How much sleep do you get each night? It is important to remember that the amount of time you spend in bed is not equal to the number of hours you actually sleep. It takes time to fall asleep, so you need to take that into consideration.
Sleep is essential for the basic repair of systems in the body including the neurological, endocrine, immune, musculoskeletal, and digestive systems. Without adequate sleep, you cannot be healthy. Unfortunately, it isn’t always a priority in our society.
Adults generally require 7-9 hours of sleep each night, but American adults only average 6.8 hours (this is over an hour less than it was in 1942). One-third of adults don’t even get 6 hours of sleep.
To make matters worse, more than a third of Americans have trouble sleeping every night while over half report sleep problems at least a few nights a week. It is no surprise that the use of sleep aids has dramatically increased in recent years.
Let’s look at the importance of sleep and what you can do to improve yours.
Sleep is Crucial
Have you ever realized that you get sick a lot more when you aren’t sleeping well? It is no coincidence. Sleep directly impacts your immune system, but that is not all it impacts. Sleep is also important for:
- Enhancing memory and mental clarity
- Musculoskeletal growth and repair
- Boosting mood and energy
- Increasing stress tolerance
What happens when you don't get enough sleep?
Melatonin (one of the main hormones controlling your circadian rhythms) increases immune system function to protect you from infections. If you are not getting enough sleep it can not do its job.
Sleeping for less than 6 hours a day is associated with low-grade chronic inflammation, worsening insulin resistance, as well as increasing your risk of obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease. It is also associated with heart disease, hypertension, and psychiatric disorders like depression and anxiety.
You can eat a perfect diet, but if you are not sleeping enough and managing your stress, you can still tend towards poor health!
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Many people use the new year as a time to focus on eating healthy. It is a great goal, but all the nutrition advice can make it difficult to know where to start. One health “expert” says one thing, while another says the exact opposite. So, who do you believe and where do you start?
As I’ve researched nutrition and studied functional medicine, I’ve drawn my own conclusions based on research. Some of it went in direct conflict with what I had always been taught. But as a doctor, I need to follow the research, not just someone’s opinion.
With that in mind, I think the one change that can make a huge difference in your health is to drastically reduce the polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) in your diet. This may come as a surprise to some of you, but there is a compelling case for this that can’t be ignored.
Let’s look at these oils, what they do in the body, and how to avoid them.
What are PUFA’s
Polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) are unsaturated fats made up of a chain of hydrogen and carbon. This type of unsaturated fat has two or more double bonds in this chain. This structure is less stable than other oils and can create many problems.
PUFAs are vulnerable to light, heat, and even oxygen. These vulnerabilities can lead to damage that leads to oxidization. When we have oxidized fats, we are ingesting free radicals which leads to inflammation. PUFAs are high in Omega-6 which also leads to inflammation.
Inflammation is extremely damaging to the body, contributing to nearly every chronic health condition you can think of (diabetes, metabolic syndrome, autoimmune disease, cardiovascular disease, some cancers, rheumatoid arthritis, asthma, mental health issues, cognitive decline, dementia, obesity, etc.).
Which Oils to Avoid
When we talk about oils, all of them contain a blend of various types of fatty acids. They have a varying percentage of mono and polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs), saturated fatty acids, and sometimes even trans fatty acids. I am actually totally fine with saturated fatty acids for most people. My recommendation is to remove the oils that tend to have the highest percentage of PUFAs and of course trans fatty acids.
Take a look at the oils below (PUFAs are in blue). Think about where you can make some changes by switching a higher-level PUFA for a lower one. It is especially important to consider this when cooking.
Could you cook with butter or coconut oil instead of vegetable (soy) oil? Would lard be an acceptable exchange for seed or nut oils? Just changing a little thing can make a big difference.
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At the beginning of the year, many people make a point of realigning their goals. This often takes the form of a New Year’s resolution.
You may have a resolution to save money, exercise more, read more, eat healthy, or cut down on alcohol. These are all great goals, but it is important to include the basics alongside them.
One of the basics is remembering to stay hydrated while you are working towards your other goals. In fact, staying hydrated can help you achieve many of your other goals and feel good in the process.
Staying properly hydrated is more involved than simply drinking eight glasses of water. Let’s look at some of the nuances surrounding hydration and learn one trick to make it happen.
Beyond Water
You need water, but you also need all sorts of minerals. Your current water processing and filtering systems have probably stripped away most of those minerals from your water.
If you are drinking just plain water (especially if you have a lot of it), you can dilute the mineral-rich fluids in your body. This makes your kidneys work way harder than they need to, and you may find yourself running to the bathroom constantly to pee off all of that excess fluid.
Adrenal cocktails are a great way to counter these concerns. These are mineral-rich drinks that particularly focus on supporting sodium and potassium levels. This allows your body to replace the minerals lost and keep the liquid from diluting them. It also contains Vitamin C which helps in the utilization of these vitamins and provides bio-available copper.
Adrenal Cocktails
There are several ways to make an Adrenal Cocktail. My favorite recipe consists of 1 cup of coconut water, the juice of 1 lime, and 1/4 tsp. salt. You can find more adrenal cocktail recipes here.
After you try some of these recipes, you can experiment with some of your own. It’s easy to make one. Just include a source of sodium, potassium, and vitamin C.
Gel Water
When I'm not drinking my Adrenal Cocktails, I make sure all of my water is some form of gel water.
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You may be familiar with vitamin D, zinc, and vitamin C, but what about magnesium? As important as magnesium is, it doesn't get the recognition it deserves. Magnesium is the fourth most abundant mineral in the body (1) and is needed for more than 300 biochemical reactions in the body (2).
It does so much in the body and not having enough can lead to all sorts of problems. However, since our soil is so depleted our food is depleted too. Because it is difficult to get through our diet, it is important to be intentional about getting enough magnesium.
Let’s look at the important function it has in the body and learn the best way to see if you are getting enough.
Why Magnesium is Important
Magnesium is important for many systems and functions in your body including:
- nervous system regulation
- muscle function
- energy production
- blood glucose levels (3)
- blood pressure (4)
- inflammation (5)
- brain function - depression and anxiety (6, 7)
- sleep (8, 9)
- heart health
- protein formation
- immune system function
- heart health (10)
- creating and repairing DNA and RNA
It is also beneficial in treating preeclampsia, migraine, depression, coronary artery disease, and asthma (11).
Do You Have Enough
In spite of how important this mineral is 50% of U.S. adults get less than the recommended daily allowance (12). Many of us in the functional medicine world believe that people generally need much more than the RDA daily amount.
In fact, I find that many patients do well working up to taking 5x’s their body weight in mg of magnesium each day (so a 150 lb. person would work up to supplementing with 750 mg of magnesium). Remember that magnesium is a powerful mineral and building up too fast can cause unwanted side effects.
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As the New Year approaches, millions of people begin planning their New Year’s Resolutions. Exercising, losing weight, and saving money are among the most popular goals.
While the new year may feel like a great time to start fresh, accomplishing these resolutions is not as easy as it may seem. According to the University of Scranton, research suggests that only 8% of people achieve their New Year's goals.
Perhaps the reason so many people do not succeed is that they are missing some key elements in making their resolutions. This year let’s look at some important principles that are commonly missed and set you up for success!
1. Clarify Your “Why?”
You may rush through life to the point where you lose track of yourselves. In order to set meaningful goals, you will need to slow down and get back in touch with your true self.
Notice what you are really passionate about so that you know what is worth changing in your life. There’s no point in working hard towards a goal that doesn’t align with what you want in life. Make sure you are investing in things that really matter.
2. Know Thyself Deeper
Notice what drives your behavior. It is a crucial part of understanding yourself, so you are set up for success. This step can feel like you are doing anything, but don’t skip this step. It is so important!
Before attempting to add healthy behavior, notice your inner experience surrounding your current practice. If you want to stop eating late at night, notice the feeling you have when you eat before bed tonight.
Are you really hungry? If so, your plan will look much different than if you recognize that you are actually lonely.
3. Be Realistic
Take an honest look at your capacity. What is your schedule like? What commitments do you have? How is your physical and emotional energy?
As much as we hate to admit it, we are finite beings with limited capacity. Saying “yes” to one thing will mean saying “no” to something else. Make sure that your goal is worth saying “yes” to and figure out what you will say “no” to.
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