Matthew Walker: "Why We Sleep: The New Science of Sleep and Dreams"

[Matt]

Saw him on Joe Rogan recently and found it really interesting! One thing I aim to work on better since listening to the show is my sleep. 

I would normally drink tea throughout the day, right up until I go to sleep at night. I didn't know until listening to him that even if you stop drinking caffeine 6 hours before try to sleep, it will still affect the depth of your sleep. This is true even if people think they slept fine.

 

Since stopping any caffeine consumption after 2 pm, I notice I start to feel tired earlier in the night and I think I have been sleeping better. 

 

"Matthew Walker is Professor of Neuroscience and Psychology at the University of California, Berkeley, and Founder and Director of the Center for Human Sleep Science. Check out his book "Why We Sleep: Unlocking the Power of Sleep and Dreams"

 

 

https://www.amazon.com/Why-We-Sleep-Unlocking-Dreams/dp/1501144316

Edited May 8, 2018 by Matt

[mccoy]

Thanks! For my next commute (podcast), or next threadmill section (Youtube)

[Todd Allen]

Good podcast, thanks!  One interesting/funny/scary tidbit was learning of https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Stewart_Halsted the founder of the surgical residency training program at John Hopkins which has since become a foundation of medical residency training programs across the US.  He didn't place much value on sufficient sleep because he was addicted to cocaine.

 

The other thing I learned is why the nightly hot baths I have been taking have been so effective at fixing my sleep.  I started the practice hoping to increase expression of heat shock proteins which have been shown highly beneficial in mouse models of my disease, SBMA, when stimulated by drugs.  I don't have a way of measuring that effect but I've continued the practice for many other reasons perhaps the most profound of which has been the improvement in sleep.  I'm increasingly of the opinion that I've largely succeeded in reversing this muscle wasting disease as I'm continuing to improve muscle mass and function for 2 years since beginning my lifestyle interventions which began with CR.  I just set a new personal best (at least in the past 10+ years) of walking a mile in 40 minutes which doesn't sound that impressive, but 2 years ago I could hardly walk 50 feet without collapsing.

Edited May 9, 2018 by Todd Allen

[Gordo]

I will also add this to my playlist.  Haven't listened to it yet.  But I will add my 2 cents - cold exposure can also really improve sleep in my experience.  I've always been a good sleeper, but I find that when I ice down before bed I seem to get even deeper sleep and fall asleep faster as well.  I use ice bags for this, on the supraclavicular area.

[Mechanism]

Edited

Edited July 20, 2020 by Mechanism

[Todd Allen]

Gordo, yes it is the body cooling which promotes sleep.  A hot bath ramps up the body's cooling processes and core body temperature drops fast after a hot bath.  I typically slide over the edge of the tub and onto a towel on the floor and wait to stop sweating which takes about 15 minutes and often fall asleep while waiting.  When I awake I drink a quart or two of cool water to replace some of what I lost in the bath probably lowering my body temp a bit more and get into bed and am back deep asleep within a minute or two.

[Gordo]

He recommended, very intuitively, going to bed neither too full nor too hungry; both interfere with deep sleep

 

This is maybe the biggest consideration with TRF.  Several people do the early window (either breakfast only, or breakfast/lunch) because mornings are when you've got the highest insulin sensitivity (supposedly) but I've long suspected this would result in sleep disruption for me personally, and just based on various anecdotes, I think people doing this do seem to have more sleep issues (i.e. either not getting very deep sleep which I feel is very important for health, and/or getting less sleep by comparison).

[Mechanism]

Edited

Edited July 20, 2020 by Mechanism

[Todd Allen]

Sleep disruption has become my most common reason for breaking fasts.  While I can still fall asleep readily after a few days of fasting I can't stay asleep through the night.  I assumed it was elevated cortisol in response to low blood sugar though maybe it is the ghrellin and other factors mentioned in the podcast.

[Mechanism]

Edited

Edited July 20, 2020 by Mechanism

[Gordo]

I enjoyed this latest Mathew Walker interview:

 

[tea]

3 grams of glycine before bed has improved my sleep quality.  If you have trouble falling asleep, I can highly recommend lemon balm extract (I use Cyracos).  And if you want vivid dreams, but possibly disrupted sleep, then magnesium-l-threonate before bed.