Transcription:

Melanie Cole (Host):  Adults need nine hours of sleep. How much sleep are you really getting? Toddlers, grade schoolers, twins, and teenagers need even more sleep than that. How much are they really getting in this day and age of cell phones and electronics? Are we losing that good quality sleep that we need so badly? My guest is Dr. Vijay Vanumu. He is board-certified and family medicine physician practicing at Allina Health Oakdale clinic. Welcome to the show, Dr. Vanumu. Tell us why sleep is so important to our overall health.

Dr. Vijay Vanumu (Guest):  Thank you for having me on the show, Melanie. Well, sleep is pretty essential for the overall quality of life. We need it to look, feel, perform on a daily basis. Just even having lack of sleep has been linked to so many medical conditions, even heart disease, diabetes, kidney disease, high blood pressure. So, it’s pretty important overall. Even in children, you need it for their growth, their puberty, their fertility even. It’s the time where growth hormone is released the most and boosts muscle mass and repair skin cells and even for our immunity. It’s the one big reason why we always advise a good rest when we’re all fighting the common colds or infections.

Melanie:  What are our bodies doing while we sleep? Is this a passive event or are they really busy repairing, growing, healing?

Dr. Vanumu:  For sure. This is definitely not a passive event. We’re talking about a dynamic process. Really it’s a period of restoration. This is when our muscles are repairing itself, tissue growth is happening and, most importantly, involved in memory function. This is where the steps in learning are made solid and stronger and you’re making neuro connections that form these memories, so consolidation is really big. It’s also involved in what I mentioned, a lot of the hormones controlling your growth and appetite, to mention a few.

Melanie:  People have heard about REM sleep. Give us a quick synopsis, if you would, just a little tidbit about what that even means. 

Dr. Vanumu:  Sure. Physiologically, these are the cycles that are happening during sleep. Most people have probably heard about REM, which is rapid eye movement, and NREM, which is non-rapid eye movement. Majority of our sleep is actually NREM, which is the non-rapid eye movement. It goes through four stages: Stage 1 just being that light sleep, you’re just falling into it. In Stage 2, the body temperature drops a little bit, you start becoming a little bit more disengaged from your surroundings, and at this point, your heart rate and breathing are still regular. Then Stages 3 and 4 are the deepest and most restorative sleep. This is actually where your blood pressure starts dropping, you start breathing a little bit slower, and your muscles get a little bit more relaxed. You can imagine this would be the best time for your body to allocate resources for energizing the body. This is actually where blood supply is increased to your muscles and used for tissue growth and repair and hormones are released at the same time. Then you have the rapid eye movement, which is about 25 percent of your night. This is recognized as where dreams start happening and the brain is a little bit more active, your body immobile and a little bit more relaxed. So, there’s a whole lot going on during sleep. It’s absolutely nowhere near a passive event. 

Melanie:  Children need a lot of sleep, but in this day and age, Dr. Vanumu, they are not getting enough. I’d like to jump right to the fact of some tips that you can give parents listening on getting their children, their toddlers, their twins, and then of course, their teens, to get a better night sleep. 

Dr. Vanumu:  Absolutely. This has become a pretty big issue recently. My big tip is you have to establish a system. In this day and age of screens, you have to cut down on screen time. We’re talking about video games, iPads, TV, cellphones, those few hours before bed time. Research has actually found that the wavelength of light emitted from the screens actually depresses your melatonin levels, which we need to start our sleep cycle. Pretty much just half an hour of TV before bed can keep your child up almost an extra two hours. You have to establish a relaxing and consistent bedtime routine so if it’s reading your child’s favorite book, go ahead and do that. Something familiar, nothing scary. If there are bedtime sleep fears and reassurance doesn’t work, you can go ahead and get those special toys for protection: a flashlight, a toy, an air freshener as like sort of a monster spray or something like that. For little ones, I’d probably say try to avoid singing or rocking your child to sleep. You might find these repetitive behaviors that you do every night in the middle of the night, so you have to try to phase this behavior out. Use transitional object, stuffed animals or favorite blanket. Keeping the room a bit cooler can also help promote a deep sleep. The biggest one is over-scheduling. A lot of children these days have a lot of extracurricular activities after school: sports, music, karate. You have to recognize that the later these activities run, the later their schedules run as well to finish chores at home or homework, and eventually a late bedtime. Lastly, actually look out for sleep disorders. Sometimes even after our best efforts, some children have genuine sleep disorders, such as night terrors and nightmares, something you have to get your child’s doctor involved in.

Melanie:  Now, adults are suffering from insomnia all over the country. We are so worried about money, finances. We’re so dialed in to electronics. Give us your best advice on sleep hygiene for adults. And does a glass of wine before bed help you fall asleep or hinder your falling asleep?

Dr. Vanumu:  Well, the rule of thumb is no caffeine, no nicotine, and no alcohol before bedtime. You have to keep in mind that even chocolate has a little bit of caffeine in it as well. These are all things that can affect your sleep. When you are talking about sleep hygiene, you’re talking about establishing good sleeping habits pretty much, maintaining a regular sleep schedule. Sleep at the same time; get up at the same time – even on weekends. Sleeping-in sort of resets your sleep cycle and makes it that much harder to wake up early morning. Sleep only as much as you need to get de-stressed. Don’t smoke, especially in the evenings. If you can avoid, use your bed only for sleeping and intimate moments. You shouldn’t read in bed, no TV, music, laptops, as I mentioned earlier. Even exercising daily about five to six hours prior to bedtime can help. Avoid naps during the day. Finally, stay away from large meals close to bedtime. These sort of contribute to a good sleeping pattern and habits.

Melanie:  In just the last minute, Dr. Vanumu, please give your best advice on when people should go to a doctor if they think that they are suffering from sleep disorders.

Dr. Vanumu:  Sure. We’re talking about all these points that I’ve mentioned about sleep hygiene. You incorporate all these points. Keep in mind stress can be a big thing. As you mentioned, stress at home, work, financial, these are all things you should look for and these are all things that if they affect your daily activities and your daily life and how the rest of your day goes, this would be definitely time to go and see your doctor about even non-medication and medication that you might need to use. 

Melanie:  It’s great information about the true importance of a good night sleep and if you are experiencing any of these red flags that Dr. Vanumu has pointed out, then be sure and visit your local doctor and get great information about the ways to get your best night sleep.

You are listening to the WELLcast with Allina Health. For more information, you can go to allinahealth.org. That’s allinahealth.org. This is Melanie Cole. Thanks so much for listening and have a great day.