Ingredients

1 tbsp almond butter

1 cup low fat or soy milk

1 banana

1 tbsp sesame seeds (optional)

Almond butter is high in protein and will stop midnight munchies.

Bananas have a high magnesium content to help muscles relax after a hard day’s work.

Skimmed milk helps the brain use sleep-inducing tryptophan to produce melatonin, which regulates your sleep cycle.

Sesame seeds are rich in tryptophan too.

The cool thing about cherries is they are plentiful in melatonin. The best, most melatonin rich cherries are Montmorency, which are tart and yummy. I highly recommend eating a small bowl of cherries after dinner as a cool, refreshing, non-fattening desert. Here are 5 more ways to enjoy cherries this summer:

1. Add dried cherries to your cereal in the morning.

2. Add dried cherries to tossed salads.

3. Make cherry muffins instead of blueberry muffins.  My kids love them!

4. Add frozen cherries to smoothies. Try our delicious Cherry Mango Smoothie tonight!

5. Drink cherry juice as you recover from a workout.

Aromatherapy oils can help relax you, especially when added to a very warm bath at bedtime.  Here are my favorites (in alphabetical order):

Basil:  supposed to naturally calm the nervous system
Chamomile: very calming, a great idea if you have GERD or indigestion
Clary sage:  it’s like a sedative.  You shouldn’t use if consuming alcohol.
Lavender:  soothing and eases aches and pains that lead to insomnia.
Marjoram: Sedative that should be used sparingly.  It can leave you feeling groggy the next day.

You should add just a few drops to your warm bath.  Relax for about 20 minutes in the tub.  Get into bed immediately.  No TV.  Read a book if you want.  Good night!

1.  Log important events from your day.  We all have stress–work, kids, finances.   It’s amazing how stressful situations from the day sneak into our minds when we try to fall asleep.  Instead of mulling over these issues, try writing about the big stuff an hour or two before bed.  Getting the thoughts out of your mind and on paper (or a computer screen) will help you calm down when it’s time for bed.

2.  Stay cool.  It’s easier to fall asleep when your room is about 65 to 67 degrees.  Air conditioning can be expensive, especially in these bad economic times, so some other options include installing a ceiling fan (cheap to use), buying moisture-wicking sheets and breathable pajamas.

3.  Prepare your body for sleep.  Get into bed, lie down on your back.  Curl your toes for a count of 5, then release.  Do this 5 times.  Continue with various body parts (glutes, abs, chest, fingers) all the way up to your neck.  Your body will relax with this self-massage technique.

4.  No noise.  Trains, Canadian geese, snoring husbands or whatever other noises keep you awake can be drowned out with ear plugs or, if you are into music, relaxing, sleep-friendly music.  ITunes (music–>new age–>music for deep sleep) has lots of relaxing music or nature sounds to help you fall asleep.  

Give these tips a try for a couple of weeks.  Let us know how it goes.

1. 1. Daytime sleepiness.  Kids should have a lot of energy during the day.  A loss of energy, which may stem from poor sleep, can lead to physical and learning problems.
   2. Bed Wetting.  Children who don’t sleep well sometimes don’t have the neural response triggers to wake up when their bladders are full.
   3. Snoring may be a symptom of sleep apnea.  This shoud be checked immediately by a doctor. 
   4. Sleep Walking.  Your child may be over tired, but his or her brain is still wide awake.  Don’t wake sleep walking children!  Get them back to bed and talk about it with your doctor.
   5. Nightmares are caused by stress and lack of sleep.  Thrashing, sitting up, screaming while sleeping are obvious signs that your child isn’t getting a good sleep.
   6. Poor grades and bad learning attitude are sometimes caused by a sleep disorder.   Most children need a steady sleep pattern to be most effective in school.
   7. Aggression.  Is your child becoming more physical with siblings, friends, even you?  If so, it can be a symptom of poor sleep.

Let us know if your child has these  symptoms or perhaps others.

1.  WellBaskets.com has a great gift basket for the man in your life who suffers from sleeplessness.  Their insomnia basket is a combination of sleep-inducing foods and Healthful Sleep guided imagery CD.  Some of the items in their gift basket include:  Superseedz Pumpkin Seeds, Cherry De-Lites Dried Cherries,  Healthful Sleep CD, Food Guide for Insomnia Relief and so much more!

WellBaskets.com also features other baskets by Health Condition/Concern (e.g., Stress, Relaxation, Stop Smoking, etc). Each basket is handmade with quality and care.

2. Red Envelops Terry Cloth Robe. Made of 100% cotton, this mid-calf-length robe is as soft and plush as those offered at five-star hotels.  Pamper the man in your life with this luxurious bath robe.  You can also monogram the robe with his initials!

3. If he loves to read and can’t sleep at night, buy him an Amazon Kindle.  The Kindle will satisfy his love of reading. Plus, the Kindle will house all his books (which means no more clutter on your night stand table)!

4.Write a letter to your husband.  This present is truly priceless. In a time where consumers are inundated and over connected with emails, instant messaging, Twitter, Facebook and cellphones, a handwritten letter is invaluable. Tell him how much you love him (not only as a husband, but as a father to your children).  The letter should show your appreciation of his patience, his love and his kindness.  Remind him why he is so special to you and your children (of how he breathes life into your family).

]]> http://www.sleepbettertips.com/featured/4-great-fathers-day-gifts-for-the-insomniac/feed 0 http://www.sleepbettertips.com/sleep-center/middle-of-the-night-insomnia-affects-35-of-american-adults http://www.sleepbettertips.com/sleep-center/middle-of-the-night-insomnia-affects-35-of-american-adults#comments Fri, 15 May 2009 16:49:31 +0000 HealthyButSleepy http://www.sleepbettertips.com/?p=1202 While insomnia affects over 65 million Americans, one recent poll reported that approximately 35% of Americans over 18 wake up in the middle of the night at least three times per week. This type of insomnia: Middle-of-the-night insomnia, also known as nocturnal awakenings, is many times caused by physical pain, stress, anxiety, noise, and recurring dreams. One study reports that undiagnosed GERD is the cause.
Over 40% of Americans suffering from middle-of-the-night insomnia report difficulty in getting back to sleep. Even worse, 90% of people say it is a chronic condition.
Sleep medication like Lunesta, Sonata, or Ambien can stop insomnia, but usually requires 6-8 hours of sleep. So, waking at 3 am usually does not provide enough time to take one of the prescription sleep medications.
Chronic nocturnal awakenings might be reason enough to invest in a professional sleep diagnosis from a certified sleep medicine practitioner. Sleep Centers have become more prominent over the last 10 years, and now require specific credentials as do physicians claiming to specialize in sleep disorders.

Another option is FitBit, a new sleep measurement device, coming to market this month:  The FitBit, which you wear while sleeping, logs data on your computer, so your medical professional can determine the best protocol — prescription sleep aids, natural remedies, or a sleep center.

Middle-of-the-night insomnia is many times caused by noise.  If you think that noise might be the issue, then consider buying disposable ear plugs to reduce decibel levels from planes, trains, automobiles, kids, birds, etc…

Sleep time: The average French person sleeps for eight hours and 50 minutes every day.  According to the National Sleep Foudnation, Americans spend 6 hours 4o minutes sleeping; that’s over a 2 hour difference between the quantity of sleep for the French and Americans.  What’s even more fascinating is that the US ranks as the second highest in hours attributed to sleep.

Eating time: Americans spend around an hour and a quarter eating every day, slightly more than only Canadians and Mexicans but less than half the eating time spent by the French. Despite this limited time spent eating, the US obesity rates are the highest in the OECD.

I guess the conclusion is that the French know how to live well! We Americans should spend an extra two hours in bed tonight

Sources: http://www.oecd.org/document/24/0,3343,en_2649_34637_2671576_1_1_1_1,00.html

Ingredients:

1 banana cut-up in small pieces
1 cup milk
2 tablespoons of  peanut butter (optional)
1/4 cup of almonds (optional)

Directions:

• Put milk in sauce pan and warm on low heat.
• Blend warm milk, cut-up banana, and optional peanut butter and/or almonds.  Consistency should be light and airy.  If not, then add another 1/4 cup of milk.

This warm, delicious drink has just the right amount of tryptophan and carbs to help you fall asleep.

I have been considering sleep medications after talking with my doctor. He said that Ambien or Lunesta will help me fall asleep. Maybe so, but I don’t want to become addicted to sleep medication.

After talking with a good friend who is a certified nutritionist, it’s clear that I have to eat specific foods and vitamins to better regulate my seratonin levels. 

You probably know that seratonin helps us fall asleep.  Seratonin is created in our bodies from other enzymes that we ingest.   Eating foods with Tryptophan (like Turkey) usually increases seratonin levels.  That’s why we are so tired after Thanksgiving Dinner!   Tryptophan is an amino acid that creates serotonin in the body.

The key to making seratonin in the body (according to the nutritionist) is increasing intake of vitamin B6.  This vitamin actually breaks down the tryptophan in our bodies and turns it into seratonin.  

Yes, vitamin B6 plus tryptophan equals sleep.  Lots of foods that are high in tryptophan also have significant amounts of vitamin B6.  You should try these foods to sleep better tonight:

• Yellow Fin Tuna
• Roasted Chicken Breast
• Calf’s Liver
• Roasted Turkey
• Salmon
• Cod
• Snapper
• Beef Tenderloin
• Halibut

All of these foods contain at least 25% of the daily value recommended by the FDA.  Healthy too!