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Easy, Drug-free Ways to Get Your ZZZ’s

Metro Detroit sleep gurus share how to get a good night’s rest

By Claire Charlton

Studies show restful sleep means productive days, and with today’s busy schedules, who couldn’t use the boost? Yet 40 million Americans report having chronic problems sleeping, according to the National Sleep Foundation. “The most prevalent complaint about sleep is people aren’t getting enough sleep or good-quality sleep,” says David Calahan, program manager of the Sleep Disorders Center at DMC Harper University Hospital in Detroit, adding that there are more than 80 recognized sleep disorders.

And poor sleep isn’t just annoying; it can be dangerous. A study in the journal Occupational and Environmental Medicine showed that even moderate sleep deprivation translates into decreased cognitive and work performance, with effects of lost sleep similar to those of alcohol intoxication.

If you dream only of enjoying restorative sleep night after night, there are ways to make it a reality. Follow these simple steps, and you’ll be snoozing with ease in no time.

Create your own cloud nine

If your bed is uncomfortable, it only stands to reason you’ll have trouble sleeping soundly. Start by examining your mattress, which will wear out its welcome quicker than you might think. Consider replacing a mattress after 10 years even if it’s not lumpy or saggy, says Helen Eisenhardt of Gorman’s Home Furnishings at Lakeside Mall in Sterling Heights. She advises putting mattresses to the showroom rest-test.

“Try out all the positions you might sleep in, and be sure to bring along your sleep partner,” she says. “Try getting in and out of the bed to see if the height is right for you.”

Your mattress and pillow should maximize spinal support for optimal comfort, says Dan Judge, D.C., a chiropractor with Dynamic Life Chiropractic in Birmingham

“Supporting and maintaining your spine’s natural curvature at night allows your body to handle everyday stress and forces much better,” Judge says.

If you like to sleep on your back, choose a pillow that firmly supports the curve between your shoulders and head, such as the HoMedics Temp-Rite Contour Pillow, ergonomically designed for proper spinal alignment with CoolCore ventilated foam and NASA-developed Outlast Smart Fabric that absorbs and stores excess heat. Or add a rolled towel for extra neck support, and place a pillow under your knees to support your lower spine.

In addition to using a supportive head pillow, side-sleepers should choose a body pillow with enough support to maintain a “neutral” spine position – meaning the spine is in alignment, its curves are supported, and vital organs and airways are unobstructed – or tuck a pillow between the knees to ease the lower back. Positioning a pillow under the arm also can provide support for side sleepers, Judge says.

Join the dark

side Darkness shifts our bodies into a nighttime mode in which slower metabolism, lower body temperature and sleepiness kick in, thanks to a hormone called melatonin.

“But it has to be dark for all that to happen,” says Gary Richardson, M.D., senior research scientist with the Henry Ford Sleep Disorders and Research Center in Detroit. “Light inhibits melatonin secretion.”

If you expose yourself to too much light before bedtime, you might have trouble drifting off. Try turning off the television or the flickering computer, which can send your body signals to wake up when it’s still time to slumber.

Where regular sleep is concerned, light is sometimes good. If you (or a teenager you know) has developed a night-owl habit and can’t get moving when the alarm clock buzzes, delayed sleep phase syndrome might be the culprit, according to Bert Rabinowitz, D.O., medical director of the Botsford Sleep Therapy Clinic in Farmington Hills. An earlier wake-up time and a gradual shift to an earlier bedtime is an effective route to a more normal routine.

Another effective method, according to Rabinowitz, is exposure for 45 minutes each morning to concentrated light at 10,000 lux (a unit of light-intensity measurement equal to the illumination of a surface a little more than a yard away from a single candle); the average light bulb is 3,000 lux.

Various forms of light therapy also can help abolish doldrums related to insufficient sunlight. Some blue light devices, such as Verilux’s TwiLight Mini Ultra Blue Light Therapy Sleep System, are portable and can be plugged in anywhere

“It’s dramatic how it makes you feel without the use of drugs,” says Rabinowitz.

Make it melatonin

Because melatonin is necessary for a good night’s sleep, more products containing the hormone are popping up on store shelves. But will a melatonin supplement relieve sleep issues?

“The evidence isn’t very encouraging,” says Henry Ford’s Richardson. “Formal studies for the treatment of insomnia have shown that [supplemented] melatonin is no benefit. It’s argued that if we make enough on our own, that additional melatonin adds nothing.”

Yet for those who take medications that decrease melatonin, such as blood pressure medications and even over-the-counter pain medications, it is possible that some individuals may benefit from supplementation, adds Richardson.

“The trouble is, melatonin is in the ‘nutraceutical’ category, which is excluded from FDA oversight,” he says, emphasizing that this doesn’t mean the drugs don’t work, but that no organized effort has been undertaken to determine their safety.

A 2005 study in the Journal of Biological Rhythms suggests that although more research is needed, melatonin supplements might show promise for treating circadian rhythm disorders and, when appropriately timed, can effectively reset the biological clock, lower body temperature, and induce sleepiness.

Newer products on the market include NutraMist Sleep Now, a fast-acting, nonaddictive oral spray that contains melatonin and valerian (a perennial plant used as a medicinal herb), and Avon’s chocolate-mintflavored Sleep Melatonin Strips.

Cool it down

A cool, comfortable bedroom temperature can keep you snoozing all night long, says Thomas Gravelyn, M.D., co-director of the Michigan Multispecialty Physicians sleep lab at St. Joseph Mercy Health System in Ann Arbor

“Cooler is usually better. Your cooler body slows down your heart rate and respiration during sleep,” Gravelyn says. “If you are overheated, it tends to be disruptive to your sleep.”

Women going through menopause need help keeping cool, too, as hot flashes tend to induce wakefulness. Choosing night attire that wicks away moisture will keep you cooler, says Lisa Nelson, owner of Hush Intimate Apparel in Brighton. If you’re feeling steamy at night, try a cooling pillow, which absorbs heat when you’re warm and releases it when you’re cool.

The same-ol’, same ol’

Sleep experts agree that good “sleep hygiene” is important to consistent, restful sleep. This means a regular routine that helps you fall into a sleepy “state of mind” each night.

“Establish a comfortable pattern where you begin to quiet yourself down through reading, aromatherapy, relaxing and getting the stress out of the day,” says Gravelyn.

That routine shouldn’t include consumption of caffeine, tobacco, alcohol or heavy meals late in the day, or drinking quantities of fluids shortly before bed. Watching TV or catching up on paperwork in bed is a bad idea, too, says Harper Hospital’s Calahan. Stick to a consistent sleep-wake schedule throughout the week, and your trips to the land of nod should become swift and predictable.

ARE OTC SLEEP AIDS TOO MUCH OF A GOOD THING?

Everyone experiences insomnia at some point in life. So what’s the harm in popping a pill when sleep just won’t come?

That depends on how you want to feel tomorrow, says Gary Richardson, M.D., senior research scientist with the Henry Ford Sleep Disorders and Research Center in Detroit.

“The most common active compound in over-the-counter [OTC] hypnotic drugs is an antihistamine called diphenhydramine [the active ingredient in Benadryl], which is generally regarded as safe,” says Richardson. “The problem is, it doesn’t stop working when it should. If it’s still sedating you when you pull onto I-94 the next morning, that’s a problem.”

The typical patient taking a drug such as Tylenol PM, which contains diphenhydramine, will experience some impairment the following day, says Richardson.

“In our view, OTC remedies should be seen only as a stop-gap measure until something more can be done for better sleep.”
– Claire Charlton