, and athletes may benefit from as many as 10 hours. 
    • Accordingly, sleep is as important to athletes as consuming enough calories and nutrients.
  • One of the reasons for this requirement is that the body heals during sleep.
  • Other benefits include:
    • better performance intensity
    • more energy
    • better coordination
    • faster speed
    • better mental functioning.
• Lower risk of heart disease
  • One risk factor for heart disease is high blood pressure. 
    • According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), getting adequate rest each night allows the body’s blood pressure to regulate itself.
    • Doing so can reduce the chances of sleep-related conditions such as apnea and promote better overall heart health.
• More social and emotional intelligence
  • Sleep has links to people’s emotional and social intelligence. 
  • Someone who does not get adequate sleep is more likely to have issues with recognizing other people’s emotions and expressions.
    • For example, one study looked at people’s responses to emotional stimuli. 
      • The researchers concluded, similarly to many earlier studies, that a person’s emotional empathy is less when they do not get adequate sleep.
• Preventing depression
  • The association between sleep and mental health has been the subject of research for a long time. 
    • One conclusion is that there is a link between lack of sleep and depression.
  • One study examines patterns of death by suicide over 10 years. 
    • It concludes that lack of sleep is a contributing factor to many of these deaths.
• Lower inflammation
  • There is a link between getting adequate sleep and reducing inflammation in the body.
    • For example, one study suggests a link between sleep deprivation and inflammatory bowel diseases that affect people’s gastrointestinal tract.
    • The study showed that sleep deprivation can contribute to such diseases — and that these diseases, in turn, can contribute to sleep deprivation.
• Stronger immune system
  • Sleep helps the body repair, regenerate, and recover. 
    • The immune system is no exception to this relationship. 
    • Some research shows how better sleep quality can help the body fight off infection.
  • However, scientists still need to do further research into the exact mechanisms of sleep in regards to its impact on the body’s immune system.

Sleep recommendations

• Sleep needs vary from person to person, depending on their age. As a person ages, they typically require less sleep to function properly.
  • According to the CDC, the breakdown is as follows:
    • Newborns (0–3 months): 14–17 hours
    • Infants (4–12 months): 12–16 hours
    • Toddler (1–2 years): 11–14 hours
    • Preschool (3–5 years): 10–13 hours
    • School age (6–12 years): 9–12 hours
    • Teen (13–18 years): 8–10 hours
    • Adult (18–60 years): 7-plus hours
    • Adult (61–64 years): 7–9 hours
    • Adult (65+ years): 7–8 hours
• As well as the number of hours, the quality of sleep is also important.
• Signs of poor sleep quality include:
  • Waking in the middle of the night.
  • Still not feeling rested after an adequate number of hours sleep.
• Some things a person can do to improve sleep quality are:
  • Avoiding sleeping in when you have had enough sleep.
  • Going to bed around the same time each night.
  • Spending more time outside and being more active during the day.
  • Reducing stress through exercise, therapy, or other means.

Summary

• Sleep is a vital, often neglected, component of every person’s overall health and well-being. 
  • Sleep is important because it enables the body to repair and be fit and ready for another day.
  • Getting adequate rest may also help prevent excess weight gain, heart disease, and increased illness duration.