How to get a Good Night Sleep
Are you getting enough sleep? If not, you are not alone. A recent study has found that one in every two Indians (46 per cent) sleeps less than six hours. A busy work schedule, a hectic social life, household chores and children’s worries leave little time for sleep. Modern life builds up so much stress and anxiety that when we do get to bed, most of us find it difficult to sleep well.
Adults need at least seven to eight hours of sleep every night, to perform optimally. Children need even more sleep. Less sleep causes morning headaches and daytime fatigue, leading to poor concentration and performance.
Insomnia includes the inability to sleep, frequent awakenings during the night and not being able to go back to sleep, or waking up too early. Women are more likely to suffer from chronic insomnia – the ratio is about two women to one man. Working women, in particular, build up a large sleep debt over the years.
To a large extent, we can control the quantity and quality of our sleep. The key to a restful night’s sleep is to calm down your brain rather than rev it up.
What you eat affects how you sleep. Some food slows down nerve traffic and calms the brain and contributes towards a restful sleep; such food are called sleepers. Other perk up the brain and keep you awake; such food are called wakers.
Sleepers contain tryptophan, an amino acid that makes up protein, which produces the sleep – inducing substances, serotonin and melatonin. Food that contains tryptophan or make more tryptophan available to the brain make us sleepy.
Ideal sleepers are food which contains moderate amounts of carbohydrate stimulates the release of insulin which clears amino acids that compete with tryptophan making it more available to the brain. At the same time, protein contributes tryptophan directly to the brain.
Great snooze food includes; dairy products (paneer, cheese, milk and curd), meat, poultry or seafood, whole grains vegetables and pulses (including soyabeans).
Indian dinners usually have a fair share of these types of food. However, our traditional cooking practices include a lot of fat and spices, both of which in terferes with sleep.
Calcium helps the brain use tryptophan; this explains the soporific effect of a glass of milk at bedtime. Foods containing caffeine such as tea,coffee, colas and chocolates are wakers. a high-protein meal without carbohydrates contains the amino acid, tyrosine, which perks up the brain.
An all carbohydrate snack, especially one high in sugar, is less likely to help you sleep. It will raise blood sugar and inhibit sleep. Later, when blood sugar drops too low, you might wake up and not be able to fall back asleep. Also, you will miss out on the sleep-inducing effects of tryptophan.
January 16, 2007
Health benefits of papaya
The papaya is an amazingly rich source of the proteolytic enzymes. These are the chemicals that enable the digestion of protein. Papain, which is the most important of these enzymes in the papaya, is extracted and dried as a powder for use to aid the digestion, and it is often used as a meat tenderizer, the enzyme partially breaking down the meat fibres - digesting them in fact.
Many experts, such as Dr Lytton-Bernard, have claimed rejuvenating properties for papaya, especially for the control of premature ageing. It may be that it works simply because a poor digestion leaves the body without the correct nutrients. Those who find it almost impossible to digest anything frequently find that papaya used regularly, either in tablet or juice form, marks the turning point in the climb back to vitality and good health.
As a cleanser you can take a quarter pint (150ml) of papaya juice alternated each hour for twelve hours by the same amount of cucumber or green bean juice. Papaya loses some of the enzymes as it ripens, so if you have the choice select them green. They are easy to obtain in most parts of America but are not found in British greengrocers very often. Fortunately there has been a rapid expansion in the numbers of specialist shops providing for the needs of the Indian and West Indian communities where papayas can be bought.
Papaya contains arginine which is known to be essential for male fertility and also carpain, an enzyme thought to be good for the heart. Fibrin also occurs and this substance is not commonly found in the plant kingdom; in man it forms part of the blood clotting process. The papaya is an excellent source of vitamin C, with 82mg per 100g (4oz), and is rich in carotene. After treatment with antibiotics the use of papaya juice will quickly assist the restoration of the normal bacteria in the gut which will have been destroyed by the treatment. Papaya is good for many digestive disorders and is excellent for improving poor digestion. It has also been recommended as part of the treatment for cancer. Therapeutically it can often be combined with pineapple juice in which there is another important enzyme. bromelain.
The skin of the papaya is a first class external treatment for skin wounds and places that do not heal quickly. The pulp from the juicer can be used for this and as a poultice.
January 8, 2007
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Have and stick to a regular bedtime and wake up schedule. Try to go to bed and get up about the same time each night and morning.
Make sure the time that you set for your bedtime, is a time in which you are sleepy.
Do not go to bed too soon or you may have trouble falling asleep or your sleep may be restless.
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Do not nap. Napping can disrupt normal sleep cycles. Try skipping your nap and see if your regular sleep patterns improve.
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Make your bedroom a quiet place. Do not watch television in your bedroom. Use it for sleeping or quiet reading.
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Establish relaxing before-bed routines. Take a bath, drink a glass of warn milk, or do some light reading before bedtime.
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Develop relaxation techniques. Learn yoga, deep breathing, quiet mediation or listen to soft music while trying to fall asleep.
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Avoid troubling news right before bed. Violence in newspapers or on television may bother some people making it difficult to fall asleep. Try reading a book instead.
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Avoid stimulants. Do not use stimulants or drink things that contain caffeine(tea, coffee, cola etc.) 6 hours before bedtime.
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Do not use alcohol or tobacco products close to bedtime. Use of these products may calm you at the time of use, but they can have disrupting effects on your sleep during the night.
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Exercise regularly. Regular activity helps the body and mind healthy, but be sure to avoid vigorous exercise right before bedtime.
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January 4, 2007
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