insomnia

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Can Sleep Help You Deal With Sugar Cravings?

Are you craving sweets, and carbs, and stodge, and more…?
Could A Lack of Quality Sleep Cause These Cravings?|
4 Steps to Revamp Your Sleep Patterns & Turn Your Eating Habits Around

Helen Chow, ND

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Do you suffer from sweet cravings? Does this mess up your life? Do these cravings deter you from concentrating on other important things in your life to the exclusion of everything else?
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…. And so you give in to things you know aren’t too good for your health? That is, until you cave in and feed this demon, so it goes away?

Well, perhaps what you really need may just be a good, quality night’s sleep. Research has unearthed evidence that a lack of deep REM (Rapid Eye Movement) sleep leads to weight gain. The reason for this is rooted in our ancestral prehistoric forefathers’ DNA.
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How so? In prehistoric times, one didn’t get one’s food in supermarkets or at restaurants on demand. Our forefathers had to hunt or forage for food. There were times when they had to go without when they didn’t find food.
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So in times of plenty, our forefathers would gorge themselves…in preparation for those times when there would be lack, much like saving up for a rainy day. And there were times aplenty when there was lack, or FEAR of lack because this meant death; our forefathers’ very survival was at stake – this was a question of life or death, no small matter!
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Fast forward to our 21st century life today. We may have GrabFood or PandaFood Home Delivery Service by just clicking an app on our smart phone.
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However, where food is concerned, our brain cells may still be behaving like those of our prehistoric forefathers’. These brain cells of the 21st century may not have yet caught up.
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And today, it is a fact that insomnia and sleeplessness are associated with sugar and unhealthy food cravings and increased appetite and weight gain.

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It is our prehistoric brain cells (perhaps yours haven’t caught up with the 21st century yet) still steeped in fear of times of lack of food, when our very survival would be at stake.
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When our sleep is disturbed and unrestful, those parts of our brain which control decision-making subconsciously flip back to memories of prehistoric times; hence we find it near to impossible to avoid sugary foods and treats or to turn to healthier food choices. Sensible reasoning is not in charge, prehistoric survival brain cells are!
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Insomnia and sleep deprivation increase primal drives. Stodge, linked to survival, becomes a big focus to the exclusion of all sensible food choices.

Sugar and stodge cravings lead to disturbed sleep and insomnia and vice versa. It is much like a dog chasing its own tail. Or, does the chicken come before the egg or vice versa? A recent study confirmed this. Cravings for foods in sleep-deprived people much resembled those of drug addicts for marijuana.

The sugar/stodge craving problem is further compounded when the afflicted individual is food shopping. Sleep-deprived men were found to go on foodshopping sprees more than their counterparts who slept well at night.
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Well-rested individuals generally have healthier eating habits. People who sleep well in general have less stress in their lives, hence better sleep hours. Less stress would lead to less binge eating, food cravings and bad food choices.

Reduce Stress In Order to Sleep Well In Order to Eat Well!
Sugar / Stodge Cravings may diminish with reduced stress and restful sleep.
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Take heart. It is indeed very possible to reduce your stress through meditation. This, in turn, will help you sleep better at night. The welcome results are a reduction in sugar cravings and a desire to eat real, healthy food.
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Follow our 4 tips below to revamp your sleeping habits and turn your food choices around:
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1. Make A Commitment to Look Forward to Sleep

   Make deep, restful sleep every night one of your top priorities. Use natural remedies and natural sleep solutions to help prepare you for a restful night. Meditation is one of the best ways to wind down, relieve stress and leave the challenges of your day behind.
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   Prepare yourself for sleep. Start winding down at least one hour before your chosen sleep time. Stop using your computer or smart phone. These keep your brain active, which is what you do not want.
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   Write down all the things you need to do the next day. By doing so, you are distancing yourself from them and not worry, or be concerned about them, for the next 8 to 10 hours.
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   Aim for 8 hours of quality sleep time. Doing so, will allow you to obtain a minimum of 7 hours plus 1 hour for fall-asleep and wake-up times. You may want to set an alarm to alert you when your wind-down time before going to bed starts.

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2. Make Your Sleep Habit An Important Consistent Routine
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   Your body follows your mind. You need to train it. Make it obey your mind. Choose the best time for you to go to bed. Then execute it.
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   At the scheduled time, go to bed, even if you are not sleepy. With repetition and consistency, your body will give in and obey. Wake up at the same time each morning.
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   Go through the same bedtime routine every night. Consistency and repetition are the names of a successful sleep campaign.
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3. Make Darkness Your Sleep Environment.
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   Light will interfere with your sleep. Yes, even the tiniest bit of light. It will signal to your brain that is is daylight, and time to be waking and getting up. In prehistoric times, there were no light bulbs. Any light meant it was daytime and time to start foraging or hunting for food.
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   You may say that you will wear eye shields to sleep. But did you know that your skin can detect light, too? So unless you sleep under a very thick cover, head to toe, you would do well to keep your bedroom pitch black.
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   Turn off all night lights, remove all blue lights including those from all your smart gadgets. It is a very bad idea to have your television in your bedroom. All these will interfere with your sleep. You may not know it, but your body and mind will.
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4. Make Regularity and Health Your Eating Habits
   

   

   Plan to eat well, and eat at regular intervals. Your body will follow where you mind leads it, so plan well.
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   It is also important to remember that when you are hungry or tired, you will eat whatever is to hand, and that is not a very good idea!
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Wean yourself slowly off sugary foods. The first step is adopting healthy sleep habits as suggested in this article. Then plan to adopt healthy eating habits. With persistence and determination, you will surely win the game!
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Remember: Lack of quality sleep and lots of sugar in your diet are two main culprits of degenerative diseases including cancer and strokes and cardiovascular problems.
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Helen Chow, ND

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