Waking up at night, staring at the ceiling until late at night, days passing in that "I can't sleep well" state... Well, unfortunately, we have bad news - it's a bigger problem than you think - bipolar disorder, cognitive issues, increased coronary artery calcification and an abnormal ankle-brachial index. Two fantastic studies involving almost a hundred thousand of participants have revealed how crucial sleep is to our mental, cardiovascular and overall health. But there are also good ones - there is a solution. Natural one, of course.
The Science Behind It
Study 1, which included 91,105 participants from the UK Biobank (impressive, right?) aged between 37 and 73, came to the clear conclusion that sleep and circadian rhythm disturbances are a little worse than they seem. They are significantly associated with an increased risk of depression and bipolar disorder, and also affect your overall happiness and cognitive function in the long term, adding stress and anxiety to everyday life (anyone want to age miserable and with mental health problems? Raise a hand!). To give you a more specific idea of what we're talking about here, decreased circadian rhythm amplitude was associated with a 6% increased risk of depression and an 11% increased risk of bipolar disorder. Simply put, poor sleep increases the likelihood of developing bipolar disorder by 11%. Doesn't sound too positive, does it?
Meanwhile, in the second study, they took 2,032 ladies and gentlemen (mean age 68.6 years) from different ethnic groups in the MESA cohort. The results were striking: irregular sleep patterns were much more associated with tangible signs of cardiovascular stress than expected. This led to increased coronary artery calcification and an abnormal ankle-brachial index (whatever that means, it sounds bad), which can indicate peripheral artery disease and hypertension. Specifically, those with the most irregular sleep patterns had a 33% higher risk of severe coronary artery calcium buildup compared to those with more regular sleep. To stimulate your imagination a bit, if you usually lose one sock per laundry session, a 33% increase means you're now losing about one and a third socks each time!
Nerve Aid by Marco Sikaffy
There are so many ways to try to improve your sleep you'll get tired of googling all of them. In our Sana Family, we rely on natural remedy Nerve Aid, a herbal formulation crafted by our hero, Naturopathic Doctor Marco Sikaffy. Why? Because it has been used for more than 40 years (forty!) by his patients in North and South America. It's something, no? It simply means it works. And its 100% herbal nature means zero side effects.
Holistic Harmony
Incorporating holistic medicines into our lives isn't just about treating symptoms. It's about nurturing our entire being ᅳ mind, body, and spirit. The symptoms of stress and anxiety, like elevated blood pressure and insomnia are horrible but who wants to take pharmaceutical drugs treating symptoms and creating even more problems.
Conclusion
Seeking more restful nights? It all might not sound so important until someone tells you that your poor sleep has led to bipolar disorder. Not funny, right? Love yourself and take it seriously. Establish a regular sleep schedule, optimize your sleep environment, and consider trying Nerve Aid from Marco Sikaffy. The future you will thank you.
Love Yourself,
Sana Herbal Sciences Family
