June Russell's Health Facts

Alcohol - Sleep

[Importance of Sleep]   [Nightcap]   [Insomnia]   [Apnea]   [Snoring]   [Sleep Disruption]   [Sleep Deprivation]   [Herbs for Sleep]   [Melatonin]   [Article]  

The Importance of Sleep and the Need to Avoid Alcohol

How much sleep do you need? Dr. Thomas Wehr, a psychiatrist and researcher at the National Institutes of Mental Health, found that with no time cues and 14 hours of darkness (as in winter), people slept 10 to 12 hours for 21 days. After snoozing off their accumulative sleep debt (about 17.5 hours), the men settled at eight hours and 15 minutes, and the women settled at an average of 9 hours and 15 minutes per night. Older persons may need less sleep. Lack of sleep is a source of stress that is detrimental at best and deadly at worst.
{"How to save yourself from anger and depression," Nan Kathryn Fuchs, PhD, Women’s Health Letter, 2001}

Even in small doses, alcohol can cause early sedation or sleepiness, awaking during the night, and suppression of REM (rapid eye movement) sleep. REM sleep is the dreaming stage of sleep, however, when REM sleep occurs near wakefulness, it can cause hallucinations.
{"Alcohol effects on the brain," Alcohol Research Center, LSUHSC - Lousiana State University Health Sciences Center, Aug. 2002}

Thirty-eight percent of Americans slept eight or more hours in 2001, but in 2002 this had dropped to 30%. Women who get only six hours of shut-eye a night raise their chance of developing heart disease by 30% over those who snooze for the optimum eight hours, according to a study at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston. If you are surviving with less than five hours, your risk jumps another 52%.
{Health magazine Oct./Nov. 2002}

Sleep loss is a common problem in America; one of the sleep tips is to avoid alcohol in the late afternoon and evening. Sleep loss may interfere with the body’s ability to metabolize carbohydrates and cause high blood levels of glucose, a basic sugar {Lancet}. The excess glucose promotes the overproduction of insulin, which can promote the storage of body fat, and can also lead to insulin resistance, a critical feature of adult-onset diabetes.
{"Paying the price for cheating on sleep," The New York Times, Dec. 28, 1999}
{Thyroid weight loss center: planning to lose weight in the new year? Experts say, "Think Sleep," thyroid.about.com, Jan. 2003}

Sleep deprivation or too much sleep should be considered unhealthy habits. Women who sleep five or fewer hours have an 82% higher risk of heart attack than those who get eight hours (six hours = 30% higher).
{Researchers from Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, Healthscout.com, Jan. 2003}

How people sleep can seriously alter the balance of hormones in their bodies, which in turn may influence the progression of cancer, says Professor David Spiegel, from Stanford University Medical Center in California. A cortisol rhythm thrown off by troubled sleep could make a person more cancer-prone. Another hormone called melatonin, pumped out by the brain during sleep, is an anti-oxidant capable of preventing damage to DNA that can lead to cancer.
{"Sleep can be ‘weapon against cancer," healthy.net, Oct. 2003}   Editor’s comment: The use of alcohol is detrimental to the functioning of the hormones of the body, as well as being a class "A" human carcinogen.

Alcohol as a Nightcap

Alcohol taken in the evening or as a ‘nightcap’ is counter-productive. It helps you fall asleep, but hours later during the night, it has the opposite effect and keeps you awake.
{American Family Physician, 1995, in the Health Gazette, Mar. 1995}

Fatigue due to alcohol consumption is common. A nightcap may get you to sleep, but drinking late at night produces troubled, fragmented sleep.
{Excedrin Headache Relief Update, 1996}

Avoid alcohol before going to bed. A nightcap makes you drowsy at first, but when the alcohol leaves your system your blood sugar will drop, causing you to wake.
{"Older women," Natural Health magazine, Nov./Dec. 1999}

Alcohol robs a person of ‘dreaming sleep,’ which is essential to well-being. The relaxing ‘nightcap’ can lead to sleeplessness and tiredness with irritability the next morning.
{"You are what you drink," Luks and Barbato, 1989}

Consider not having a ‘nightcap’ as one of the sleep hygiene steps for better slumber. Alcohol may help some people fall asleep, but it interferes with substances in the brain that allow for continuous sleep. The result is repeated waking (or partial waking) through the night, leading to fewer hours of truly deep restful sleep. Avoid drinking alcohol between dinner and bedtime.
{"To eat, perchance to sleep," Washington Post Health, Aug. 29, 2000}

Avoid an alcoholic nightcap within three hours of bedtime. Alcohol, which initially acts as a sedative, can also have a stimulant effect and will interfere with your sleep later in the night. This affects us more when we get older.
{"Living Better, Longer," Prevention, Sep. 2000}

One drink on five hours’ sleep is as debilitating as six drinks on eight hours of sleep, says research from Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit. Eat dinner at least three hours before bedtime, and skip alcohol during those hours.
{"Eat right, sleep well, play hard," USA WEEKEND - May 30, June 1, 2003}

The use of alcohol disrupts both REM and slow wave sleep, both vital in the restoration and rebuilding of the mind and the body. Alcohol affects the neurotransmitters that regulate these two phases of sleep as well as the onset of sleep. Never use alcohol as a sleep aid, it only aggravates your problems, and never mix alcohol with other medications, as it is not only dangerous, it can be lethal. If you suffer from other sleep disorders alcohol makes them worse, and sometimes actually causes them. In sleep apnea, when the throat muscles relax and cause a cessation of breathing, you ordinarily gasp for breath and startle yourself awake. If you have been drinking, you are more relaxed, and may be unable to awaken and start breathing again.
{"Alcohol and sleep, no thanks, I’m sleeping," sleepdisorders.about.com, Nov. 2004}

--- Alcohol in the Late Afternoon/Evening ---

Don't drink any alcohol within four to six hours of bedtime if you want a good night’s sleep.
{Justiniano F. Campa, MD, Neurology Dept. of University of Virginia Medical School}

As a lifestyle change to make your sleep more restful, avoid alcohol in the late afternoon and evening.
{"Getting a good night’s sleep," Senior Advisor, Blue Cross, Blue Shield, 1998}

How to get better sleep: don't sleep in late on weekends and don't drink alcohol after 6 p.m.
{ABC News, Jennifer Josephs, "Health and Living." April 3, 2000}

Insomnia

Every year, ten million people in the U.S. receive prescription drugs to aid sleep.
{American Journal of Natural Medicine, May 1995, Healthwell.com}

Don't drink alcohol at any time, is the advice to the patients at the Insomnia Clinic of the University of Arizona Sleep Disorders Center in Tucson.

To head off insomnia, practice good sleep habits: keep alcohol consumption to a minimum.
{"Falling asleep," Anne Moulton, MD, internist, McCall’s magazine, May 1997}

One of the common causes of chronic insomnia is the use of alcohol.
{"You are getting sleepy ...," Consultation, Jay Siwek, MD, Washington Post Health, Feb. 15, 2000}

Nearly 62% of Americans experience some type of sleep problem several nights a week, according to a recent poll by the National Sleep Foundation (NSF). Insomnia can be caused by alcohol. The American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM) says more than 35 million Americans suffer long-term insomnia and 20 to 30 million experience shorter-term episodes of sleeplessness.
{ "You're not the only one lying awake in bed," Treatment of Choice, Washington Post Health, July 4, 2000}

According to the National Library of Medicine, 25% of Americans occasionally have insomnia, while insomnia is chronic for about 10% of the population. If you are not sleeping well, it is nearly inevitable that you will eventually develop some health problems because your brain and body tissues need sleep to regenerate.
{mercola.com, Dec. 2001}

--- Rebound Insomnia ---

Some people drink alcohol to help them drift off to sleep, but it isn't helpful over the long haul because alcohol disrupts the brainstem sleep mechanism, resulting in "rebound insomnia." If you use alcohol, you will probably awaken during the night because your body will need more "sedative."
{"Midlife insomnia," Dr. Christiane Northrup’s Health Wisdom for Women, July 2000}

Alcohol consumed within an hour of bedtime appears to disrupt the second half of sleep, awakening from dreams and returning to sleep with difficulty. This sleep disruption may lead to daytime fatigue and sleepiness. Bedtime alcohol consumption among older persons may lead to unsteadiness if walking is attempted during the night, with increased risk of falls and injuries. According to studies in ‘Alcohol Health Research World,’ 1995, a moderate dose of alcohol consumed as much as six hours before bedtime can increase wakefulness during the second half of sleep. By the time this effect occurs, the dose of alcohol consumed earlier has already been eliminated from the body, suggesting a relatively long-lasting change in the body’s mechanisms of sleep regulation.
{J Clin Psychopharmacol, 1996 and Addict Biol 1997}
{Alcohol Alert, CBSHealthWatch - Library, June 2000}

Apnea

Avoid alcohol if you have sleep apnea because it relaxes the throat muscles and causes them to flop on the windpipe.
{"Sleep apnea: a wake-up call for snorers," The John Hopkins Medical Letter, ‘Health After 50,’ Nov. 1997}

It has been estimated that 12 million Americans have sleep apnea. One of the biggest risk factors is obesity.
{"Discover" magazine, May 2000}

Snoring

Snoring is particularly prevalent for those who are overweight, smoke, or drink alcoholic beverages. Avoid alcohol and heavy meals at least three hours before bedtime, as they both may cause increased relaxation of the throat muscles, which can precipitate snoring.
{Men’s Health, ‘Ask the experts,’ Robert Ivker, DO, President of the American Holistic Medical Association and clinical instructor in University of Colorado School of Medicine, Natural Health magazine, 1998}

Sleep Disruption

Avoid alcohol, a depressant that induces sleep but disrupts sleep cycles during the night.
{"Insomnia," The Johns Hopkins Medical Letter, ‘Health after 50’}

The use of alcohol makes getting up more difficult because it disrupts natural sleep, exerting a direct influence on the brain’s arousal apparatus. Even an innocent ‘nightcap’ can suppress the all-important dream stage of sleep, as well as delta sleep, which is physiologically the deepest stage of sleep. Alcohol acts as a diuretic, so the need to go to the bathroom at night disrupts sleep.
{"A good night’s sleep," Jerrold S. Maxmen, MD}

Avoid alcohol four to five hours before bedtime. Although alcohol can make people drowsy, it actually distorts the normal brain-wave pattern of sleep and prompts more frequent awakenings, sometimes causing difficulty getting back to sleep.
{"Healing anxiety with herbs," Harold Bloomfield, MD, 1998}

Sleep Deprivation and Chronic Sleep Loss

Sleep debts are like stress, and can hinder metabolism and hormone production in a way that is similar to the effects of aging and the early stages of diabetes. Chronic sleep loss may speed the onset or increase the severity of age-related conditions such as type II Diabetes, high blood pressure, obesity and memory loss. Earlier research shows that in developed countries, the average night's sleep has grown shorter since the beginning of the century, from 9 hours to 7.5 hours.
{"Too little sleep may acelerate aging," The Lancet, October 23, 1999, in Mercola.com email, August 2002}  Editor's comment: The use of alcohol results in less sleep and a poorer quality of sleep, and although the recommendations are not to drink alcohol four to six hours before bedtime, the advice of sleep clinics is to eliminate alcohol.

Studies show that those who suffer from sleep deprivation have a reduced ability to handle stress, poor concentration and memory, slower reflexes, difficulty accomplishing tasks, and diminished enjoyment of relationships. In addition they are less alert, and more likely to have accidents, have increased vulnerability to illness, and a loss of creativity and clarity of thinking. And almost everyone is familiar with the fatigue, aches, and pains that occur because of poor quality of sleep. No one should do anything that requires judgment and coordination when not getting enough sleep. According to Daniel Katz, MD, Department of Neurology, the Menniger Clinic, Topeka, Kansas, a lack of sleep is one of the major under-recognized killers in our society. When alcohol is added then it’s double trouble!

Almost two-thirds of Americans fail to get enough sleep. Too little sleep reduces levels of the muscle-building human growth hormone, as well as prolactin, a hormone that insures proper immune system functioning. Thus, sleep-related hormone imbalances could result in memory problems, more body fat, and higher susceptibility to infections. At night the body and brain need to reestablish their energy. According to researchers at the Harvard Medical School, people who get inadequate sleep are using their brains on a metabolically depleted level. They may think they are okay but they are not, and continual undermining of the body’s rejuvenating process may hasten aging. Alcohol impairs sleep.
{"Wake up to the need for sleep," San Francisco Examiner, June 7, 1998, excerpted from Spectrum magazine, on GaryNull.com - April 2003}   Editor's comment: Alcohol use is not only a negative for sleep, but for body fat and immune function.

Chronic sleep problems cause a decreased quality-of-life risk, including increased risk of heart disease and obesity, to say nothing of relationship problems. Three out of four women between the ages of 30 and 60 do not get enough sleep, and 74% of American mothers working outside the home agree that feeling tired all the time is a major problem. Older women are more likely than older men to report that the quality of their sleep has declined over the past 10 years. Sleep loss may increase hunger and affect the body’s metabolism. Short-term sleep loss may even increase blood pressure. One of the tips for better sleep is to avoid alcohol.
{Nutrition Hints, #1174, Betty Kamen, PhD and Dr. Michael Rosenbaum, MD, May 2003)

Alcohol, Insomnia and Herbal Remedies for Sleep

There are 40 million Americans who are troubled by insomnia. Avoid late afternoon or evening caffeine or alcohol. The herbal remedies valerian and kava kava are often highly effective at curbing mild insomnia. However, kava kava can cause grogginess the following morning. Valerian does not cause grogginess or stomach upset, but may cause headaches or restlessness.
{"What to take when you can't sleep," Bottom line Health newsletter, April 2001}

Melatonin

Sixty million Americans have a sleep disorder. Women are twice as likely to suffer from insomnia as men. Men and women over 60 experience it more frequently, possibly because the body produces less sleep-inducing melatonin with age.
{"When counting sheep isn’t enough," Alternative Medicine, Oct. 2002}

Alcohol inhibits the release of melatonin, a hormone derived from serotonin, an antioxidant that is linked with decreasing toxicity and decreasing cancer.
{"Eat and beat cancer," J. Robert Hatherhill, PhD, 1998}

Melatonin: Caffeine and alcohol reduce melatonin which means less sleep, says an ad for Meletonex.
{2000, Sun Source, Bayer}

Alcohol can disrupt your melatonin supply. The fact that drinking alcoholic beverages at night makes your sleep restless appears related in part to melatonin output.
{"Melatonin-boosting lifestyle," Natural Health magazine, 1999}

Volunteers who drank the equivalent of one or two glasses of wine at 7 o'clock in the evening had 41% less melatonin at midnight, compared to the nights when they did not drink alcohol. This could be why alcohol disrupts sleep.
{Women’s Health Connection newsletter, Dec. 1995/Jan. 1996}

Can melatonin help you sleep? A large-scale government review suggests a reason for conflicting claims. Melatonin is better for some types of sleep disorders than others. Specifically, the news is good for the people who have trouble falling asleep. However, the evidence didn’t find melatonin helpful for beating jet lag or for boosting sleep quality or snooze time. Most previous studies on "delayed sleep phase" (DSPS) have used 5 mg of melatonin, taken 5 hours before bedtime. The review concluded that melatonin is safe to use for up to 3 months, but its long-term safety is unclear.
{"Melatonin: it works, more or less," Alternative Medicine magazine, Mar. 2005}

Remember that any amount of alcohol use is a sure fire way to stop your body’s production of melatonin for that night.
{"Treat your colds naturally and avoid unnecessary over-the-counter drugs," Dr. Joseph Mercola, mercola.com, Oct. 2005}

Article from Parade Magazine

With so much in the news lately about the epidemic of sleepiness in our society, individuals need to be reminded that the consumption of alcoholic beverages is one of the causes of sleep depravation, and alcohol use within four to six hours of bedtime can interfere with sleep. Alcohol, a depressant, induces sleep but disrupts sleep cycles, particularly ‘dream sleep’ and ‘delta sleep,’ which are the deepest stages of sleep and are essential to well-being. Studies not only show alcohol use inhibits the release of melatonin, but it can also precipitate snoring (which can keep others awake).

According to studies in "Alcohol Health Research World," a moderate dose of alcohol consumed as much as six hours before bedtime can increase wakefulness during the second half of sleep. By the time this effect occurs, the dose of alcohol consumed earlier has been eliminated from the body, suggesting a relatively long-lasting change in the body’s mechanisms of sleep regulation. Even a ‘nightcap’ can produce troubled, fragmented sleep, and alcohol acts as a diuretic so there is a need to make additional trips to the bathroom during the night.

Sleep experts warn that a single drink of alcohol when not getting enough sleep can have the effects of several drinks. According to Daniel Katz, MD, Dept. of Neurology, the Menniger Clinic, Topeka, Kansas, a lack of sleep is one of the major under-recognized killers in our society.

A lack of sleep, as does the use of alcohol, results in a reduced ability to handle stress, poor concentration and memory, slower reflexes, diminished enjoyment of relationships, being less alert, having an increased vulnerability to illness, and a loss of creativity and clarity of thinking. Almost everyone is familiar with the fatigue, aches and pains that occur because of poor quality of sleep, and no one should do anything that requires judgment and coordination when not getting enough sleep. Combine the lack of sleep with alcohol and the result is "double trouble."

Snoring: almost half of all Americans snore occasionally. Twenty-five% do so every time they fall asleep. The noise they generate varies from "heroic," audible two bedrooms away, to a soft and gentle purr. During sleep the soft palate, uvula, and the tongue and sometimes the tonsils, all relax. Air passing over them in this laid-back state causes them to vibrate, and this produces a snore. Avoid alcohol at least four hours before bedtime, as well as anything else that relaxes the muscles in the back of the throat.
{"Snore? Who? Me?" by Dr. Isadore Rosenfeld, Mar. 10, 2002, Parade Magazine}