jim mcingvale on the importance of sleep

Sleep

Jim “Mattress Mack” McIngvaleGallery Furniture

-William Shakespeare

“ O sleep, O gentle sleep, Nature’s soft nurse. How have I frightened thee, That thou no more

will weigh my eyelids down…”

Henry IV, Part II

Act III, sc. 1(1596-1599)

Egyptian Bed(Raised, No Mattress)

Roman Bed(Padding & Covers)

Chinese Wedding Bed(Haven)

The History of Sleep

Spring Coil Mattress(Support, Distribution)

Egyptian Bed(Raised, No Mattress)

Modern Water/Air Filled(Pressure Point Relief)

How much sleepdo you get?

The Importance of Sleep

“If you are an average person, 36% of your life will be spent…entirely asleep...

what that [time] is telling us, is that sleep–at some level–is important.”-Russel G. Foster, FRS,

University of Oxford

or 32 years of your 90 year lifeThat’s 4.32 months per year

What’s going on withthis sleep thing?

“…the single most important behavioral experience that we have...”-Russell G. Foster, FRS

University of Oxford

The Importance of Sleep

For“Enjoy the honey-heavy dew of slumber.”

–Shakespeare (Julius Caesar)

“O sleep, O gentle sleep, Nature’s soft nurse. How have I frightened thee…”

–Shakespeare (Henry IV)

“Sleep is that golden chain that ties health and our bodies together.”

–Thomas Dekker

Against“Sleep is a criminal waste of time, and a heritage from our cave days!”

–Thomas Edison

“Sleep is for wimps.”

–Margaret Thatcher

“Money never sleeps.”–Gordon Gekko

Wall Street by Oliver Stone & Stanley Weiser

16-17th Century 20th Century

Took Naps

Took Naps

What happens during

sleep?

One Example:

All mental events enter

hippocampus.

Sleep transfers information to

the cerebral cortex

and forms new connections

of facts & concepts

called memory traces.

Hippocampus

Temporal lobe

Prefrontalcortex

The Importance of Sleep

The Importance of Sleep

According to your brain waves…

We cycle through 4 stages of Non-”Rapid Eye Movement” (NREM) sleep:Restores cells, muscles, organs, bones, the immune system and cements memories.

Followed by 1 stage of Rapid Eye Movement (REM) sleep:Restores us mentally - presumably by sorting memory and “making space” in the brain to begin recording again. This is when we dream.

After each cycle, we do not go as deeply into NREM stages as before – instead we increase the length of REM sleep.

sleep spindles

Stage 4

Stage 1

Stage 2

Stage 3

Awake

Midnight 2am1am 3am 4am 5am 8am6am 7am

8.5 hours; REM = 2+ hrs6 hours; REM = .8- hrs

18mREM

30mREM

60mREM

9mREMSleep

Onset

Recommended Length of Sleep

Restoration of the Physical Restoration of the Mental

Mental RestorationBegins

AverageWakingTime

Recommended Length of Sleep

You NEED 7½ - 9 hours of sleep.

Not a range – you need a set number,determined by genes.

Adolescents need 9.25 hours on AVERAGE (some more/less)

The Sleep Deprivation

Crisis

Sleep Deprivation Crisis

75% have sleep problems each week

71% do not sleep 7.5-8.5 hours

Most overestimate their sleep by 47 mins

33% said they fell asleep at work

20% of students fall asleep in class

Consequences of Sleep DeprivationYou crave junk food

Increased hunger, less satisfaction:

• Increases hunger hormone ghrelin

• Decreases fullness hormone leptin

• Result: Body craves high fats and carbs

A separate John Hopkins Bloomberg study showed marked increases in obesity as women slept less.

Consequences of Sleep Deprivation

“ People who sleep less than 6 hours each night

lower their resistance to viral infection by 50%. ”

-Dr. Jan Born, University of Luebeck, Germany

You get sick

Consequences of Sleep DeprivationYou stay stressed

• Stress hormone cortisol spikes with less sleep, and at the worst times – in the late afternoon & evening when you’re trying to relax.

Result:

Heart rate, blood pressure, and blood sugar levels increase – along with chances of hypertension, heart disease, and type 2 diabetes.

“ …increased cortisol levels may slow collagen production, promoting wrinkles…”

-Dr. Jyotsna Sahni, MD, Sleep Medicine

You look older

Consequences of Sleep Deprivation

“Beauty Sleep” Confirmed!

• The body cools in preparation for sleep• brings blood closer to the skin (cheeks

flushing) • nourishes skin cells and cleans them of

free-radicals

• During NREM stages 3 & 4:Growth hormone somatotropin

(men), estrogen (women) is increased - stimulates collagen formation

• Cell division peaks at 2am (new cells)

Even worse: If you stay awake, cell division still peaks – but without the growth hormone.

You look younger

Consequences of Sleep Deprivation

“ With just six days of limited sleep, the body develops a resistance to insulin – the hormone used to transport glucose throughout the body. ”

(study by University of Chicago)

You can’t process sugar correctly

DIABETES TYPE I I

Consequences of Sleep Deprivation

• Increased colorectal polyps

(American Cancer Society)

• Cancels out effectiveness of preventative exercise

(John Hopkins Bloomberg)

• More research growing

You get cancer

Consequences of Sleep Deprivation

“In terms of your ability to drive a car, 1 drink on 6 hours of sleep is equivalent to 6 drinks on 8 hours of sleep.

”-Dr. James B. Maas

You die

Consequences of Sleep Deprivation • Obesity

• increased ghrelin (hunger hormone) craves fats and carbs

• Hypertension (Heart Attacks & Strokes)• Diabetes Type II (Glucose Intolerance)

• increased insulin resistance

• Periodontal Disease• Depression• Loss of Memory & Ability to Retain New Information• Cancer

• Increased colorectal polyps (& more research growing)

Signs of Sleep Deprivation

1. Does a heavy meal, low dose of alcohol, warm room, boring meeting or lecture make you drowsy?

2. Do you fall asleep instantly at night?

3. Do you need an alarm clock to wake up?

4. Do you repeatedly hit the snooze button?

5. Do you sleep extra hours on weekends?

6. People tell you – “You look tired.”

Sleep deprivation costs the U.S.

$ 66,000,000,000 per year Lost productivity, illness, accidents, loss of

life

How to Sleep Better

“ [Sleep] doesn’t arise from a single structure within the brain, but is – to some extent – a

network property. ”-Russell G. Foster, FRS

(University of Oxford)

I. A Bedtime Bedroom

DARK – can’t see the pillow you dropped

I. A Bedtime Bedroom

COOL• Ideal sleep temperature

is65-70F

• Use breathable sheets

I. A Bedtime Bedroom

COMFY

Things that make you toss and turn:

• Spinal Alignment (sleep posture)

• Pressure Points (circulation)

• Heat Zones

• Cold Zones

• Pain

Solution: Great Mattress & Pillow

I. A Bedtime BedroomQUIET

• Much of your sleep is “light sleep” when you are extremely susceptible to external stimuli

• Use white noise (random) or pink noise (lower random) to help you fall asleep (and drown out other noises)

Examples:• Radio between stations• Fan (Hint: also helps with

heat)

I. A Bedtime Bedroom

No PETS• They wake you up at

night• They wake you too early

Cool

The ideal temperature for sleep is

65-70 degrees

Quiet

Create white or pink noise (FM) to help

you fall asleep

Dark

Light delays the onset of

melatonin

(specialized receptors in

retina)

Comfy

Find the right mattress and pillow

I. A Bedtime Bedroom

II. Digestion Disturbances

Night-time No-No’s:

• Alcohol• Caffeine (includes Chocolate)

• Spicy Foods• Dairy (includes Cheese, Yogurt)

• High Protein Meats• Processed Foods or

MSGs• Garlic

II. Digestion Disturbances

• Fiber / Whole Grains • Crackers• Sparkling Water• Bananas / Apples• Dried Fruit / Nuts• Peanut / Almond Butter• Hummus with Veggies • Cereals / Oats

II. Digestion DisturbancesEat to Win:

III. Restful Rituals

III. Restful RitualsLimit exposure to light, screens, and devices 1 hour before bed

• Take a shower(Raises core temp, cooling = drowsy)

• Read(Limits movement)

• Prayer / Meditation / Relaxation

• Easy Stretching / Yoga(Eases stress, helps heal muscles)

• “Worry Time”• (write down & leave on

dresser)• Soft Music (before bedroom)

Once in bed, don’t get up again.

The bed is only for sleep or sex.

What do you do during your afternoon swoon?

What do you do during your afternoon swoon?

There is a whole industry

IV. Napping NewsThe “Power” Nap (10-20 mins)

• More Alert

• More Energy

• Easy to Wake

The Hour Nap (60 mins)

• Power Nap benefits, plus…

• Improved Memory

• Rejuvenates the body

• Downside: Groggy

The Artist’s Nap (90 mins)

• 1 Full cycle of REM + NREM sleep

• Hour Nap benefits, plus…

• Improved muscle memory

• Improved creativity & problem solving

• Easy to wake

• Downside: Time

-Wall Street Journal

The Benefits of Proper

Sleep

The Benefits of Proper Sleep• More energy• Increased creativity &

problem solving• Increased concentration• Better decision making• Improved mood • Increased social skills• Improved immune system &

metabolism• Improved weight loss• Improved muscle memory• Improved memory retention• Much, much more

Dr. James B. Maas

•What’s your daily routine?•How much sleep do you get?•Do you have a regular sleep/wake schedule?•How do you stay awake in school?•Follow strategies in my sleep book•No early morning exercise•Get 9.25 hours sleep nightly•Establish a regular sleep/wake schedule•Cut out caffeine

Dr. Maas & the Teenage Ice Skater

NREM Stage 2

(NEED MORE)

K-Complex• Happen spontaneously, or in response to stimuli

• Seems to protect sleep by telling the brain “ignore that”

• Seems to aid memory consolidation

Dr. Maas & the Teenage Ice Skater

NREM Stage 2

(NEED MORE)

Sleep Spindles• Brain seems to explore which

neurons control which specific muscles (infants)

• Aids integration of new information into existing knowledge including muscle memory and forgetting erroneous or needless information

Sarah Hughes

Written off by the figure skating communityfor not attending early morning practices…

…took home the Women’s Olympic Gold Medal

Sleep betterand get the performance

you just DREAM about

TODAY!