Eat Better, Sleep Better

I just read a great new study on WebMD about food and sleep. In The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, it was found that foods which cause a rise in blood sugar (what is called a high glycemic index) can shorten the time to fall asleep, if eaten about 4 hours before bed. The researchers do not know exactly why this occurred, but the thought is that they raise levels of serotonin and tryptophan.

The study was done in Australia at The University of Sydney, where they studied 12 normal men who were 18-35 years old. The men, who had no sleep problems, spent three nights at the researchers' sleep lab. They took one week off between stays at the lab. These guys would fast for 5 hours and then be given a meal of rice and steamed veggies with a light tomato sauce. Each experimental condition would have a different type of rice -- jasmine (high glycemic index) vs. long grain (lower glycemic index) -- and be given the rice at a different time before bed. The subjects were then timed at how long it took them to fall asleep once in bed.

It was discovered that jasmine rice four hours before bedtime had them falling asleep in nine minutes, on average. The same meal 1 hour before bed had them falling asleep in nearly 15 minutes, on average. The slowest to fall asleep were those who ate the long-grain rice meal four hours before bedtime, taking nearly 18 minutes, on average.

While we do not know why this occurred, it continues to press the point that what we put in our bodies has an effect on how we sleep. Now if they could only figure out that pizza could do the same thing, I would be grateful :-)

(Source: Afaghi, A. The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, February 2007; vol 85: pp 426-430.)

Related Topics:

• The Dream Diet: Losing Weight While You Sleep
• WebMD Video: Kava Concerns

Technorati Tags: Sleep Doctor, insomnia, glycemic index, carbs

Caffeine and Pregnancy

My wife was crazy about watching caffeine while pregnant. Although she was never a big coffee or Diet Coke drinker in the first place, she made sure she had none when pregnant. However, one of our best friends drank Diet Coke throughout her pregnancy, and her doctor thought nothing of it.

There is new evidence to suggest both of us may be correct. From this article in Sleep Review, citing a study mentioned in the January 2007 issue of bmj.com (British Medical Journal):

"The study finds that there is no evidence that moderate levels of caffeine consumption during pregnancy lead to a greater risk of premature births and underweight babies, despite prior warnings from some public health officials."

Prior research was pointing in both directions, so this study was designed to set the record straight.

"Here Danish researchers monitored the pregnancies of 1,207 healthy women who drank more than three cups of coffee a day -- a high caffeine intake -- and who were less than 20 weeks pregnant. This large group was divided randomly into two equal groups who received either caffeinated or decaffeinated coffee.

The final results showed that there was no real difference in either the length of pregnancy or birth weight between the two groups."

However, I would not break out the espresso machines for an afternoon jolt just yet. There is a need for a longitudional study looking at these kids over time to see how they develop.

Related Topics:

• Pre-Pregnancy To-Do List
• Guide to Essential Pregnancy Gear

Technorati Tags: Sleep Doctor, caffeine, pregnancy

High-Carb Meals May Help Induce Sleep

A fascinating new study has come out in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. The authors propose that since carbohydrate intake has been shown to increase the plasma concentration of tryptophan, that high glycemic index meals may help induce sleep.

The authors found that there was a reduction in sleep onset latency (SOL -- the time it takes to fall asleep) by nine minutes in the group that had a high carbohydrate meal four hours before bed time.

In addition, there was no difference between a meal consumed four hours before bedtime and one consumed one hour before bedtime. These data were found only for healthy sleepers -- meaning those who may have insomnia could have different results.

This data follows well with my recommendations for specific foods in the chapter eight of my book. Some of the high gylcemic index foods would be whole wheat and fibers with some type of sweet substance like a jelly, jam or peanut butter.

This does not mean eating an entire apple pie or cheesecake, but rather, eating a small, sensible snack to raise the glycemic index one to four hours before bed. This research shows great promise for future studies with nutrition and sleep.

(Source: American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Vol. 85, No. 2, 426-430, February 2007 © 2007 American Society for Nutrition)

Related Topics:

• Sleep More, Weigh Less
• The Toll of Sleep Loss

Technorati Tags: Sleep Doctor, carbohydrates, glycemic index, insomnia

Fatigue Associated with Needle Sticks

A recent report in Infection Control and Hospital Epidemiology: The Official Journal of the Society of Hospital Epidemiologists of America showed that medical students were 3 times more likely to stick themselves with a needle if they had slept less and worked more hours before the injury. The study protocol indicated that:

"A group of researchers conducted a study of 350 health care workers at five academic medical centers in the United States and Canada. Of the 350 participants, 109 were medical trainees (all were health care workers). The workers completed interviews while being seen at employee healthcare clinics for needlestick injuries and other injuries related to sharp instruments and devices (sharps injuries); they were asked about work patterns, time at risk for injury, and frequency of fatigue." (Source: Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol. 2007 Jan;28(1):10-7. Epub 2006 Dec 28.)

Of course we know this to be true since we also have confirmed that medical errors occur at a significantly higher rate when students, fellows and attending physicians are sleep deprived. My next questions would be:

Has anyone surveyed the patients?? What kind of care are we getting in our hospitals from sleep-deprived health care workers? Never mind the wrong medicines, bad moods, and possible death -- I am talking about real pain here. I wonder how many patients have experienced physical pain based on the carelessness of a sleep-deprived healthcare worker.

Now don't get me wrong, I actually do not think it is their fault. I think that hospital administrations need to be more aware, with better policies allowing those who work shifts to nap, have appropriate time off and limit overtime.

Related Topics:

• Medical Mistakes, Part 1: Prescription Errors
• WebMD Video: Patient Picture IDs Prevent Medical Errors

Technorati Tags: The Sleep Doctor, sleep deprivation, medical mistakes