Sugar Roller-Coaster And Sleep Quality
2 Ways to Sleep Like a Stone
Way1
When it comes to sleeping better, hardly anyone thinks about the sugar roller coaster and its effects on sleep. So, what is a sugar roller coaster in the first place?
To do this, we need to understand (albeit in an oversimplified manner) the function of three hormones:
Cortisol, produced by the adrenal gland
Melatonin, produced by the pineal gland
Insulin produced by the pancreas
Cortisol is a stress hormone. During human evolution, we have developed this mechanism to cope with dangerous situations. When a tiger chases a human, cortisol levels rise and the liver pours lots of sugar into the blood to provide us with energy as quickly as possible so we can run away and survive. Cortisol also has another important job when we sleep, which takes place in an interaction with the hormone melatonin.
Melatonin makes us sleep (although it has other functions too). Under normal and healthy circumstances, when the sun goes down and we turn off the light, melatonin rises and we fall asleep. It regulates our sleep cycle.
Insulin. Every time we eat, we intake by in far more energy than the body needs. Therefore, the pancreas, a gland in our abdominal area, secretes insulin to deliver the cells with sugar and store the surplus sugar as fat.
The Interaction between Cortisol, melatonin, and insulin
Cortisol and melatonin are directly opposed to each other. Meaning cortisol will turn off melatonin and vice-versa.
But cortisol will always have the upper hand because when we have stress, there is no time, no second option that we can postpone. Cortisol helps regulate blood sugar levels, and it does that during the night too. Cortisol is lowest when you go to sleep because you've been eating during the day, so your blood sugar is high and your cortisol is low. It's not needed to produce blood sugar, and because cortisol is low, melatonin can be high and lull you to sleep.
During the night, blood sugar levels drop because you don't eat, and the body now has to generate blood sugar from other sources, and cortisol is the signaling molecule that does that. So cortisol will slowly and gradually rise during the night. By the time you wake up in the morning, it's at its highest because it's been maintaining blood sugar levels during the night. The longer you don't eat, the more cortisol is needed to maintain blood sugar, and by the time you wake up in the morning, cortisol is at its highest, which means it counteracts melatonin the most, so your melatonin level is at its lowest and you wake up. A wonderful system!
Then when you have the opportunity to feed during the day, the cortisol is supposed to decrease. It's supposed to drop during the day until it reaches its lowest level around bedtime, and then the cycle starts all over again. The problem is that in our society we no longer have stable blood sugar. We've introduced too many refined foods, too much sugar, too many carbohydrates, grains and pasta, and all these junks that trigger blood sugar. When our blood sugar is high, we release a lot of insulin, only to have the sugar crash back down, and we eat carbs/sugar again, the blood sugar level shoots up and crashes back down - we create this roller coaster of blood sugar.
Whenever the blood sugar level is too low, it's an emergency. We have a valley called hypoglycemia (low blood sugar). As long as we are able to eat the right things, such as nutrient-rich protein and whole fresh foods in general, our blood sugar will remain stable. Then cortisol shouldn't be an issue during the day.
However, when we cause a roller coaster of blood sugar levels by eating too frequently, we get these episodes of low blood sugar (hypoglycemia) where the body has to release cortisol. The more this happens throughout the day, the more fatigued we become. The adrenal gland, which produces cortisol, is like a horse pulling the plow in the field and it gets really tired producing cortisol almost all the time, and we need to give it some rest, but we have these important things to do, so we just keep whipping the horse until it's completely exhausted.
The same is also true for the pancreas, which is fatigued because it has to produce insulin too often since we eat far too frequently. Every time your sugar levels rise and fall, you need a large amount of insulin, which definitely leads to insulin resistance. My point is how crucial stress management is if you want to avoid developing chronic conditions. And that's exactly what we do to the adrenal glands when we constantly call up cortisol during the day. The more fatigued the adrenals are and the more we demand cortisol during the day, the more irregular our cortisol rhythm will be.
If we have an unstable blood glucose (sugar) level during the day, that blood glucose level really crashes at night! Now the body has to release a burst of cortisol at night, which shuts down melatonin and wakes us up.
Many people wake up in the middle of the night because their blood sugar is out of balance. The other factor, of course, is when cortisol starts to become unregulated. It starts to become very random and haphazard at all times. The long-term solution, of course, is to stabilize blood sugar. Stop eating refined carbohydrates, junk food, processed foods, sugar, grains, pasta, donuts, and all those things, because that's what starts this vicious cycle in the first place.
How to stabilize blood sugar
Eat less frequently. Practice Time Restricted Eating.
Avoid sugar, refined carbs, high fructose corn syrup, and junk foods.
Eat three hours or even longer before bedtime. I have my last bite at 4 p.m.
Eat protein-rich, fresh, and whole foods.
Manage stress.
Way 2
There is a saying that goes like this, "The most valuable and true things in life are the simplest ones that we easily overlook." The most effective method I have discovered for myself to sleep better, and which I believe applies to others as well, is this: Stop thinking. You can. You have the ability and capacity to empty your mind and cease your thinking. Occupy yourself by listening to the silence. It's not only beautiful, it's also powerful. And not only that. It puts you at ease and peace. I always say go where there is health, wealth, love, peace, power, infinite intelligence, and beauty. Where? In pure consciousness. In the silence.
Simply switch off. And then you will realize what an addicted junkie you are. Get into the realm of pure awareness and watch this illusionary, holographic, ephemeral, infinitesimal bit of drama.