Health Sleep: By Dr. Carol L. Roberts, MD
What to Do When You Can’t
S 8
“The prime cause of insomnia in my patients is hormone
deficiencies and
imbalances. Low thyroid function can keep you
awake at night and exhausted during the day.” —Dr. Carol L. Roberts, MD
leep disturbances are a normal part of a normal life. We all have bad nights once in a while, but
when sleep becomes an elusive goal most nights, when we lie in bed staring at the ceiling half the night, when we wake too early or fall asleep too late, our body suffers. So often, and especially later in life, the biggest health complaint patients have is lack of sleep. As we age, we are told, “Oh you don’t need as much sleep at your age!” If that were true, why do we fall asleep in the chair watching TV, or nearly crash the car because we can barely keep our eyes open? This is not normal, at any age.
Causes of Sleeplessness Some of the reasons we don’t sleep are easy to fix. Eating too late at night can give us heartburn—the fix is obvious. Alcohol will make us sleepy, but also tends to wake us during the night when it wears off—don’t drink most nights. Time in front of television screens, computers, or even our mobile devices can disrupt our sleep. Put away your phone and turn off the TV late at night—these remedies are all within our capacity to implement without needing a doctor. Inactivity can be a source of restlessness as
well. The body needs movement. People who live in their heads, thinking too much and not using their bodies in a healthy way, will have a tough time shutting off that busy mind at night. The best remedy is an enjoyable activity that gets you huffing and sweating—a least a little bit! The ac- tivity doesn’t have to be bone-crunching exercise; it could be a half hour of dancing or pickle ball or whatever brings you pleasure, earlier in the day. It’s not good to get the blood flowing right before you try to sleep, however. Just before bedtime, it
would be better to take a hot bath. Add some Ep- som salts to relax those muscles you were building earlier in the day.
Hormones and Sleeplessness The prime cause of insomnia in my patients is hormone deficiencies and imbalances. Low thyroid function can keep you awake at night and exhaust- ed during the day. Try using iodized salt or taking an iodine supplement to improve thyroid function. Iodine is crucial for normal hormone function, brain function, and prostate and breast cancer prevention, but few doctors remember that. We are surrounded by minerals such as fluoride, chloride, and bromide that can replace what little iodine we get from shellfish, seaweed, and iodized salt. Most Americans are very deficient in iodine and don’t know what that means or why it’s important. Replacing iodine in the diet can often fix low thy- roid function (including its attendant insomnia). Beyond that easy fix, you would need a doctor to help regulate your thyroid. The sex hormones are crucial for normal brain function, including sleep. Women do well with progesterone replacement after menopause, with little to no risk of cancer (it’s the pharma- ceutical version of artificial progesterone that increases risk of cancer). Though you can buy over-the-counter progesterone topical cream, for proper hormone replacement therapy please see a knowledgeable physician who uses bioidentical hormones. Sometimes different forms of this hor- mone are required, and any menopausal woman who wants to be young, healthy, energetic, and well rested as long as possible will need the help of a hormone-savvy practitioner.
SUMMER 2021
ESSENTIAL Naples
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