37 ms·
Improving deep sleep may prevent dementia, study finds
- thesuavefactor 3y agoThe million dollar question is though "How do we improve deep sleep?" I have a sleep tracker at home and my weak point is always not getting enough deep sleep. I'm not sure there's a way to force deep sleep somehow...
- hiAndrewQuinn 3y agoLots of low hanging fruit in this arena for people who haven't made a serious effort yet. Cutting out caffeine and alcohol entirely from my diet were by far the biggest improvements I made, then regular exercise, and finally a midday nap during my lunch break.
- twh270 3y agoThat's a good list (though I personally find it impossible to nap during the day). I'd add one thing: reduce stress.
- wombat-man 3y agoYeah, I sleep way better if I go to bed totally sober. Generally caffeine seems to be ok if I stop after 3pm or so.
- nick222226 3y agoYep, as I get into my 30s I notice alcohol consumption drastically affects my sleep quality and time to fall asleep. I've also cut out coffee and that has helped my sinuses/upper throat a lot in the morning which were being irritated. I drink some varieties of tea instead.
- manmal 3y agoI‘m intrigued by the midday nap, because I think I remember reading that daytime naps worsen night sleep. I do like naps though, and find them refreshing. Have you found research that supports this?
- beezlebroxxxxxx 3y agoThe primary benefit from mid-day naps is that they simply help you relax and get some rest. You don't want them to be long, just refreshing. This is well known in athletics where most major athletes take naps as a matter of recovery and to improve their sleep quality. Presumably, feeling relaxed and rested when you go to sleep helps you get some deeper sleep and improve sleep quality.
- 2devnull 3y agoNaps are terrible sleep hygiene. Any deviation from a regular set sleep schedule is bad hygiene. Better to get less sleep than to nap and disturb the sleep schedule. Many people develop insomnia this way, especially shift workers.
- kaba0 3y agoIt’s almost like we are not some robots with scheduled downtimes - physiology is much more complicated than to have such a mathematical truths. The only true thing we can conclude is always: this factor might correspond to this effect (and sometimes may even say that it is not only correlation)
- dev_hugepages 3y agoThe siesta is natural and is different from the naps taken from shift workers that are likely either interrupting night time sleep or are shifting their circadian rythm so that their "biological night" is in the day. Same thing for the "biological day" (it will be put at night) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siesta?wprov=sfla1 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siesta?wprov=sfla1
- musha68k 3y agoAFAIR was only the case if nap was longer than ~20 min? I don't remember if this was a consistent thing, I doubt it though as this stuff is inherently individual. Experimentation is the only way with sleep optimization..
- leetrout 3y agoSimilar for me. I'll add that I take a small magnesium supplement mid to late afternoon as well which helps me relax and if dreams are any indication of deeper sleep I have many more memorable dreams when I'm taking magnesium.
- JoshTko 3y agoWhat form of magnesium?
- DrThunder 3y agoI use a powdered drink called 'Calm'. It's got a bit of a berry flavor to it. Start with a small amount though or you'll be shitting your pants. There are a lot of studies showing magnesium levels are far too low in people anyway so it's a good idea to supplement it.
- willseth 3y agoMagnesium glycinate is typically recommended, but any form that doesn't upset your stomach is probably good.
- TedDoesntTalk 3y agoMagnesium L-Threonate (a.k.a. magtein) supposedly crosses the blood-brain barrier better than any other form of magnesium.
- greenbush 3y agoI've read that Magnesium L-Threonate is better taken in the morning to help your brain function better during the day. So, I take this in the morning and Mg glycinate at night.
- leetrout 3y agoI currently use magnesium oxide in a tablet form (I use half a tablet, ~125mg). I have previously used magnesium glycinate but I don't remember what dose I used of that. I'll add, the mag oxide always prevents leg cramps when I take a full tablet (250mg) when I am working outside all day (and staying hydrated). ETA: In my experience magnesium citrate is the one mostly likely to cause diarrhea though they all can.
- 1970-01-01 3y agoIts not so straightforward. Caffeine consumption has been shown to reduce the chance of dementia. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7836063/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7836063/
- shlant 3y ago1. Can't be sure that the effect of caffeine is more worth it than the possible impact on sleep. Better sleep probably has a wider range of benefits compared to caffeine. 2. Might not have to be one or the other - just make sure caffeine consumption is very early in the day
- deleted 3y ago[deleted]
- Almondsetat 3y agoAll these studies seem like cope. You drink coffee because it makes you do more things at work / you are a slob without it because of addiction. You are not drinking it because it might make you better in bed or have less dementia in 50 years. On the other hand we all need to sleep so doing it properly is a net positive
- brigadier132 3y agoCaffeine is really not unhealthy. It's one of the most studied supplements ever. If you drink one cup of coffee before noon you will be perfectly fine.
- Almondsetat 3y ago>if you drink one cup If you only shoot heroin once a week you will be perfectly fine How many people resist the urge and only shoot heroin once a week? We are humans, not perfectly diligent robots. The first thing you say to a person with eating disorders is to throw all the junk food from their home. It’s close to impossible to resist even the “simple” temptation of food. It’s much easier for a person to never start drinking coffee in the morning to “wake up” than starting and then quitting
- Ironlikebike 3y agoI have always had insomnia and have to maintain very good sleep hygiene. Here's a few things I have found that help me get to sleep: - No exercise after 18:30/6:30pm - Absolutely avoid Vitamin D and Vitamin B supplements in the evening. These will suppress deep and REM sleep and I'll sleep lightly all night long if I take them. - Hot sauna, shower, or bath before bed. - Anti-histamine (cetirizine hydrochloride aka Zyrtec) as needed - I'm allergic to my wife's dog and some nights I feel like I have bugs crawling on my skin. It can even wake me up. Things that keep me from waking up at night: - Gas X as needed to avoid acid reflux - Anti Inflammatory helps keep me from having to use the bathroom when I know I'm inflamed (getting old sucks). - No alcohol in the evening - No videogames, interesting books, or French lessons right before bed, or I'll be sleeping lightly and find myself ruminating in light sleep over these mentally engaging topics.
- iamdbtoo 3y agoWould you mind sharing what you take for the anti-inflammatory? Do you take it daily?
- Ironlikebike 3y agoI take Ibuprofen, and only when I can tell there is a problem (like when I've been up several times on preceding nights). It also seems correlated with junk food and alcohol. I generally have a very clean diet, and if I slip, I generally feel like I have inflammation a few days later which keeps me up at night when I wake up needing to go.
- appplication 3y agoNo alcohol or weed in the evening is critical for me. Either after about 5pm completely ruins my sleep.
- MrDrMcCoy 3y agoI on the other hand can't get to sleep without weed, and that's my sole purpose for consuming it.
- bogota 3y agoIm jealous of anyone who can sleep well. I have been doing all of the above for years as well as testing out different temperatures and also not looking at screens for well over an hour before going to bed. I just can’t get good consistent deep sleep. I will say one thing that did help was i use to live in the city and after i moved outside of it and it was much much quieter at night (no trucks driving through or random sounds or honking in the middle of the night) i did notice an improvement.
- Jedd 3y agoUrban sounds are a big problem for me as well, but you may want to try a white noise generator (phone app or even a small low-power fan) to hide some of those noises. The fan for me doubles as a way of getting air circulation. I keep windows open in other rooms, but not the bedroom - due to street noises. Having a CO2 monitor may give you some insights into another key factor impacting your sleep quality.
- mirekrusin 3y agoStart taking GlyNAC and see how you feel after a week or two. It's crazy nobody is recommending it but me here.
- inerte 3y agoI might want to try! Do you have a particular product / brand you use that’s convenient to buy? I saw another comment of your mentioning then separated, is that how you take it?
- mirekrusin 3y agoYes, I'm taking Glycine in powder (it's very cheap) from Vitality (UltraPure Glycine) and NAC from Chrisana - but I'm based in Switzerland. You should be able to find it anywhere, I'd think any brand would do just like any brand of vitamine C is likely ok.
- 0xcafefood 3y agoNAC can have a number of surprising side effects for some, including anhedonia. Just be aware of the possibility before beginning to supplement it.
- spelunker 3y agoThe biggest improvement for me by far was a CPAP.
- alostpuppy 3y agoSame! If you have poor sleep, it couldn’t hurt to see a sleep doc.
- blinding-streak 3y agoCPAP nade a profound difference for me. Cognitively and physically.
- musha68k 3y agoCould you elaborate? Are you talking about this? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Continuous_positive_airway_pressure https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Continuous_positive_airway_pre...
- inerte 3y agoNot OP but given the context, yeah. CPAP machines help you breathe better and not wake up hundreds of times due to respiratory blockage. It’s almost a necessity for fat or muscular people to sleep really well.
- Lakuma 3y agoI'm 145 lbs and use a CPAP because my nasal turbinates majorly swell up during the night or when I lay down. I'm urging my insurance company to cover the ClariFix procedure to hopefully fix my issue.
- m463 3y agoyes, it helps with sleep apnea that many older people eventually develop. You can sleep apnea it even if you don't snore. getting a cpap can be a life changer. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sleep_apnea https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sleep_apnea
- musha68k 3y agoI agree, it's hard but worth it. I have the data to back it up through sleep tracking. I've always felt somewhat unfazed by coffee, yet caffeine flashbacks can be very subtle and do seem to have a measurable impact on this "user" at least. Also really darkening the bedroom and keeping the temperature as low as possible. Now if there only were a consistent solution for energetic "night owl" toddlers to go with that ever more optimized regimen :D
- alistairSH 3y agoJust seconding many of the suggestions so far... - no alcohol after dinner (none at all is better) - eat dinner as early as possible (before 7pm, even earlier is better) - turn off screens after 9pm (Kindle doesn't seem to impact, but phone/tablet/TV do) - exercise regularly, but not too close to bedtime - regular bed time and wake time (we go to bedroom 9:30-10, lights out 10:30, alarm at 6am). Meditation and breathing exercise can help too, but I haven't had to try those much.
- VirusNewbie 3y ago>Cutting out caffeine and alcohol entirely from my diet were by far the biggest improvements I made Are you sure the latter improved deep sleep? Alcohol is known to interfere with REM sleep, but I've actually found it lengthens the amount of time I spend in deep sleep if I have a single beer or something at dinner. I tracked this over months with a sleep tracker.
- rpmisms 3y agoI sleep too deeply. 1oz of liquor immediately before sleep makes me able to comprehend alarms in the morning.
- hiAndrewQuinn 3y agoThat sounds like the opposite of sleeping too deeply to me. That sounds like you aren't getting enough. Do yourself a favor. Take off the nightcap, put on the striped pajamas and the old-timey candle holder, and book out a full 10 hours for a few weeks. Make it non-negotiable. Full darkness, clean air, quiet, the works. Maybe even get tested for sleep apnea if you're overweight. If you go through that for 3 weeks religiously and return to the nightcap I'll eat my words and consider you a medical anomaly. But I think you'll come out of it convinced it's worth the sacrifice.
- rpmisms 3y agoBeen there, I just sleep a full 10 hours and can't fall asleep the next night. I sleep 7 hours, that's the right amount for me. If I don't feel like drinking, I'll eat something heavy to lighten my sleep quality. I obsessively track my sleep, and this is all I've found so far. The other option is polyphasic, but that's limited in terms of practicality.
- lr4444lr 3y agoSleep, like digestion, wound healing, or respiration, seems to be one of those complex bodily processes that can suffer from dysfunction for a variety of reasons we're only now beginning to understand rigorously. A quality polysomnography is a good place to start.
- agos 3y agoand to top it off, issues with digestion or respiration will impact your sleep negatively
- bnralt 3y agoOne thing I’ve found that really helps is actually not worrying too much about sleep. Try to follow good basic habits, but you can become neurotic trying to follow every suggestion that people make or thinking that a few nights of horrible sleep is going to damage you for life. If I get a few nights of poor sleep nowadays I try to just shrug it off.
- leokennis 3y agoI have a feeling that the more "advanced" tips seen in this thread are more (personal) solutions/improvements for the situation of "I am stressed and so I cannot sleep well". I.e. to make a non-optimal situation a little better. Which is fine, but in general I'd think having the luxury of being in a calm, comfortable and unworried state of mind is the most beneficial.
- _Algernon_ 3y agoI remember reading in Why we Sleep[1] about devices that you could wear which would increase the intensity of deep sleep brain waves, thereby causing deeper sleep. Not sure how legit this is seen these days or how close such devices are to becoming available to regular consumers, but was interesting to read about. [1]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Why_We_Sleep https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Why_We_Sleep
- jacobsimon 3y agoI think the other key question is causality - do people who get less deep sleep develop these diseases, or do people who are developing these diseases get less deep sleep, or both? I wonder if they could design an interventional study in which people who are predisposed to dementia are given more sleep or melatonin, and then demonstrate whether it protects against the disease.
- bryanrasmussen 3y agoI mean one of the common correlations between dementia and 'something else' is stress, people who are stressed get dementia more often. I guess people who are not getting enough deep sleep are also stressed.
- kzz102 3y agoThe study does not prove causality: it is right in the title of the paper: Association Between Slow-Wave Sleep Loss and Incident Dementia. Sorry for the rant: we should not share university press release articles, they are always clickbait. Just share the research directly.
- bookofjoe 3y agodang I smiled when I read this comment
- bradley13 3y agoYou're right about the journal paper, but the pop-sci title implies causation. So, for those who didn't click all the way through: There is zero proof of causation. It may well be that people getting dementia have increased problems sleeping. Or both may be caused by some third factor.
- heipei 3y agoPersonal anecdote, but I sleep with earplugs most of the nights as I have a very light sleep. I would wake from really small noises multiple times every night. In contrast, sleeping with earplugs feels like entering a dark and quiet chamber and then suddenly emerging after 7-8 hours of uninterrupted sleep. YMMV, but for me it's a godsend.
- globular-toast 3y agoI have the same problem but I've yet to find earplugs that I can wear every night. The only only ones I've been able to sleep with at all are silicone ones that mould to the shape of the ear. I can only sleep which makes things significantly more difficult but with some practice I can get the silicone ones flat and not feeling like there's pressure inside my ear which will stop me sleeping. I don't travel without these now and they have been great, but after several successive nights of use I find my ear starts to get sore and sensitive to them. The best thing, of course, is to live somewhere actually quiet. Most noise is from cars. But failing that I have to sleep with some white noise source like a fan.
- prirun 3y agoI use these earplugs every night and whenever I'm exposed to noise, like vacuuming. For me, it helps me sleep better and also seems to reduce tinnitus. Note: I'm not saying wearing earplugs directly reduces tinnitus, but IMO it reduces ear stimulation because my ears are processing less sound, so my ears don't get as tired, and that seems to make my tinnitus less noticeable. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0051U7W32 https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0051U7W32 I re-use the same set, washing them when I take a shower. I bought the above set of 50 years ago and still have many left. A couple of tricks I use with these: - I cut about 1/4" off the small end. If I don't, the earplug starts to hurt my ear if I wear it a lot, I think because it goes too far into my ear. - before using a new earplug, I wash it several times with bar soap. There is something in a new ear plug that makes it stay mashed. Maybe it suppresses more noise with that, but it also makes it hard to fit for me. I keep washing it until it is springy. This is a one-time thing with a new ear plug.
- Moldoteck 3y agono alcohol, no coffee after 12:00, try to eat less(caloric food) at dinner & try to eat no closer than 3h before your sleep, make sure the room you sleep in is fully dark, make sure you have comfortable temperature (if you are rich, you may as well get that ultrafancy mattress that regulates the temperature), make sure pillow is comfy, not too hard¬ too soft
- buzzdenver 3y agoI do not have an answer for you, but I have a very low level of trust in the deep sleep numbers, as they are based on heart rate and not brain waves.
- mattgreenrocks 3y agoFWIW, my Apple Watch's reports of deep sleep line up with my Zeo (EEG)'s numbers from awhile ago.
- inerte 3y agoThis guy over here https://youtu.be/BQMIAkt4P48?si=XQY6jLLKFpS4wkzv https://youtu.be/BQMIAkt4P48?si=XQY6jLLKFpS4wkzv is always testing fitness / sleep devices and he compares to better machines that are known to more precise. The latest Apple Watches do pretty well overall.
- petesergeant 3y agoMy deep sleep has massively improved recently and consistently for the last month. Two things I've done differently (and I'm not sure which is to thank) is taking magnesium before bed each night and inhaling fluticasone. No more snoring, no more waking up tired.
- thelastgallon 3y agoWhats the sleep tracker you use? I've been looking at a few, not sure which ones are really accurate.
- jncfhnb 3y agoTry brown noise
- IndySun 3y agoIt's Brownian noise, to be precise.
- cschmidt 3y agoThis probably doesn't help you directly, but I suspect the older people mentioned in the article may often have some sleep apnea, preventing them from reaching deep sleep. I just started using a CPAP machine, which has greatly improved it for me. Making sure it is always treated could help society wide.
- deleted 3y ago[deleted]
- samuell 3y agoI've always had trouble falling asleep properly. I got helped by the usual suspects like avoiding caffeine after 14-15, earplugs, thick curtains and light cover over the eyes as well as cool temperatures in the sleeping room, but the big improvement came after I stopped eating after 20 in the night, and preferably earlier than that.
- perbu 3y agoAccording to this researched I heard an interview with about 15-20% of the population has some level of intolerance for histamines. Having high histamine levels affect sleep. I find it interesting that it is never addressed in these common list of what to try to improve sleep. It's not rocket science managing it, just a matter of avoiding high histamine food after 5pm or so. Good sleep might be worth it.
- atmosx 3y agoHow does the sensor track "deep sleep" reliably?
- deleted 3y ago[deleted]
- GuB-42 3y agoIf your sleep tracker is one of these consumer devices that you put on your wrist, they are notoriously unreliable (here is a study https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7603649/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7603649/ ). Worse, they have been shown to cause unnecessary stress by causing people who are actually perfectly fine to chase numbers. As for how to improve sleep, there are plenty of advise, many of them commonsense (see in this thread). But I think that unless you are actually followed by a healthcare professional, in which case he would probably give better advise than random people on HN, how well you feel the next day is probably a better metric than some number on a smartwatch. And if the answer is "fine", I don't think there is a reason to worry much.
- evanjrowley 3y agoSomewhat ironically, the sleep apnea screening device I was sent is also meant to be worn on the wrist. There were three additional sensors connected to it. One for monitor chest movements for breathing, one for monitoring breath itself, and another for blood oxygen level.
- daralthus 3y agoq10 coenzyme before bed turns me into a log for the whole night
- 2devnull 3y agoThat’s what I don’t get and would love someone to post full text of the study. They claim this is a “modifiable” risk. I find that claim dubious and would love to see how they support that, and why this isn’t simply descriptive/correlational.
- konfusinomicon 3y agotry nasal dilators. they can be a little uncomfortable to start and some brands like to fall out mid sleep (or I subconsciously take it out and drop it in the bed), but I can attest that I sleep much deeper when I use one, or atleast the increase in quality and quantity of dreams make me think I do. also I wake up in the morning in the same position I fell asleep in and not feeling tired more often, where I usually am sleep flopping all over the place according to my other half
- QuercusMax 3y agoI've had good luck with nasal strips (like Breathe Right) along with an anti-snoring mouth appliance. I got one from my dentist that worked OK but it cost $1K and broke after a year. I've had good luck with the non-prescription SnoreRx mouth appliance; not so great with ZQuiet which I found hurt my front teeth.
- proee 3y agoExercise HARD. Try doing some Zone 2 cardio for +1 hours, and see if this makes a difference. Or try some HIIT workout (Zone 5) and see how your body responds. A good overall workout machine is a rower. Try to set some kind of PR, like a 2k time trial. Push beyond what you think is possible and see how your body responds. My best sleeps are when I am physically exhausted - so weak that I could fall asleep on a couch (which is normally impossible for me).
- gjstein 3y agoI have some mixed feelings about this. I used to do this ~10 years ago when I was a distance runner, but now exercising so hard will throw my body off in other ways and I don't feel good having pushed so hard. Perhaps this is exactly the point you're making, but I don't target zone 5 for long these days. Deep sleep, sure, but at what cost to the rest of my body?
- brigadier132 3y agoAll exercise causes fatigue and fatigue management is not really discussed but it's actually not that difficult. Most of your cardio should be done in zone 2 (look up the 80/20 rule). You also may need to start with easier workouts and work your way back up to what you expect you can do. I was also a former endurance athlete and in college I stopped exercising. Numerous times I kept on trying to get back into it and I didn't succeed at getting back into it until I realized that I needed to start from square 1. I'm not fully back into it yet mind you, but I'm running 20 miles a week and lifting weights 6 days a week. A lot of my workouts are zone 2. I sleep at least 8 hours and I get roughly 1 gram of protein per pound of bodyweight from my diet (i also make sure all my other macro and micro nutrient needs are met). The excessive fatigue goes away if you are meeting your nutrient and sleep requirements and not consuming drugs or alcohol. Look up the "repeated bout effect". I feel like a teenager again after getting my exercise, nutrition, and sleep routine locked in. edit: To clarify what I mean about "the excessive fatigue goes away", when I first started running there would be mornings where I would wake up and have significant mental and physical fatigue and the very thought of going to exercise was repulsive to me. That goes away with time, it's also a signal to maybe take it easy for the day and do zone 2 cardio instead.
- f38zf5vdt 3y agoThe study is about duration of deep sleep, not quality. And that's an easy one, you can increase the amount of deep sleep with cannabis. > Cannabis users demonstrated significantly longer sleep latency and less REM sleep overall; no other differences occurred in objective sleep measures between groups. https://bmjopenrespres.bmj.com/content/6/Suppl_1/A23.1 https://bmjopenrespres.bmj.com/content/6/Suppl_1/A23.1
- joveian 3y agoYour link does not support your statement, which may not be the case. Even your quoted bit suggests that cannabis just caused less REM sleep that was replaced by taking longer to get to sleep. I couldn't find a particularly good citataion but some say that THC doesn't affect deep sleep (N3) while CBD actually reduces it. All say that the situation is unclear and needs more research.
- sys32768 3y agoTry no calories after 5PM. This gives me the deepest sleep and very vivid dreams.
- buildsjets 3y agoTry a Valerian root extract supplement about an hour before your bedtime. It's extraordinary effective for me. https://www.nccih.nih.gov/health/valerian https://www.nccih.nih.gov/health/valerian
- ac29 3y agoIt should be noted that Valerian works on the brains GABA system in a very similar manner to alcohol or benzodiazapines (valium, xanax, etc). This is why it is effective, but also why it should only be used short term.
- unsupp0rted 3y agoI take Magnesium an hour or so before bed and boy does my Mi Band smartwatch show a difference in deep sleep those days. Is it "real" improved deep sleep? No idea. I do blood tests for Magnesium (and D3, B12, etc) every so often to make sure I'm not poisoning myself.
- barbariangrunge 3y agoWhat kills sleep for me is any feeling of unfinished business. If I feel like there's a thing I need to do, good luck sleeping unless I'm completely exhausted. So I think mental health is really important, learning to have your mind at peace. Or rather, learning, one by one, how to deal with the 1000 things disturb you individually until there's not many left to keep you up
- deegles 3y agoThere was a device called the Dreem headband that would use EEG and specially timed tones to increase the duration of deep sleep (look up "sleep spindles"). Unfortunately that specific feature was blocked in the US and they took it off the market. But I hope that something like that will be launched again.
- oooyay 3y agoI went through a series of traumatic events before a deployment and I stopped sleeping. I started experiencing psychosomatic events where I'd see and feel bugs crawling on me. When I saw the Wizard™ he had me start doing breathing exercises right before bed, clearing my brain, and centering myself in a space with no distractions. For me that was a endless white room. It worked and I continue to do it today when I have stressful days and I generally sleep on a consistent schedule and wake up (nearly) on the hour of when I need to wake up. From my sleep tracker I get roughly 1.5-2 hours of REM each night and roughly 6-7 hours of "sleep".
- barbariangrunge 3y agoInteresting. Did you learn anything else that helped you?
- oooyay 3y agoSince then? Probably better managing stress and emotional events. Setting aside time to think about and feel my stress, grief, or anxiety and allowing myself to defer those things to an appropriate time has helped me a lot. Learning to bend with life a bit more than being fed up with its twists and turns has also helped. I say that in the light that in a lot of twists and turns I've figured out how to make the best of things.
- ulnarkressty 3y agoI have improved my deep sleep by taking lavender oil extract capsules. They help relax and give me a 'knock-out' feeling that rapidly induces sleep. I also don't wake up in the middle of the night anymore when I take them. Unfortunately the quality of the extract varies wildly, I would get the same effect with 80mg as I would with 400mg from another supplier. Doubly unfortunate is that one rapidly builds tolerance to it. I use it every 3rd day, so I get a deep, restful sleep twice a week. Quite a few sleep supplements have started adding it to their formulas recently, using melatonin to initiate sleep and lavender oil to sustain it. It remains to be seen what side effects it has taken long term - there aren't any studies about this available as far as I could tell.
- krrrh 3y agoJust a note that lavender oil is estrogenic and topical use has been associated with precocious puberty or gynocomastia in children. Small doses in adults may not be a huge issue, but I would not use it as a sleep aid for kids. https://www.nih.gov/news-events/news-releases/lavender-tea-tree-oils-may-cause-breast-growth-boys https://www.nih.gov/news-events/news-releases/lavender-tea-t...
- pedalpete 3y agoWe're doing neurostimulation to increase the effectiveness at deep sleep, and have spoken with the research team at Monash (where the study took place) which is looking to use our tech in some of their future studies. There is a large body of research supporting this, a selection of which you can find on our website at https://soundmind.co https://soundmind.co We don't alter the amount of time you sleep, we increase the synchronous firing of neurons, which is the hallmark of deep sleep.
- interstice 3y agoI've been stuck on <30 minutes of deep sleep for as long as I've had an Apple watch and probably much longer. Some observations I recently made: - Japan has these drinks with 200mg of GABA, I don't know if it was the 20,000 steps we were doing every day or the drinks but on the days I had it deep sleep was often (not always) closer to an hour. Strangely enough GABA is illegal here in NZ so I'm trying L-Theanine with less obvious effects. - Exercise (even 2h+ moderate) doesn't have any effect, adjusting caffeine doesn't seem to either - A warm shower immediately before bed strangely did seem to have a considerable although not perfectly consistent effect - Just got put on Concerta for ADHD and although im getting less sleep i'm also getting 40+ minutes of deep sleep. After recently doing research into GABA + Dopamine + etc it seems to be a bit of a brain circuit thing for me.
- Obscurity4340 3y ago+ orgasm before washing up Edit: am i wrong, who doesn't sleep better and easier with that outcome in-hand?
- Obscurity4340 3y agoK during. I agree with downvoters that its best not to seperate the two. Order of operations and all that
- nunez 3y agoyou really can't. You can play around with caffeine, melatonin, magnesium, weed, whatever to improve falling asleep but very little is understood about these sleep stages to begin with except "you need them" and "everyone needs a different amount of them" by far the most important thing you CAN do is have a consistent sleep schedule (every day! Including weekends!) and make your bed for sleeping and sex only.
- CP3f6kMA 3y agoInterested what the ramifications to polphasic sleep are now
- sireat 3y agoAll the anecdotal indications is that polyphasic sleep is simply acquiring significant deep sleep debt. That is: polyphasic sleep is not sustainable over a multi year period. Humans can still do it while sailing in an ocean, on space ships and similar extreme locations. However a significant relapse then follows in more "normal" places. I'd love to see if someone was able to be productive for 3+ years on polyphasic sleep. Personally I relapsed after a few months - maybe I never truly transitioned.
- user_7832 3y ago> I'd love to see if someone was able to be productive for 3+ years on polyphasic sleep. Buckminister Fuller apparently was close. > Fuller reportedly kept this Dymaxion sleep habit for two years, before quitting the routine because it conflicted with his business associates' sleep habits. (From his wikipedia page)
- meindnoch 3y agoYikes. For me, this is an argument against polyphasic sleep. That guy was a total quack.
- qwerty456127 3y agoHow do you improve it? Benzos apparently improve it but do these improve it the real way?
- rex_lupi 3y agoBenzos do NOT improve sleep quality, they just make you sleep. They in fact reduce deep sleep. Melatonin supplementation may help.
- qwerty456127 3y agoI don't have much problems falling asleep but I feel I slept much better if I took a benzo so I occasionally (rarely, humble doses) do whenever I want to really recharge myself with what feels like a great night of good deep uninterrupted sleep. In contrast to zolpidem (I tried it wehen I actually used to have problems falling asleep): zolpidem helps to fall asleep but promotes vivid (and visually beautiful) vigourous dreams and harms resting so I feel satisfied but very tired in the morning (like if lived through the Avatar movie instead of sleeping). Such is my experience. What am I missing? Melatonin supplementation seems a questionable idea except for adjusting your circadian "inner clock" - according to this article: https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/E4cKD9iTWHaE7f3AJ/melatonin-much-more-than-you-wanted-to-know https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/E4cKD9iTWHaE7f3AJ/melatonin-...
- n4r9 3y agoPerhaps sleep quality doesn't always directly relate to how rested you feel afterwards? I've been having a very varied amount of sleep for the last few months due to a newborn baby. It can definitely happen that a good 5-6 hour stretch (the max I get these days) leads to me feeling more tired. Sometimes running on fumes actually feels easier and more wakeful.
- rex_lupi 3y agoNot nearly as questionable as taking benzos, in any case.
- artursapek 3y ago
- qwerty456127 3y agoIt seems like Sci Hub stopped working. All the papers I recently found on HN and tried to reat appear unavailable.
- pegasus 3y agoAnna's Archive got them all and then some.
- qwerty456127 3y agoNice. Thank you.
- hnthrowaway0315 3y agoGetting enough sleep is difficult enough, now we need to get enough deep sleep... The only way for me to get enough good sleep is to either quit my job (without worrying the $$) or getting rid of the kid. None is doable.
- anonzzzies 3y agoI have been able to do lucid dreaming since I was 18 (over 30 years ago) and according to different sleep trackers I'm almost always over 25% deep sleep, sometimes a lot more. I guess they are related, but don't know for sure.
- meindnoch 3y agoAnd what do you do in your lucid dreams?
- anonzzzies 3y agoDepends on what it is; from shooting zombies to negotiating with a mob boss (last night). I cannot really guide what it’s about but I usually have control. I remember most and I usually want to get back in when it’s time to get up.
- soulofmischief 3y agoI've had chronic insomnia my entire life, and when I do sleep, it is never deep sleep, to the point that I typically retain enough brain activity to lucid dream. Dementia isn't an if for me, it's a when. I also think that they have the causation backwards.
- s5300 3y ago[dead]
- loeg 3y ago> I also think that they have the causation backwards. You think you already have dementia and it is causing poor sleep?
- soulofmischief 3y agoThe root causes that lead to my lifelong chronic insomnia are likely the same root causes that will lead to dementia. Genetics, environment. And that says nothing of my ADHD and physical disability which lead to not exercising enough and phases of poor dietary choices, it all swirls into a high risk factor for dementia.
- kylebenzle 3y agoIt does seem to be like 90% about being privileged enough to spend a lot of time outside in the sun, running around with people in a group. Maybe in the distant future we will revert to this kind of hunter gater life just because this one kinda sucks.
- soulofmischief 3y agoModern life is literally driving us crazy.
- loeg 3y agoAh, some third variable.
- mebassett 3y ago"We also examined whether genetic risk for Alzheimer’s Disease or brain volumes suggestive of early neurodegeneration were associated with a reduction in slow-wave sleep. We found that a genetic risk factor for Alzheimer’s disease, but not brain volume, was associated with accelerated declines in slow wave sleep" This sounds like the arrow of causation is pointing the other way.
- notlisted 3y agoCause and effect is also questioned in (much larger) studies: https://www.healthline.com/health-news/the-surprising-link-between-bedtime-and-dementia https://www.healthline.com/health-news/the-surprising-link-b... Interesting quotes: " The study found that []longer[] time spent in bed (TIB) was associated with significantly []increased[] dementia risk. Those in bed for more than 8 hours were far more likely to show a cognitive decline during a Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE) [...] The time individuals went to bed was also highlighted by researchers as a critical contributing factor [...] The research paper stated that “every 1 hour advance in bedtime [before 10 pm] was associated with a 25% increased risk of dementia.” "
- DrThunder 3y ago[dead]
- yawgmoth 3y agoI currently am stuck at a six hour cycle. Any tips to turn that into eight?
- globular-toast 3y agoFrom someone who sleeps 8 hours almost every night: just go to sleep earlier and /or wake up later. Impossible to give any better advice without any further information. Is the problem not enough hours in the day (e.g. time wasted on stuff like commuting etc.)? Or are you just unable to stay asleep longer than 6 hours?
- densh 3y agoAnd there is a whole other problem of not being able to fall asleep. Reducing caffeine helps but not still it's very difficult for some.
- globular-toast 3y agoReading works for me. Recently I've improved that even more using an eReader. My room is completely dark when I go to sleep. I use blackout curtains and have removed any sources of light from my room. In the summer it gets light very early in the UK (~04:00) and I require ventilation so I also wear an eye mask. I use a fan to mask any background noise and, in summer, this is blowing directly on me to keep me cool. I use a wool duvet which I found the best for temperature regulation; I require a weighty covering even when it's warm. I use a Kobo which has an adjustable frontlight that can go both very low and very warm (redish). I set the Kobo's backlight to the lowest and warmest possible setting. I lie on my side with the Kobo on its side leaning on an adjacent pillow such that I don't have to hold it. Turning pages requires a light tap; there is no scrolling or swiping involved. At some point after a few pages of Iain M. Banks, or whatever I'm reading at the time (usually science fiction), I fall asleep. The Kobo automatically switches itself off after I stop turning pages and I wake in the morning with it next to me (or sometimes I've moved it but can't remember when/why). It's important not to use something like TV that you need to actively switch off at some point and, if you use an object like a book or eReader, make sure it won't fall and wake you up when you start to nod off. Definitely don't hold it up with your hands. Don't use a phone because scrolling etc. is far too active and backlit screens just don't seem conducive to sleep. An eReader is perfect because it means you can turn the lights off but the frontlit e-ink screen is more like a book than a phone. This method has been tried and tested with a partner in the same bed. You just need to make sure any objects don't fall on or get tangled up with said partner. I have a pillow system propped up by my bedside table for this purpose.
- sys32768 3y agoMy mother was the picture of health and happiness when she got early onset Alzheimer's. She was always a very light sleeper, to the point she couldn't even sleep in the same bed with dad for many years. As I have nothing lifestyle related to blame for her disease, I wonder whether her brain's glymphatic system was awry.
- deleted 3y ago[deleted]
- deleted 3y ago[deleted]
- artursapek 3y agoI recommend the book "Why We Sleep" - it opened my eyes to the importance of a full 8 hours of sleep. So many people are sabotaging their health and professional performance by only sleeping like 5-7 hours.
- bethekind 3y agoAn interesting tidbit. Higher Testosterone levels are associated with lighter sleeping habits. Something to be aware of. So theoretically woman would have lower rates of dementia
- deleted 3y ago[deleted]
- durpleDrank 3y agoI have some unconventional sleep tips for those interested. DURPLEDRANK'S GUIDE TO BETTER SLEEP: Line your sleeping room with books. They are an inexpensive way to soundproof your room. If you have noisy neighbors upstairs, you'll "hear" them, but more importantly, you won't "feel" it. Use comfortable earplugs and a baggy winter hat as a sleep mask. Sleep masks can be uncomfortable, so this is a great alternative. Play a BROWNIAN NOISE loop on speakers in your room. You can easily generate this in Audacity with a few mouse clicks. Take antacids before bed. Many sleep problems are linked to acid reflux. Drinking carbonated water or water with baking soda can make you feel tired instantly. For any scientists out there, please credit me for this discovery. If you have acid reflux, your brain won't let you sleep. Stay warm. Being warm often makes you sleepy, although the reason isn't clear. Use red lights in your sleep room to avoid blue light. Replace your reading lamp with a red light to help your brain switch into sleep mode. Limit screen time. Dim the brightness and enable blue light blocking mode on your devices. Older devices may be less disruptive to sleep than modern ones. Keep a notepad for quick Google searches. Whenever you have a random thought, jot it down on a to-do list to avoid grabbing your device. This helps you stay off screens. Consider taking 1g of melatonin, but note that it may not be very effective if you have acid reflux. Elevate your sleeping position to combat acid reflux. Even if you don't feel it, you might have some built-up reflux if you burp or fart after drinking carbonated water. Invest in blackout curtains. Cover every blinking light or power LED in your room with electrical tape to create a pitch-black environment. TL;DR: In my journey to fix my sleep, the most critical factors are 1) managing acid reflux, 2) soundproofing and reducing light in the room, and 3) using red light.
- musha68k 3y agoThe book insulation tip is great and could be a good segue into replacing reading habits for actual books vs e-reader / other displays. Even with "nightshift red colours" I could stay up reading for hours vs even with something very interesting to me in actual book form + warm secondary light source = getting sleepy and quickly so. I'm guessing melatonin does get depressed significantly as soon as you start looking directly into a light source.
- 3y ago
- ada1981 3y agoI put together this audio for falling to sleep fast, using the military method from “Relax and Win” by Bud Winters. - About 100 years ago the US military developed a technique for helping fighter pilots rapidly fall asleep. About 95% of people find this helpful. Use this guided sleep sequence to relax your entire body and have a deeper, faster, more restorative sleep. From your friends at http://EarthPilot.org http://EarthPilot.org https://open.spotify.com/episode/0uXWxpjLrIcMMWzoFMCRkq https://open.spotify.com/episode/0uXWxpjLrIcMMWzoFMCRkq
- trwhite 3y agoThis is something I think about a lot. I sleepwalk and sometimes have night terrors (where I hallucinate an intruder or spiders on the walls/ceiling). Lately I've been having them almost every day, despite practicing good bedtime habits. Am I going to have early onset dementia? I wake up almost every morning with a headache from sleep deprivation
- johnchristopher 3y agoGeneric comment: have you checked for sleep apnea ?
- kylebenzle 3y agoGood sleep seems to be a component of long life (1). Intense daily exercise seems to be the best "treatment" we have for sleep issues. Importantly, there are NO medications known to help with "sleep" all those pills they sell as "sleep-aids" are technically called sedatives, or "hypnotics" medically and don't give the same benefits of sleep. 1. https://www.amazon.com/Why-We-Sleep-Unlocking-Dreams/dp/1501144316/ref=asc_df_1501144316/?tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=312134205520&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=2670095342716494645&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=m&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9014961&hvtargid=pla-385931137145&psc=1&ref=d6k_applink_bb_dls&dplnkId=50753c4e-025d-4530-bc5b-6f0d98a817e9 https://www.amazon.com/Why-We-Sleep-Unlocking-Dreams/dp/1501...
- marknutter 3y ago> where I hallucinate an intruder or spiders on the walls/ceiling This sounds more like sleep paralysis than it does night terrors.
- jimmaswell 3y agoHave you checked your carbon monoxide detectors?
- captainclam 3y agoWow, are you me? I also experience this specifically. The hallucinations tend to be "spiders" or intruders (spiders in quotes because they're more shadowy and ephemeral than your standard tarantula) and incidentally, it's been "ramping up" for me lately, to the extent that it's a pretty dependable, nightly occurrence. I too think about it a lot and worry about the early-onset dementia angle. Do you have any conditions in the broad spectrum of "anxiety" disorders? I've had a pretty rocky relationship with my sympathetic nervous system; variably severe anxiety, some panic attacks, occasional bouts of depersonalization/derealization. It seems pretty likely that these symptoms spring from the same root cause as the "night terrors." Fortunately I'm not personally aware of a link between these issues and dementia, though I wouldn't be surprised if someone replies with a link to some study that ruins my day.
- manicennui 3y agoI feel like we basically know what we should be doing to avoid many illnesses. Get better sleep, be more active, eat better, etc. The problem is almost always finding the willpower to make the changes and maintain the good habits long term.
- bitcoin_anon 3y agoThis is being too hard on oneself. Getting better sleep, being more active, and eating better are problems of modernity. When it got dark outside, our ancestors got sleepy. There was no need to exert willpower. Chastising oneself for not having enough willpower to flourish in an environment we were not designed for is not productive. Instead, let us change our environments to better suit the primates we still are.
- armada651 3y agoThis. We have created a society where healthy eating, quality sleep and sufficient exercise are all considered luxuries rather than the default. The cheapest food options are the unhealthiest. Hours of overtime and long commutes prevent sufficient sleep. And exercise is considered a leisure activity.
- mcbutterbunz 3y agoWouldn’t it be nice to wake up when your body said it’s got enough sleep?
- manicennui 3y agoI agree, but I guess I don't have any hope that we will fix any of these problems. We continue to make all of this worse. Many of our jobs wouldn't exist if we weren't working on making these problems worse.
- bitcoin_anon 3y agoIt’s up to you to fix them in your own life. Your home is good place start to create an environment suited for human flourishing.
- nine_zeros 3y agoHas anyone tried using lightweight wearables like whoop that claim to help improve sleep and recovery? Wondering how successful these wearables are.
- bennyz 3y agoCheck "The Quantified Scientist" on youtube, he does very good wearable reviews and compares them with sleep labs
- speak_plainly 3y agoI have no issue with falling asleep but the quality of sleep and staying asleep has been an issue. Taking magnesium threonate has helped immensely (The brand I buy is MagEnhance). Using an Apple Watch as a tracker, my sleep patterns have improved greatly including deep sleep, but I wonder if it can get better.
- TedDoesntTalk 3y agoSomething like 50% of adults do not get enough magnesium. "Up to 50 percent of US population is magnesium deficient" https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/02/180226122548.htm https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/02/180226122548.h... There are numerous sources for this figure; google if you want others.
- steve_adams_86 3y agoThe way I made things better (though it’s always an ongoing battle) was getting more consistent about a few key things. Maybe you already do this, but the key strategy for me goes something like: - go to bed earlier than you think you need to (9-9:30pm for me) - get outside and moving as early as possible. Ideally in bright light, and without a time-sensitive objective. For example, leave early to walk to work so it can be leisurely. Or wake up early enough that you can just go for a 15-20m walk with no destination and wake up your body. - No screens past 6pm or so. I allow my watch, but I hide my phone. I will let it ruin my sleep over and over and over. I’m only a hairless ape, and I need to plan to prevent myself from doing ape things. The watch doesn’t seem to harm my sleep, but it functions as my alarm/quick way to set reminders/way to see the time or weather/etc. But I need to keep the phone far away. Different things work for different people, and maybe you’re already pretty close to something like this anyway. I only mention it because I started with magnesium threonate too, and it was a long path to better sleep. I wish I figured this out 15 years ago!
- ge96 3y agoSleep is when I genuinely feel peace of mind, soon as I'm conscious something's wrong Goal in life is to sleep/wake whenever, bad thing is I can sleep a lot too eg. 14 hrs but I normally operate on 5 so I can tolerate my crap job
- Duhck 3y agoI've been going down this rabbit hole for a while and don't have any conclusive answers. I have always slept 7.5 hours in my adult life. I wake up a couple times a night briefly (and usually recall 1-2 time a night that it happens) but fall back asleep quickly. My room is dark, and cold. Most of the times when I wake up it's because I am warm from my mattress (casper wave). I am now purchasing a chilling pad for my side of the mattress to address that so I sleep deeper and more consistently. I take magnesium because I am very active and have suffered for the last year or so from hypnic jerks, which are terrifying but have gone away since I started taking magnesium supplements before bed. I occasionally have a hard time falling asleep or wake up early and cant get back to bed, but I still average 7.5hrs over a year -- and over 3 years since ive been tracking my sleep nightly. I get sufficient REM, dont drink alcohol, gave up weed, and only have caffeine from 9am - 11am daily (1 coffee usually, sometimes a shot of espresso in addition). Yet my deep sleep averages are ~45 minutes a night. I am about to be 39, and I am unclear what to change beyond the mattress cooling pad which I will measure. I've also started cold showers when waking up (60 seconds of cold to end my shower, working towards 2 minutes). My family has zero history of Dementia so I am not as worried, but I am concerned with staying in tip top cognitive shape if possible. I am tempted to try a sleep study and see what I might learn. Edit: Lots of comments to address here. - I exercise 60-90 minutes daily. - I play a high level of hockey 4 days a week, snowboard or mountain bike 5 days a week. - I am slightly over weight by scale, but I am just an athletic build. - I eat healthy and cook nearly every meal I eat (I live in an expensive ski town with only high end eateries so I avoid them). Lots of brown rice, protein, fruit, and veggies. - I walk 30-60 minutes a day (active dog). - I get plenty of sunlight (within 30 minutes of waking)
- deleted 3y ago[deleted]
- ben_jones 3y agoYou’ve been very thorough with physical/biological variables which would suggest maybe psychological factors could be impacting you. Do you have a high amount of ambient stress in your life? Existential fears? Past traumas? Unfulfilled responsibilities? Debt?
- 3y ago
- aantix 3y agoIf you're a slow metabolizer of caffeine like I am, stay away from caffeine. CYP1A2 https://www.geneticlifehacks.com/liver-detox-genes-cyp1a2/ https://www.geneticlifehacks.com/liver-detox-genes-cyp1a2/ The difference in sleep quality is dramatic. If I have caffeine, even a small 20mg at 7am, I'm up 4-6 times the next night, going to the bathroom, superficial sleep. Without caffeine, I'm in a deep sleep. So much so that I don't change positions at all, and my body slightly aches from being in the same position so long. My bladder nearly feels like it's going to burst, because I've slept so long. There was a study I saw while back that said eating cruciferous vegetables speeds up caffeine metabolism. I've tried that, but that didn't seem to help. The caffeine still seemed to disturb my sleep. I tried BrocoMax, a broccoli supplement, that didn't seem to help either. Exercise helps a little bit. But it's still not the quality of sleep I receive with zero caffeine. I think much faster when I drink caffeine. Recently I revisited this issue and tried micro-dosing 5-Hour Energy (2mL). At first it seemed promising. But then it seems to slowly build up in my system. Sleep quality deteriorates slower. But the deterioration is there. I prematurely posted this status. https://twitter.com/aantix/status/1706020516060971399 https://twitter.com/aantix/status/1706020516060971399 Sadly, it doesn't appear that I can drink caffeine and have quality sleep. I hate that I have to choose.
- lpa22 3y agoIt took me far too long to realize caffeine was the cause of my restless sleep issues. Even just 80mg at 10am. I thought it was stress. There’s definitely millions of other people that don’t realize caffeine is killing them slowly due to lack of good sleep, and just continue the cycle.
- dharma1 3y agosame here - I can still feel the effects of a cup of coffee at midnight that I drank at 10am
- 2devnull 3y agoFor some people, the effects of caffeine seem to be permanent. I am one.
- 3y ago
- SillyUsername 3y agoI'm f'ed as are probably a lot of people who have anxiety or have ideas that wake them up. How the heck is a person meant to stop that? :(
- johndevor 3y agoMeditation?
- mxmbrb 3y agoA simple realization helped me to get out of the loop of night thoughts a lot quicker: At night your reasoning abilty is massively impaired by melatonin. Thats why your thoughts keep going in circles and one does not find the most obvious solutions for a problem. There is only one thing to do. Let it go. You are at your worst, you're not supposed to reason right now. This simple fact fixed crushing night thoughts for me and a friend of mine.
- SillyUsername 3y agoI can't simply put down the thought, even though it is often mostly circular, until I can resolve it. I can stop thinking about it, but then I'll just lie there awake and many hours pass :(
- monological 3y agoMain reason is due to purging of β-amyloid by the glymphatic system, which seems to happen during deep sleep. High β-amyloid plaque build up is correlated with Alzheimer’s disease. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7698404/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7698404/
- Tarq0n 3y agoThe causal relationship between amyloid plaque and alzheimers is controversial nowadays.
- monological 3y agoIt's not "casual". Did you read the paper I linked?
- n8henrie 3y agoUnclear if there was an edit, a typo, or a misreading with regards to the word you've "quoted."
- dbspin 3y agoAs someone who's had pretty profound sleep apnea related insomnia (resistant to sleep hygiene and CBT-I) for at least 20 years (since my mid twenties), this is super dispiriting.
- baby 3y agoSame here + acid reflux that keep me awake at night sometimes.
- tradesmanhelix 3y agoAnecdotally, Steve Gibson's "Healthy Sleep Formula" [1] has been a lifesaver for me. As I've gotten older, the biggest challenge has been falling back asleep in the middle of the night after a wake up (for whatever reason, i.e., bathroom, noises, etc.), but the Niacinamide esp. from the formula seems to fix this and I sleep great. Thank you Steve!! [1] https://www.grc.com/health/sleep/healthy_sleep_formula.htm https://www.grc.com/health/sleep/healthy_sleep_formula.htm
- artylerzysta 3y agoMy sleeping improved after moving wifi router and cell phone away from my bed.
- deleted 3y ago[deleted]
- londons_explore 3y agoI suspect it was the cell phone more than the wifi router... as well as the constant temptation to check it for messages there is the random 3am buzzing as some app sends a spam notification.
- throitallaway 3y agoYes, although I've seen some routers (and other electronic devices) that have coil whine (which would be very distracting for sleep.)
- sidcool 3y agoHow to increase deep sleep?
- eagle2com 3y agoResearch concerning sleep is very interesting, but also extremely counterproductive for me. Now I have yet another thing to worry about if I don't sleep enough/correctly, and thus I _will_ sleep worse for a while.
- kbrkbr 3y agoHow is this study different from a study suggesting that taking off one's shoes before sleeping can reduce headache in the morning? There may be a hidden cause that leads to sleep reduction and dementia, no?
- TMWNN 3y agoHow does Monash have an `.edu`? I thought the only non-US institutions with one are the Universities of Toronto and Montreal, for historical reasons.
- khazhoux 3y agoThe biggest bang-for-buck to improve your sleep: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07NMTQM8M https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07NMTQM8M Stick these tubes up your nose (all the way in!) and enjoy free-flowing air passage all night. The first couple of days will be a bit uncomfortable and weird to have these things jammed in there, but you forget about them very quickly, and the huge increase in oxygen intake is amazing. I hate sleeping without them now.
- noname120 3y agoDoes this work even for people who don't snore? No risk of hurting yourself in your sleep if you suddenly move around?
- MetaWhirledPeas 3y agoIt probably advertises to snorers because that's a big draw. In truth it simply makes it easier to breathe through your nose, similar to Breathe Right nose strips. (So yes it can benefit anyone who wants better nose breathing.) Snoring happens farther back in your throat.
- khazhoux 3y agoExactly. It's not about snoring. It just keeps your nostril flared open so it doesn't choke the amount of air that can flow. And, much more comfortable and effective than those sticky strips.
- CSSer 3y agoJokes on you. I've already got a huge schnoz. Seriously though, now I'm wondering if that's doing me any favors.
- khazhoux 3y agoWell, try this simple experiment. Tilt your head 90° and nose-breathe. Now grab your up-facing nostril and pull it wide open. You're probably taking in a lot more air now, with zero resistance. That's what these tubes do.
- riversflow 3y agoSo if anyone here is really desperate to get deep sleep and can’t despite lots of effort, it might be worth looking into Delta sleep inducing peptide(DSIP). My father has fibromyalgia and struggles to get any restorative sleep most nights, I came across DSIP while trying to figure out how to help him. Unfortunately I can’t speak to it’s effectiveness as neither of us can afford DSIP, although it has come down significantly in price in the last several years.
- bob_theslob646 3y agohttps://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/1299794/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/1299794/ I'm not trying to be a sleptic, but that study says that. "As none of the other measures, including subjective sleep quality, showed any change, it was concluded that short-term treatment of chronic insomnia with DSIP is not likely to be of major therapeutic benefit." Maybe I read that wrong ?
- riversflow 3y agoNah, you read that right, thanks for sending me that. However, that study is on people with chronic insomnia. Here is a study[1] saying that it showed benefit for fibromyalgia patients. Both of these studies are tiny tho. [1] https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/6548970/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/6548970/
- xupybd 3y agoHaving recently started treating my sleep apnea the difference is startling. Being able to remember and think like this is unreal. I have no idea how I remained employed for so long in my previous state. Sleep quality is so important.
- nmz 3y agoIs this surprising anyone? If lack of sleep causes a myriad of symptoms like hallucinations, mood swings and etc. Then the opposite would probably true.
- shakil 3y agoHere we go again confusing correlation with causation. The medical field is mired with these: eat less to lose weight, reduce cholesterol to prevent heart attacks, reduce stress to prevent stomach ulcers ... Have they considered people prone to dementia just aren't able to get quality sleep, and both of these are due to some other underlying cause where fixing one doesn't really fix the other?
- rzmmm 3y agoThis kind of prospective study is not perfect but it's what is possible for this type of risk factor and disease. Researchers can't create an RCT study with blinded deep sleep intervention group with placebo and then after 17 years see which got less dementia. The authors avoid the C-word on purpose but it's implied that this kind of study brings more evidence than just association.
- gopher2000 3y agoThe article is literally titled "Association Between Slow-Wave Sleep Loss and Incident Dementia". Association is not causation.
- 3cats-in-a-coat 3y agoOr maybe dementia prevents deep sleep, which is much more logical given many diseases in general disrupt proper sleep. I'm sick of low-quality studies which try to draw causative conclusions from correlative observations (and usually often quite weak ones). Stop writing garbage papers.
- haxiomic 3y agoDoes any one have experience with rapid breathing while sleeping? I've been trying to fix my long-term sleep issues for a while and I often don't get much deep sleep. When I record my sleep through an Apple Watch and breathing microphone, I find my breathing rate goes up, often 25-30 breaths per minute but while awake it's < 20. I can't seem to find anything online that's relevant. It's been this way for the year I've been monitoring, does this happen to anyone else?
- robg 3y agoPeople I know tape their mouths shut to force breathing through the nose. Have you looked at that or done a sleep study for apnea?
- Jeff_Brown 3y agoTwo important questions unaddressed: (1) What is the base risk for dementia? (2) Is this cause or effect?
- Jeff_Brown 3y agoSeparating from my wife has helped my sleep quality tremendously. I say that not to be amusing but to point out that sometimes a biological symptom can have a non-biological root cause.
- darkclouds 3y ago[dead]
- nunez 3y agoi love articles like this because they are quick to tell you how doing this "one sleep hack" will lead to possible health benefits in the future (maybe) but conveniently leave out that how you sleep once you're asleep is 99% out of your control outside of setting a sleep schedule, getting a sleep study to rule out sleep apnea and stimulating sleep with melatonin, all you can do is let your body do its thing