More on Sleep....Get more sleep

I've had some posts in the past about the importance of getting enough good quality sleep, in the dark. It is linked to a lot of different issues from GH release to increased levels of stress hormones.

Anyway there have been a few bits of research and related blog postings in the past few days on the issue of sleep that I found interesting and wanted to get up here, as much to gather things together in one place for clarity in my own thinking.

1. A study reported that says that a lack of deep sleep may increase the risk of type 2 diabetes - Suppression of slow-wave sleep in healthy young adults significantly decreases their ability to regulate blood-sugar levels and increases the risk of type 2 diabetes...Also reported here "strategies to improve both sleep duration and also sleep quality should be considered as a potential intervention to prevent or delay the development of type 2 diabetes in elderly individuals as well as the obese"
   
2. Dr John Briffa comments on this study (and others) - Taking the research as a whole, it’s reasonable to believe, I think, that getting the right amount of sleep may have a very important bearing on health, just like being active and eating well may do.
   
3. Robb Wolf thinks about sleep and intermittent fasting - basically get rid of the refined carbs, get enough sleep, minimise your stress and exercise. Then think about IF. The others are priorities before playing with IF. Perhaps I’m naive, but I find it interesting that some of the most potent anti-cancer “interventions” known include sleep, ketosis, intermittent fasting and…happiness. I find it interesting because this seems to be our default mode. Loads of sleep, episodes of ketosis and fasting among an extended network of friends and family. (on the last point I had a post a while back that loneliness is bad for you)
   
4. Scott (the Modern Forager) pointed to an article on sleep patterns - Ekirch reports that for many centuries, and perhaps back to Homer, Western society slept in two shifts. People went to sleep, got up in the middle of the night for an hour or so, and then went to sleep again. Thus night — divided into a “first sleep” and “second sleep” — also included a curious intermission. Scott has another excellent article on sleep
   

I'm going to bed now.....