We've all been there, the day has been exhausting and you're just tired and want to go to bed. But when you get there, sleep just won't come. You scroll through Instagram, watch a YouTube video and in no time at all another hour has passed before you fall asleep. Maybe you wake up in the middle of the night because it's too hot in the attic apartment again or the noise from outside is coming in. And the next morning, you wake up tired again.
Sleep has long been neglected in medicine. Famous personalities such as Winston Churchill liked to boast that he only needed 4 hours of sleep, or even Angela Merkel admitted in interviews that she rarely needed more than 6 hours of sleep. A good night's sleep seemed like a nuisance, something that kept us from being productive. But the truth is quite the opposite. Without our sleep, we wouldn't be able to survive, we wouldn't be creative and our hormonal axes would be completely thrown off track.
So that you are better informed, we have compiled everything you need to know about sleep here. From new scientific studies, to tips on how to fall asleep and stay asleep better, to anecdotes from the lives of famous biohackers. You will find out why this group in particular pays almost religious attention to their sleep and tracks it with the help of various gadgets.
What is sleep anyway?
We all know that sleep is a state without conscious sensation - we experience this anew every night. However, sleep is also a kind of daily recovery cure that allows our body to use all the resources available to it. Research even goes one step further and describes sleep as the most beneficial and reliable anti-aging program. Why? During sleep, our body recovers and gathers new energy for the following day. In addition, newly acquired knowledge is consolidated, emotions are regulated, the nervous system can develop, cells regenerate and grow and the body can detoxify. All of these processes are influenced by some of the body's own hormones (melatonin, growth hormone, cortisone).
As positive as good sleep is for our health and longevity , the consequences of poor sleep or lack of sleep are just as detrimental. What's behind it
Did you know
Birds can sleep in flight. How do they do this without falling out of the sky? Biology has come up with a special trick. Birds can sleep with one half of their brain. This allows them to continue flying while alternately one and then the other brain hemisphere sleeps
Why does a lack of sleep have a negative effect on health?
There is a striking correlation between the increased incidence of many chronic diseases and the simultaneous decline in daily sleep time over the last 20-30 years. Many studies confirm the scientific significance of this trend. Chronic diseases include cardiovascular diseases such as high blood pressure, metabolic diseases such as diabetes mellitus, chronic kidney failure and, with increasing frequency, mental illnesses such as depression.
As a special study group, people who work in shifts and often at night were observed, as this is the best way to demonstrate how sleep behavior adapts to these living conditions. In night workers, the stress hormone cortisol was found to be over 35% higher than in day workers. Other inflammation levels (interleukins, cytokines, C-reactive protein) are even increased by up to 95%. Little sleep therefore not only means the general tiredness that we perceive, but also an increased stress level for the entire organism on a molecular level.
Did you know?
Sleep deprivation acts like alcohol. According to the ADAC a driver who has not slept for 24 hours behaves like a driver with 1 per mille. No wonder that at least a quarter of all accidents on the roads are partly caused by fatigue.
Based on these studies, medical associations are rightly calling for a greater focus on sleep hygiene. In Germany alone, one in three people say they do not sleep well. When analyzing the sleeping times of the study participants, it is often noticeable that even when sleep is rated as good, sleep is too short. The ideal sleeping time is seven to nine hours a day, which is not achieved in around 40% of cases.
"Early to bed and early to rise makes you healthy, rich and wise" - Benjamin Franklin.
What is a sleep phase?
You may have heard that we have different sleep phases. Our body runs through a kind of pre-installed programas soon as we close our eyes. However, a sleep cycle is usually around 90 minutes long. Anyone who has had experience with wearables or fitness bands probably knows that there is such a thing as deep sleep or REM sleep. Sleep research has defined a total of 5 sleep phases that we all go through (at least 2-5) for a complete sleep cycle.
1st waking phase:
Sleep also has an initial waking phase. We close our eyes and try to fall asleep. Our brain activity reduces and we start to relax. There are also waking phases during the night - even if these take place subconsciously.
2nd sleep stage N1
The lightest sleep stage accounts for around 5-10% of our sleep and is the transition phase from wakefulness to actual sleep. A well-known and typical feature of N1 sleep is spontaneous muscle twitching, which can occur during brief nodding off.
3. Sleep stage N2
Significantly deeper sleep awaits us in the N2 stage. It makes up around 45-55% and therefore the majority of our sleep.
4th sleep stage N3 (deep sleep)
This stage accounts for 10-25% of our sleep and is the deepest sleep stage. This is when we are the hardest to wake up and the body is most occupied with regenerating and processing the day's information.
5th REM sleep
REM stands for "rapid eye movement" which means "rapid eye movements". We spend 15-25% of our sleep time in this phase. It is characterized by intensive dreaming and the processing of emotions.
Now we know what sleep phases are and that a lack of sleep makes you ill. So how do you sleep better?
Did you know?
Some people can gain consciousness in a dream. This special type of dreaming is called lucid dreaming. Imagine you wake up in your dream and your "dream self" realizes that you are dreaming. Sounds a bit like the movie Inception. The state of lucid dreaming is a desirable state for some biohackers, such as Tim Ferris. Using targeted techniques, the American tries to put himself in a state of lucid dreaming. He has even written an entire manual for this purpose.
7 practical tips for your night's sleep
Tip 1: Switch off screens in good time
For many respondents, watching TV or using other displays such as a cell phone, tablet or computer is part of their evening routine. The problem with this is the blue light waves that activate our brain and keep us awake unnaturally. According to a very recent study, this is even more problematic for preschool children than for adults. Exposure to light 1 hour before bedtime lowers melatonin levels by up to 98.7%.
In order to reduce the blue light waves, there are also so-called blue light filter glasses these typically have orange lenses and filter out the blue light waves from the incoming spectrum. So if you still have to work in the evening and still want to sleep well - try these out. For children, light dimmers or night red light are suitable for improving sleep.
Many people also tend to regularly focus on their cell phone in addition to the TV. This dual occupation is very exhausting for the brain and also prevents you from falling asleep. As a healthier alternative to Smart TV, you can pick up a classic book. If you prefer to record things in a different way, you can listen to audio books or podcasts - your eyes and your sleep will thank you for it!
Tip 2: Avoid caffeine and alcohol in good time
Many people like to drink caffeinated drinks such as coffee, tea or cola. Due to the long half-life and the associated long activity of caffeine in the body, you should stop drinking it early in the day. Caffeine has an invigorating effect on the body and prevents you from falling asleep. The same applies to alcoholic drinks. Falling asleep easily after drinking alcohol is deceptive because the deep sleep phase is disturbed.
Tip 3: Create a good sleeping environment
Darkness, the right room temperature and peace and quiet are important for optimal sleep. You should therefore darken the bedroom well and switch off LED lights. In noisy surroundings, it is advisable to keep the windows closed or use earplugs. You should make your snoring partner aware of this and consult a doctor to have any problems clarified. 18° - 21°C is the ideal room temperature for you. In numerous studies, too high or too low a temperature proved to be the most common reason for poor sleep among participants.
Did you know
More than half of all men and around 40 percent of all women snore. The louder the snoring, the more harmful it is - and not just for your partner. On average, people snore at 45 decibels - this is roughly equivalent to soft music. However, some also manage 53 decibels and more - which is equivalent to the noise of a normal conversation or a television. From 70 decibels, snoring is as loud as a vacuum cleaner.
Tip 4: Set two alarm clocks
Why two alarm clocks? So that you have 15 minutes to turn over in the morning? No, a second alarm clock can help you remember to sleep in the evening. We often find ourselves doing all sorts of things in the evening, whether it's the last three emails that need to be answered or the laundry that still needs to be hung up. In order to finish these tasks on time, it can be useful for you to set an alarm clock so that you can easily reach your sleep goal.
Tip 5: Introduce bedtime rituals
Everyone has heard that humans are creatures of habit. You should take advantage of this characteristic and introduce an evening routine. A short walk an hour before going to bed, breathing exercises or meditation, or even writing a diary entry to get all your thoughts off your chest can be helpful. It's not for nothing that they say "If you spend too much time at night thinking about tomorrow's problems, you'll be too tired to solve them the next day".
Tip 6: Get active if you have problems falling asleep
It has long been known that hops, lemon balm and valerian can help you fall asleep. Meanwhile, melatonin has also been well researched as a dietary supplement and is a promising way for you to shorten the time it takes to actually fall asleep.
Another problem that can prevent you from falling asleep is chronic stress . If our body is constantly on alert and our cortisol levels are high, we find it difficult to fall asleep. Meditation before going to sleep or a yoga nidra session can help here, but herbal molecules such as Ashwagandhahave also been shown to lower cortisol levels in studies.
Tip 7: Make sure you get a good night's sleep in the morning
Studies have shown that preparing in the morning for sleep in the evening can be worthwhile. Don't like meditating in the evening? Then you can start the day with it as an alternative. This reduces stress during the day and ensures a good night's sleep. Daylight lamps offer an additional option. This makes it easier to get up, especially in the darker months of the year. Your natural day-night cycle will benefit from this.
Did you know
Some sea otters hold hands while they sleep, so they don't get aborted or lose themselves. An alternative is for the animals to wrap themselves in seaweed before going to sleep.
Faster falling asleep - which home remedies help
Who wouldn't want to simply close their eyes and fall asleep within 60 seconds . According to the statistics, the reality is different. Very few people in Germany can fall asleep in such a short time.
Now that we've covered sleep hygiene in detail, let's take a look at what science has to say about various home remedies to help you sleep. How does a glass of red wine in the evening really help , what about chamomile tea and why cherries might be a good idea, you can find out here.
Melatonin and tart cherries
Melatonin we've mentioned it briefly before. The hormone is a bit like the starting signal for us to fall asleep. In darkness, the pineal gland in our brain starts to produce more and more melatonin until we reach a peak. This makes us fall asleep.
Unfortunately, our melatonin production is very susceptible to external influences. Our body reactsz.B . to the light from our cell phone, television or tablet means that we produce less melatonin. Blue light filter glasses can mitigate this effect.
At the same time , melatonin production decreases with age, making it even more difficult for us to fall asleep. The inconspicuous cherry, of all things, can help here. Sour cherries in particular are rich in melatonin and taking them in clinical studies not only helped people to fall asleep better, the participants also slept through the night better and had a better quality of sleep. However, for the concentration to be high enough, the participants would have had to eat more than thirty sour cherries every evening. Instead, they were given a melatonin-containing sour cherry extract .
Sour cherries have been shown in some studies to improve sleep quality and increase melatonin levels.
Camomile - a cup of tea in the evening
Camomile tea has a calming effect and for some people a cup of tea in the evening helps them fall asleep. Whether this is due to the ritual or the tea itself is not entirely clear. The secondary plant substances,such as apigenin, in chamomile tea are most likely to lead to relaxation and thus to better sleep
Magnesium - often overlooked
A deficiency of micronutrients such as magnesiumcan also contribute to poorer sleep. Magnesium is needed in the conversion of the amino acid tryptophan into serotonin (and later into melatonin) . If magnesium is lacking, which is particularly the case in older people, this can also affect sleep.
If you want to compensate for magnesium deficiency , you need to pay attention to what form of magnesium you take. The classic magnesium oxideis poorly absorbed and is therefore more helpful for constipation. Magnesium citrate on the other hand has better bioavailability, but is not able to cross the blood-brain barrier. Here we recommend magnesium bisglycinate.
A deficiency of vitamins,z.B . Vitamin D, can make it difficult to fall asleep.
A glass of red wine in the evening?
And what about a small glass of red wine in the evening? Isn't that supposed to be healthy for the heart and make you fall asleep better? Both claims can be scientifically refuted . Alcohol can give you the illusion of falling asleep better. However, we then do not go through the sleep phases as they are actually intended. In particular, the deep sleep phase is disturbed , so we are not refreshed the next morning. And the claim about heart health is probably due to the resveratrolcontained in the wine, but less to the wine itself.
Cannabis as an aid to falling asleep
Now that cannabis is also legal in Germany, what does it look like as a sleep aid? Does weed make us sleep better?
The answer is not so simple, as the data varies greatly. In people with a sleep disorder, cannabis had the short-term effect of improving sleep. In particular, the N3 phase of sleep, i.e. the deep sleep phase, was prolonged, while the REM sleep phase, i.e. the dream phase, was shortened.
However, this was the short-term effect . The longer those affected consumed cannabis, the longer the dream phase (where we experience the intense dreams) and the shorter the deep sleep phase in which our body recovers. In addition to the habituation effect, withdrawal symptoms occurred as soon as the scientists stopped using cannabis.
So, as with prescription sleeping pills, cannabis can lead to dependence . If you suffer from sleep problems, it is best to consult experts. The field of sleep medicine deals with this topic. For most people, maintaining healthy sleep hygiene will make the biggest difference. If you want to do something extra, you can rely on herbal supplements that do not cause withdrawal symptoms. QNIGHTcombinesz.B . the benefits of ashwagandha, tart cherry extract and magnesium for better sleep . For those who want to delve even deeper into the science of sleep, we recommend Matthew Walker's book "The Big Book of Sleep" .
Until then, we wish you a good night!
